Atlantic Ten Basketball

Fordham won its second game in a row Wednesday night, a 68-58 overtime victory over Monmouth in front of a sparse crowd of 1,130 at the Rose Hill Gym.

A three-pointer from Monmouth's Collin Stewart as time expired in regulation tied the game, 52-52, and forced the extra session.

But after the Hawks scored first, Fordham responded, outscoring them 16-4 the rest of the way to improve to 3-4 on the young season.

"It's a good win," Fordham head coach Tom Pecora said when he met with the media following the game. "There weren't many people in this building who thought we were going to win in overtime because all the momentum was going their way. I think we showed a lot of grit and toughness in continuing to compete and make the plays we needed to make."

The win is the most important story, but who can forget the drama in how it all played out?

After Monmouth scored the first basket of the game, the Rams responded with an 11-0 run. They put together a solid first half—their best 20 minutes of basketball of the season—and led 31-22 at the break.

In the second half, the Hawks made one run after another. Fordham led by nine, 50-41, with four minutes, 15 seconds to go. But the Hawks would go on an 8-2 run before the unthinkable happened with Monmouth down by three.

Originally, there were 0.9 seconds on the clock when officials gave a timeout to Monmouth though it was unclear who actually called for time. After a conference, 2.5 seconds were put back on the clock, setting up a dramatic end to regulation.

Fordham's philosophy, shared by coaches throughout the country, is to foul to prevent the opponent from getting off a three-pointer that could tie the game. Off the inbounds pass, Christian Sengfelder was unable to foul Stewart, who slipped past him, took a couple of dribbles and connected on the game-tying shot from beyond the arc.

"Crazy last few seconds," Pecora said. [Christian] doesn't foul hard enough. The good thing out of that is he'll never make that mistake again."

In overtime, Monmouth scored first before a three-pointer by Eric Paschall got the Rams going. Fordham was 9-of-11 from the free-throw line in the extra session, a significant development after it shot 40 percent from the line in the first half and 50 percent from the line in the second half. Down the stretch, it struggled at the line, with Antwoine Anderson missing three key free throws late.

Pecora said that practice doesn't end until the Rams shoot 80 percent from the line. They shot 59.3 percent overall from the charity stripe Wednesday night.

"We shot 60 [percent] today [from the free-throw line]. That was a difference-maker," Pecora said.

"When you're a young team, you're trying to teach them how to smell blood and put teams away. We're still working on that."

Sengfelder finished with a team-high 21 points. He added 11 rebounds, five on the offensive end. He'll remember the play he didn't make at the end of regulation and a couple other mistakes he pointed out after the game, but overall, he had a solid game. Not bad for a freshman who admitted that he was going through what all freshmen in the country go through this early in their college careers.

"I had a pretty good game, but in the end, keeping my composure was tough," Sengfelder admitted. "Even though I had a good game on the stat sheet, I almost lost it. It was tough to stay composed, especially when the game was on the line. I fought back in overtime.

"I have to get used to it. I need to adjust a little bit more."

Monmouth is by no means a pushover. The Hawks entered the game with a 4-4 record, coming off two straight wins against MAAC opponents—Marist and Iona. Their losses came against West Virginia, Towson, Maryland and SMU.

Meanwhile, the Rams hadn't played since their win nine days ago over Siena. That win was big, as it came on the heels of two horrible home losses—first to UMass Lowell then six days later to Maryland Eastern Shore. 

None of Fordham's games this year will be easy, but the next two present some intriguing challenges. On Sunday, Fordham will play St. John's at Madison Square Garden. The Red Storm are hot. Last Saturday, they beat Syracuse, 69-57, at the Carrier Dome, a win that earned them the No. 24 ranking in the latest Associated Press Top 25 poll. Last night, St. John's beat Fairleigh Dickinson, 74-52, to improve to 7-1 on the year.

Last December, the Red Storm crushed Fordham, 104-58. This St. John's team is better than the one the Rams saw last year.

