Fordham wrapped up their non-conference schedule by knocking off VMI at home to end up 12-1 heading into conference play. This is the best start to a season since 1970-71. The team has also remained perfect thus far in the month of December with one more game to go against Davidson on the 28th as A10 play begins.
This team is athletic and deep. I would put up our starting five against any team in the A10 at this point (you could make a serious argument the top 8). It is a very good combination of experience & youth. As non-conference play moved on, we were able to see just how talented the Freshman class is as well. Will Richardson has gotten the most minutes thus far, and you can see why he was such a prized recruit. Being able to play with Darius Quisenberry , Anttrell Charlton & Kyle Rose will only enhance his learning curve and make him a much better player. Romad Dean has shown some serious talent as well. I believe he will become much more of a factor as the season moves along. Elijah Grey looks like he has unlimited upside, and has already shown some brilliant flashes. Also, we finally were able to see the college debut of Angel Montas against VMI. In a word. Wow. He looks and plays like a Freshman version of Khalid Moore. His ceiling (albeit one game) looks very high. It will be interesting to see how he develops as league play starts. This is easily the deepest and by far the most talented group of Freshman on Rose Hill in decades.
The upper classman add balance & stability. You can argue that each one is improving game by game. Rostyslav Novitskyi has gotten better in each outing. He is shooting .714% from the floor and has been unstoppable in the paint. He, along with starter Abdou Tsimbila are a very impressive 1-2 punch in the post. Abdou is a force on the defensive end and has locked down the paint. His offensive game gets better every day as well. Darius Quisenberry has been a rock star. He has excellent stats that would only be much better if he wasn't such an unselfish player. He lifts the whole team while on the floor. Khalid Moore has every aspect of his game working. He has been super clutch during the non-conference and his effortless seeming game is literally unstoppable. Antrell Charlton is running the show at the point and has developed an impressive mid range jumper that seems unstoppable. Kyle Rose has remained a bit streaky, but when he is on, he is clearly a game changer. The early season "Mr. Clutch" award clearly goes to Zach Riley, he has drained some impressive three's at crucial parts of several games, he is truly a threat beyond the arc. The one player we have not seen much of thus far is Patrick Kelly. I believe he is fighting through some health issues, but he is also another threat that teams will have to account for in A10 play.
The team stats are impressive & much improved over last year. Scoring is way up at 75.8 ppg Field Goal % is a healthy .452% and beyond the arc stands .361%. Free throws are a healthy .769%. We also have a +5.2 rebounding advantage per game thus far. Blocks and steals stand at 5.8 & 7.0 per game respectively, as the defense has remained stout with just a few lapses.
The one persistent and glaring hole in the overall game is turnovers. Especially live ball turn overs. Currently, turnovers are at 15.2 per game. This needs to come down during league play if they want to make a serious push to the top of the A10.
Overall, exciting time on Rose Hill, the team is creating a buzz. I personally cannot wait until the A10 season gets underway. We are clearly a threat to take it all this year, and that opportunity starts on Dec 28th against Davidson.
I would like to wish everyone in the Ram Nation a very Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays!
Go Rams!
This team is athletic and deep. I would put up our starting five against any team in the A10 at this point (you could make a serious argument the top 8). It is a very good combination of experience & youth. As non-conference play moved on, we were able to see just how talented the Freshman class is as well. Will Richardson has gotten the most minutes thus far, and you can see why he was such a prized recruit. Being able to play with Darius Quisenberry , Anttrell Charlton & Kyle Rose will only enhance his learning curve and make him a much better player. Romad Dean has shown some serious talent as well. I believe he will become much more of a factor as the season moves along. Elijah Grey looks like he has unlimited upside, and has already shown some brilliant flashes. Also, we finally were able to see the college debut of Angel Montas against VMI. In a word. Wow. He looks and plays like a Freshman version of Khalid Moore. His ceiling (albeit one game) looks very high. It will be interesting to see how he develops as league play starts. This is easily the deepest and by far the most talented group of Freshman on Rose Hill in decades.
The upper classman add balance & stability. You can argue that each one is improving game by game. Rostyslav Novitskyi has gotten better in each outing. He is shooting .714% from the floor and has been unstoppable in the paint. He, along with starter Abdou Tsimbila are a very impressive 1-2 punch in the post. Abdou is a force on the defensive end and has locked down the paint. His offensive game gets better every day as well. Darius Quisenberry has been a rock star. He has excellent stats that would only be much better if he wasn't such an unselfish player. He lifts the whole team while on the floor. Khalid Moore has every aspect of his game working. He has been super clutch during the non-conference and his effortless seeming game is literally unstoppable. Antrell Charlton is running the show at the point and has developed an impressive mid range jumper that seems unstoppable. Kyle Rose has remained a bit streaky, but when he is on, he is clearly a game changer. The early season "Mr. Clutch" award clearly goes to Zach Riley, he has drained some impressive three's at crucial parts of several games, he is truly a threat beyond the arc. The one player we have not seen much of thus far is Patrick Kelly. I believe he is fighting through some health issues, but he is also another threat that teams will have to account for in A10 play.
The team stats are impressive & much improved over last year. Scoring is way up at 75.8 ppg Field Goal % is a healthy .452% and beyond the arc stands .361%. Free throws are a healthy .769%. We also have a +5.2 rebounding advantage per game thus far. Blocks and steals stand at 5.8 & 7.0 per game respectively, as the defense has remained stout with just a few lapses.
The one persistent and glaring hole in the overall game is turnovers. Especially live ball turn overs. Currently, turnovers are at 15.2 per game. This needs to come down during league play if they want to make a serious push to the top of the A10.
Overall, exciting time on Rose Hill, the team is creating a buzz. I personally cannot wait until the A10 season gets underway. We are clearly a threat to take it all this year, and that opportunity starts on Dec 28th against Davidson.
I would like to wish everyone in the Ram Nation a very Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays!
Go Rams!
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