Eight days after that one, Fordham will take on Manhattan at the Barclays Center. The Jaspers are 2-5, but that, too, is a rivalry game—one Manhattan will definitely want to get after the Rams beat them on their home turf a year ago.

What a difference a couple of weeks can make. Before the Siena game, Fordham was sinking. Now, the Rams are swimming.

"I’m excited about this group," Pecora said. "It's a good blend of veterans and young guys."

Quotations in this article were obtained firsthand.

Charles Costello covers the Fordham Rams for Bleacher Report. A full archive of his articles can be found here. Follow him on Twitter: @CFCostello

Fordham's Tom Pecora knew he'd be coaching a young team in 2014-15. But he also knew that his veterans—two juniors and one senior—would be just as important to the team's success as the seven freshmen. 

When Pecora met the media following Fordham's win over Siena last Monday, he brought with him Ryan Rhoomes, the Rams' 6'8" junior forward, fresh off a six-point, 17-rebound, five-block performance that helped the Rams end their four-game skid.

"He dominated the backboards," Pecora said about Rhoomes during his remarks about the game. "He was solid in a lot of ways, and that was a key for us."

Rhoomes, a co-captain, led the Rams in rebounding (6.9 per game) and blocks (28 total) last season.

But this season, Fordham needs more from him. A star coming out of high school, Rhoomes has the potential to be a dominating force in the paint. With senior Ryan Canty out for the year following back surgery, he's one of just three upperclassmen who will see significant minutes. Fordham desperately needs his ability, size and leadership.

"We need our veterans just to show the way, lead the way for these freshmen," Pecora said. 

Rhoomes was a major force in the Rams' win over Siena. Both of his field goals came at crucial points in the second half. With 10 minutes, 27 seconds to go, he connected off a feed from Antwoine Anderson that put Fordham ahead by 11. With 7:19 to play and the Saints cutting into the lead, Rhoomes grabbed an offensive rebound and drew a foul while connecting on a layup that gave the Rams a six-point lead. Of his 17 rebounds on the night, six came on the offensive end.

Not to be overlooked was his play on the other end of the floor, where Fordham turned in its best defensive effort of the season.

"[Ryan's] out there making the calls," Pecora said when addressing the defense. "I'm doing a lot of it through him."

It was quite the journey for Rhoomes before he finally arrived at Rose Hill in 2012. As a senior in high school, he led Cardozo in Queens, New York, to the Borough Championship and the PSAL Class AAA title game, averaged 16.7 points and 11.2 rebounds per game and was named the team's Most Valuable Player. Rhoomes' high school career began at Middletown South in New York. He also attended NIA Prep in Newark, New Jersey, the year before he joined the Rams.

So far this season, Rhoomes has shown flashes of what people hoped he'd be able to provide on a nightly basis. He leads the Atlantic 10 in rebounding, averaging 11.2 per game (6.2 on the offensive end). He pulled down 13 rebounds in Fordham's opening-night win over the New York Institute of Technology, 15 in the loss to UMass Lowell and then 17 in the Rams' second win of the year. He's averaging nine points per game, and he has 12 blocks through the first six games of the season.

"This year Coach [Pecora] wanted me to go out there and make up for Canty not being around," Rhoomes said after the Siena game. "I knew I had to step up on the boards."

Last Monday, on a night when freshman sensation Eric Paschall blocked a shot at the buzzer that sealed the win and garnered the attention, it was the overall play of the junior Rhoomes that was arguably the most noteworthy takeaway for Fordham.

Quotations in this article were obtained firsthand.

Charles Costello covers the Fordham Rams for Bleacher Report. A full archive of his articles can be found here. Follow him on Twitter: @CFCostello

By Fordham head coach Tom Pecora's estimation after the loss to Maryland Eastern Shore, the Rams had three freshmen on the floor for about 90 percent of the game. 

Pecora wasn't using age as an excuse, but anyone who saw what took place inside the Rose Hill Gym Saturday afternoon—missed free throws, bad shot selection, costly turnovers, poor defense—could tell that the Rams' youth and inexperience (they have seven freshmen on the roster) played a big part in the 72-66 loss, their fourth in a row.

That's what made Monday night's 69-67 win over Siena so significant. For the first time since opening night against the New York Institute of Technology, Fordham played the bulk of the game with a lead. After trailing early, the Rams went on a 16-0 run in the first half that gave them a 26-18 advantage, one they never relinquished.

In the second half, Fordham increased its lead to as many as 13. But with 6:27 to go, the lead had been cut to 58-55. Moments later, with 3:39 left in the game, it was down to 63-61. And with 20.4 seconds left, Fordham's lead was still at two, 67-65.

The Rams were in uncharted waters: a close game late, playing with the lead and challenged right to the last shot.

Down the stretch, as Pecora noted, there were three freshmen (Antwoine Anderson, Eric Paschall and Christian Sengfelder) and two juniors (Ryan Rhoomes and Mandell Thomas) on the floor. In the end, a game-saving block by Paschall as time expired sealed the win.

Paschall finished with 19 points, while Anderson and Thomas added 18 apiece. Rhoomes had 17 rebounds.

After the game, Pecora called his freshmen "fearless" and said he expects his veterans to be that way as well. On Monday night, they were.

"We need our veterans to lead the way for these freshmen," Pecora said. "We have three freshmen on the floor just about all the time. We need Ryan and we need Mandell [Thomas] and Bryan Smith. They're our only three upperclassmen so they have to lead the way a little bit. ... That's where we are right now. We're young."

On Saturday against UMES, Fordham turned the ball over 20 times. Against Siena, they turned it over 13 times. 

"I thought we did a great job against their pressure," Pecora said. "Lesson learned after Maryland Eastern Shore. To be pressed as much as we were [against Siena] and to have 13 turnovers—a lot weren't in the backcourt—I think that was big for us." 

It wasn't the only area of improvement, something Pecora pointed out in his postgame comments to the media following the Siena win, calling the team's performance "a sign of maturity."

"What I put on the board [after the game] was 41 percent from the field, only 13 turnovers and plus-four on the backboards. That's why we won the basketball game."

For one night, at least, the reality of Fordham's situation played out in its favor. The Rams aren't going to become older overnight, but they can show growth.

"We were looking at a year where we thought we'd be starting Ryan Rhoomes at the 4 and Ryan Canty at the 5, and Jon [Severe] would be with us at the 2," Pecora said. "That's not the way it is right now, but so what? You go out, you coach them up, [and] they let you do that. They practiced real hard all week.

"I'm very proud of them. That's a good win."

Quotations in this article were obtained firsthand.

Charles Costello covers the Fordham Rams for Bleacher Report. A full archive of his articles can be found here. Follow him on Twitter: @CFCostello

Jon Severe—Fordham University’s talented, yet, at times, enigmatic guard—has taken a leave of absence and is out indefinitely. In a statement emailed to the media Saturday, the school said Severe would take the leave "to address personal issues."

Severe, who averaged 17.3 points per game as a freshman, was suspended six days before the Rams’ opener due to a violation of team rules. As a result, he missed Fordham’s first game. When he returned, he played just 39 minutes in three games and scored only five points.

“We will continue to support Jon as he addresses some personal issues off the court,” Fordham head coach Tom Pecora said in the email from the school. “We wish him and his family all the best during this process and hope that everyone will respect their privacy.”

Fordham was 0-3 with Severe in the lineup. After losing to the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES), 72-66, Saturday at the Rose Hill Gym, its 1-1 without him.

On first thought, no one would say that the Rams are a better team without Severe. But with him, they struggled. And with Severe taking a leave, this break could be what's best for him and the team. At least, that's what Fordham might be hoping is the case.

Meanwhile, Fordham took to the court Saturday in desperate need of a win after an unfathomable loss to the University of Massachusetts Lowell last Sunday.

The Rams were down at the half, 32-26, and UMES increased its lead to 46-34 early in the second.

But then Fordham began its biggest and most important surge of the season, outscoring the Hawks 14-4 to cut the lead to two, 50-48, with 10:48 to go. UMES would go back up by six, and after Fordham got it back down to two, 55-53, with 7:46 left, the Hawks increased their lead to eight.

The Rams had another comeback in them, and they again trailed by just two with 2:46 left thanks to an Eric Paschall layup and made free throw.

Fordham had the ball down by three with 1:03 to go, but Mandell Thomas' attempt in the lane was blocked. With 45 seconds left, UMES had possession and, as it turned out, the game. They scored five unanswered points to seal the win.

"Men against boys for a good portion of the game, especially in the first half," was how Pecora described it in his postgame comments. "You look at turnovers and you look at free throws missed...I think that's where the game was lost."

Fordham turned the ball over 20 times and made just 64.5 percent of its free throws.

There's work to be done on the defensive end as well.

"Our defensive intensity wasn't there in the first half," Pecora said. "In the second half, we caused a few more turnovers to try to get some easy baskets."

Pecora also said that his team continues to take too many three-pointers (Fordham was 4-of-17 from beyond the arc), calling it another sign of the Rams' youth.

"We just look really young, and we are," he said. "I would say for 90 percent of this game, we had three freshmen on the floor. But that's the way it's going to be. We need more from the veterans."

Pecora maintained it was a better effort than last Sunday, but acknowledged it wasn't good enough to get the win.

"It came down to little things that could really turn the game around for us," he said. "We dug ourselves a hole and expended a lot of energy getting back into the game and never got over the top."

Paschall led the way with 25 points, Thomas chipped in with 13 and Antwoine Anderson scored 10 with a team-high five assists.

Unless otherwise noted, quotations in this article were obtained firsthand.

Charles Costello covers the Fordham Rams for Bleacher Report. A full archive of his articles can be found here. Follow him on Twitter: @CFCostello.

Fordham has been losing games for a long time. Still, it's hard to think of a worse loss than the one that occurred last Sunday when UMass Lowell came into the Rose Hill Gym and handed the Rams their third straight defeat.

After falling at Penn State and Maryland, the matchup with the River Hawks was supposed to be a redemption game for Fordham—the first of four in a row at home that all seemed winnable. 

Instead, Fordham turned in a clunker. It led 13-4 early, then the teams exchanged leads throughout the night, until UMass Lowell pulled in front by as many as 12 in the second half and defeated the Rams, 64-57.

"This is not a good one, I'm not going to lie to you," Fordham head coach Tom Pecora said in his opening remarks to the media after the game.

"We came off a game at Maryland where we played really hard and really well. And [there was] none of that tonight. I didn't see the intensity. I didn't see the toughness.

"Hopefully it's a lesson learned [for] these young players. Winning Division I basketball games against anybody is a tough thing. If winning was easy, everybody would do it."

The Rams have seven freshmen and only three upperclassmen playing significant minutes each night. They're young, and it's showing.

"We're playing like an immature, young team," Pecora said. "Our veterans have to help us in the process of maturing these guys."

"We have a lot of growing up to do," he added.

While you'd be justified if you pulled out the inexperience card, Pecora wasn't having any of that after Sunday's loss.

"I'm not here to make excuses," he said. "It's on me. I have to find a way to get these guys motivated. When we lose, it's me." 

Just a few minutes after one of the worst losses you could imagine, Pecora was talking about what he needs to do to fix things. For two decades, this program has been looking to the future. It's only natural then for Pecora to talk about tomorrow.

"My job is to make sure that we have a spirited practice [Monday] and that these guys learn how to compete," he said.

"I've always had teams that played hard and competed," Pecora added. "Nothing strikes a chord with me or any coach, in my opinion, more than that. [They] need to realize that you're not going to get what you want out of life, you're going to get what you deserve."

After three losses, none worse than the one suffered Sunday, what Pecora and his staff deserve is a little patience. Having eight underclassmen who are being counted on to produce is going to result in some growing pains.

A little understanding is in order as well. Nobody wants to win more than Pecora does. It's why he's in early and out late. It's why he thinks about Fordham basketball 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It's why he took this job in the first place—all things considered, one of the toughest in the nation.

The Rose Hill Gym had a palpable feel to it Sunday night. Shock. Horror. Disappointment. You name the emotion, it was there to be felt. That's the product of 20 years of too many losses.

It may have been the lowest point, but it's not the time to give up on the coach, or on the team. Saturday is right around the corner, and here comes Maryland Eastern Shore, another winnable game. 

And just like Sunday and every game before it, nobody wants this one more than Pecora, and nobody will work harder to get it.

"Every game's a must-win in my eyes," he said after the loss to UMass Lowell. "You have to go out and win every game.

"It's not OK to lose. You have to bring it every night. That's what college basketball's all about." 

Quotations in this article were obtained firsthand.

Charles Costello covers the Fordham Rams for Bleacher Report. A full archive of his articles can be found here. Follow him on Twitter: @CFCostello

Fordham head coach Tom Pecora told Bleacher Report 90 minutes before tip-off Sunday that center Ryan Canty will redshirt this season and return to the Rams as a fifth-year senior in 2015-16.

According to Pecora, the decision was ultimately made by the doctors who performed back surgery on Canty in September. Bleacher Report first reported on Canty's injury in August. At that time, it was thought he'd be out for at least the first month of the season.

Canty was expected to have a major impact this year. He would've been one of only two seniors trying to help guide a young team with seven freshmen. At 6'9" he brought much-needed size and ability to the court. And, late last season, he seemed to be coming into his own.

Canty had 10 or more rebounds in five of the Rams' final six games. In the regular-season finale against George Washington, he pulled down 16, then grabbed 19 in the play-in game of the Atlantic 10 tournament.

Canty took a leave of absence early in the 2013-14 season which resulted in him missing six games. This year he was hoping to continue the progress he made down the stretch a season ago.

In late August, on the day the Rams left for their trip to Canada, Canty told B/R he hoped to return "stronger [and better]" after surgery. His back has been an issue throughout his college career. Now, his return is a full year away.

Without Canty, Fordham's losing streak is now at three after UMass Lowell came into the Rose Hill Gym Sunday evening and shocked the Rams, 64-57. After back-to-back losses at Penn State and Maryland, Fordham returned home for the first of four games, looking to pick up a much-needed win against an opponent certainly not on the level of what it'll see once conference play begins in January.

UMass Lowell had a 25-24 lead at halftime. After a series of lead changes in the second half, the River Hawks went up by 11 with 6:26 to go. Following a timeout, the Rams showed some life but eventually found themselves trailing by 12 with less than two minutes to play.

Fordham started fouling with 1:40 left. The River Hawks couldn't hit a free throw (7-for-26 on the night), but the Rams didn't have much success on the offensive end, shooting 33.9 percent from the floor for the game (5-for-27 from three-point range) and struggling to hit a shot when they needed one most in the final couple of minutes.

Sometimes injuries, or injury news, can overshadow whatever happens on the court. Last night's loss overshadows everything.

Afterward, Pecora called the loss embarrassing.

"They wanted it more than we did," he said. He added, "This is not a good one, I'm not going to lie to you."

Quotations in this article were obtained firsthand.

Charles Costello covers the Fordham Rams for Bleacher Report. A full archive of his articles can be found here. Follow him on Twitter: @CFCostello.

Fordham lost twice this week in back-to-back games on the road against Big Ten opponents.

After a 94-77 win over the New York Institute of Technology in the season opener, the last two games served as a reminder that nothing will come easy this season—not that anything has ever been easy—with eight underclassmen who could see significant time, a schedule that includes 18 games against Atlantic 10 teams and the just-completed trips to Penn State and Maryland.

Last Sunday against Penn State, just two days after its win over NYIT, Fordham took an early 10-5 lead, but the Nittany Lions responded with an 11-0 run and led 38-21 at the half. The Rams trailed by as many as 25 in the second half and lost 73-54.

"Life with seven freshmen is interesting," Fordham head coach Tom Pecora said after the Penn State loss, according to FordhamSports.com. "We've got to use this game as a learning experience and take something from it as we move on."

Four days later Fordham was in Maryland, where the Terrapins, now 3-0, continued their hot start to the season with a 66-50 win over the Rams. Fordham kept it close in the first half, trailing by just five at the break, but Maryland would pull away in the second half for a 66-50 win.

"They're good. We knew they were good. We had great respect for them," Pecora said about Maryland in postgame remarks, reported by FordhamSports.com. "I thought we played really hard considering we didn't have Eric Paschall and Antwoine Anderson. The guys played real hard, and they competed."

Despite the two losses, there was some good news this past week, as Paschall was named the Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week after scoring 31 points and pulling down 10 rebounds in Fordham's opener. The 31 points he scored against NYIT set a school record for most points scored by a freshman in his debut.

At 1-2, there's some relief in sight. Fordham's next four games against UMass Lowell, Maryland Eastern Shore, Siena and Monmouth, all at home, are games it can win. Then there's the two against local rivals St. John's (Madison Square Garden) and Manhattan (Barclays Center), before Howard and South Carolina State come to Rose Hill. Fordham won't leave New York City until it travels to Rhode Island on Jan. 7.

As tough as the games were at Penn State and Maryland, it's good to have those in the rearview mirror. It will be important for the Rams to get healthy, as that's been one of the big storylines of the season so far.

Paschall didn't make the trip to Maryland after undergoing medical tests. Before the game, WFUV Sports reported that he had an irregular heartbeat.

Rams Guard Eric Paschall will miss tonight's game at Maryland after an irregular heartbeat was discovered during a Tuesday physical.

— WFUV Sports (@wfuvsports) November 20, 2014

It's expected that he'll rejoin the team at practice Friday.

Paschall underwent tests Wednesday & Thursday and was cleared by doctors after they came back normal. He'll practice with the team tomorrow.

— WFUV Sports (@wfuvsports) November 20, 2014

The injury bug has definitely hit Fordham hard.

Anderson was a game-time decision opening night, played just five minutes at Penn State and sat out the game at Maryland with a groin injury. Point guard Nemanja Zarkovic has been battling a hip injury for some time, though he's been able to play through it. Manny Suarez, who didn't play in the opener, played a season-high 20 minutes Thursday night. He had shoulder surgery in July. Ryan Canty, one of only two seniors, is out indefinitely following back surgery.

The Rams dressed just 12 players Thursday. Eventually, one would think, they're going to get healthy.

On the non-injury front, Jon Severe, who was suspended for a week due to a violation of team rules, has appeared in the last two games but has played only 22 minutes combined and has only two points in those games.

You have to think that Fordham can take advantage of a long stretch of games at home over the next month-and-a-half. There will be challenges, but no back-to-back scenarios on the road against teams from power conferences.

Time to look ahead.

Statistics, game information and quotes courtesy of FordhamSports.com.

Charles Costello covers the Fordham Rams for Bleacher Report. A full archive of his articles can be found here. Twitter: @CFCostello

Fordham opened its season Friday night with a convincing 94-77 win over the New York Institute of Technology in front of 1,368 at the Rose Hill Gym.

The Rams jumped out to an 11-0 lead, played spotty defense that helped allow the Bears to climb back in the game and then went on a 15-4 run to close out the first half, taking a 51-38 lead into the break. In the second half, they led by as many as 28. Fordham never trailed in this game.

Eric Paschall, the Rams' top recruit, didn't disappoint in his first college game. He had 22 points and seven rebounds in the first half and finished the game with 31 points and 10 boards, setting a Fordham record for most points scored by a freshman in his debut.

"Eric's performance tonight was a special one," Fordham head coach Tom Pecora said. 

When he wasn't knocking down three-pointers (he was 4-for-8 from beyond the arc), he was taking the ball coast-to-coast. When he wasn't posting up defenders, he was providing highlight-reel dunks that literally shook the gym.

The freshman looked like a seasoned veteran. He looked as good as advertised.

"Coaches put me in the right place and my teammates found me," Paschall said. "It gives me confidence to know that I can go out there and play and that Coach Pecora and my teammates have trust in me."

Paschall may have stolen the show—early, often and late—but he didn't do it alone.

Ryan Rhoomes chipped in with 12 points and 13 rebounds; Christian Sengfelder, a freshman, added 17 points and seven rebounds; Mandell Thomas (14 points) and Bryan Smith (11 points) also scored in double figures; Point guard Nemanja Zarkovic, another freshman, recorded six assists without a turnover.

"The game served its purpose," Pecora said. "They're a good Division II basketball team. I wanted to play a home game. I wanted us to have some success, work out the kinks with seven freshmen." 

"We have a lot to work on defensively. We have a lot to work on execution wise," Pecora added. "We found a way to win. We defended when it mattered."

The Rams were shorthanded for their opener. Jon Severe, who averaged 17.3 points per game as a freshman last season, was suspended for a week. He'll be back at practice today and is expected to play his first game Sunday.

Ryan Canty, a senior center, is out indefinitely following back surgery. There were injuries to contend with as well. Zarkovic (hip) and redshirt freshman Antwoine Anderson (groin) aren't at full strength, but both played. Manny Suarez, another redshirt freshman, who had surgery on his shoulder in July, has been practicing but did not play.

"We had so many guys dinged up," Pecora said. "Yesterday we were concerned we might go in with six scholarship players." 

Fordham has little time to enjoy this one. On Sunday, the Rams will play at Penn State, and next Thursday, they're at Maryland—back-to-back games against Big Ten teams before returning home next Sunday to face UMass Lowell.

Pecora said he'd be in early Saturday morning to watch tape of Penn State's 61-48 win over Morgan State last night.

"We'll get ready tomorrow," Pecora said. "It's a big first week for us."

Quotations in this article were obtained firsthand.

Charles Costello covers the Fordham Rams for Bleacher Report. A full archive of his articles can be found here. Twitter: @CFCostello.

Fordham opens its 2014-15 season at home tomorrow night against the New York Institute of Technology. But three players who are still months away from arriving on campus made news Wednesday.

Matt Zignorski, Jesse Bunting and Joseph Chartouny, who all verbally committed over the last few months, signed National Letters of Intent with Fordham, Bleacher Report has learned. The three will join the Rams in 2015.

Zignorski is a 6'3" combo guard from Pope John XXIII Regional High School in Sparta Township, New Jersey. According to The Star-Ledger, he averaged 11.7 points, 3.1 assists and 3.7 rebounds per game in his junior season.

When reached by Bleacher Report after he verbally committed in July, Zignorski described himself as "a very versatile offensive player." 

"I have the ability to bring the ball up, run the point, direct an offense, get people shots and distribute the ball," he said. "But I can also shoot the ball. I can run off screens."

Bunting, a 6'8" forward from Tabor Academy in Massachusetts, gave Fordham his verbal commitment in September. Chris Millette, the head coach at Tabor, complimented Bunting on his "motor," telling Bleacher Report he has "such a big upside."

"He’s incredibly athletic," Millette added. "For his size he can dribble, rebound and go coast-to-coast."

Chartouny is a 6'3" point guard from Montreal's College Jean-de-Brebeuf, where he was teammates with Nemanja Zarkovic, the Rams' freshman point guard. His coach, Mike Chmielewski, said the two guards possess similar intangibles.

"He is probably the most talented connector I've coached," Chmielewski said in an interview with Bleacher Report after Chartouny verbally committed in September. "By connecting I mean a guy that has an ability of connecting the team together, getting guys to play at a higher level... He's a talented scorer, but he prefers setting people up."

On paper, it appears Fordham has done pretty well with this group: versatile guards with a team-first mentality and a forward with size who's athletic. It's not hard to envision these three fitting in.

This year, of the players expected to see significant minutes, Fordham will suit up seven freshmen (including two redshirts), one sophomore and just three upperclassmen.

Next year, Zignorski, Bunting and Chartouny will join a young roster trying to become a contender in the Atlantic 10.

Quotations in this article were obtained firsthand.

Charles Costello covers the Fordham Rams for Bleacher Report. A full archive of his articles can be found here. Twitter: @CFCostello