Fordham Basketball

Get ready, Fordham.

It's now just a matter of time before the debate over whether or not college athletes should be paid will make its way to Rose Hill.

On Wednesday, Peter Ohr, a regional director of the National Labor Relations Board, ruled that football players at Northwestern University were employees, thus allowing for the scholarship football players at the school to form a union.

While this decision is only in response to the group of Northwestern football players who petitioned the NLRB—and, for now, does not apply to other private schools or any other sport—you can bet that yesterday's ruling will forever change the landscape of college athletics.

As revenue has grown over the past few years, there's been more and more of a push to pay student-athletes. 

The New York Times points out the following:

"The ruling comes at a time when the N.C.A.A. and its largest conferences are generating billions of dollars, primarily from football and men’s basketball. The television contract for the new college football playoff system is worth $7.3 billion over 10 years, and the current deal to broadcast the men’s basketball tournament is worth $10.8 billion over 14 years."

That's a lot of money, of course, but we're only talking about two of the many sports colleges offer. And the amount of revenue schools generate varies considerably.

So what does this ruling mean for Fordham?

The university fields a Football Championship Subdivision (non-BCS) football team and a men's basketball program that does not generate the revenue that, say, Syracuse does. Imagine if Fordham had to pay its athletes? How could it afford to pay the men's basketball and football players, let alone the women's soccer and men's swimming teams?

It's both scary and fascinating to consider the impact this ruling could have.

"I think it's really interesting," Fordham men's basketball coach Tom Pecora told me when I asked him for his thoughts on the ruling. "If you ask a bunch of 40-year-old former college athletes if what they were doing in college was work as compared to what they're doing at age 40, they'd all laugh and say 'I'd give my right arm to be doing that again.'"

Tuition at Fordham, including room and board, costs about $60,000 per year. That means a men's basketball player who is on scholarship for four years is essentially being given a $240,000 stipend. That, too, is a lot of money.

"I think they're being compensated in a tremendous way, not only at Fordham but college athletes in general," Pecora said. "Could there be some small changes to it? You bet.

"The problem is you run the gamut from the biggest school in the country with the largest budget to the smallest Division I school in the country and the smallest budget. You can't put down a flat number and say every athlete is going to get X amount of dollars and expect the smallest school in the country to be able to pay the same amount as the largest school in the country. It's dictated by conferences and TV money.

"From a legal standpoint this is going to be a long battle with appeals and different levels. I think it's going to make for a very interesting case."

And then there's this: You would have to believe that there are still schools, like Fordham, that value the student part of student-athlete more than they value what the athlete does on the court or field.

I still want to believe that a college degree goes further than a national championship. While that doesn't ease the pain of the Fordham faithful—who have been waiting for two decades for the school to build a winning basketball program—it matters to a lot of people.

"That's why I'm here and not at other jobs," Pecora said, referring to Fordham's academic standards. "I had opportunities to go to schools where that wouldn't have been an issue, just winning games would have been. I turned those opportunities down.

"You have to know who you are and what your strengths and weaknesses are. So often as coaches we talk to players about [their] strengths and weaknesses. But then as a coach and as a person do you do the same thing?

"If you're not graduating players there's got to be a greater penalty for it. If you don't graduate a player in five years you should have one less scholarship until that player graduates.

"There's a bit of a hypocritical mindset here."

There are some refreshing stories out there. Take, for example, Eric Paschall, who was just named prep player of the year in New England. Here is a young man who has incredible basketball skills. He'll be joining the Rams next season. His father, Juan, told ESPN New York's Ian O'Connor that Fordham had a lot to offer. And guess what? He wasn't just talking about basketball.

"Eric could've signed with a school in any of those conferences," he said. "But he established a great relationship with the Fordham coaches, it's close to where we live and, after the air comes out of the ball, a Fordham degree carries a lot of weight in the New York area."

This is a player who could have gone to a bigger and better program. But Paschall feels the same way about Fordham as his father does.

"It's a perfect situation for me as it's a great academic school that's close to home and I have a great relationship with the coaching staff," he said, according to Fordham's website.

Branden Frazier, who was a four-year starter for the Rams basketball squad, talked just as much about being a student as he did about his time on the court.

"Coming here and getting my degree, and just being around a bunch of people that supported me, made me who I am," he said. "Basketball isn't everything. Fordham made me a man."

Frank McLaughlin, who was Fordham's athletic director and executive director of intercollegiate athletics from 1985 to 2012, told me back in 2009 that Fordham takes great pride in its academics.

“Are we a great academic institution? Yes we are. Are we proud of that? Yes we are.” McLaughlin said. “If there’s a potential student-athlete our main goal is to make sure that person has the ability or the chance to get a degree. We are not going to become mercenaries and bring somebody in here just to play basketball."

Pecora says that the team's grade point average this year is above a 3.0. That has to count for something. 

We'll see how this whole thing unfolds. Northwestern plans on appealing the decision, but the ball is clearly in the athletes' court.

The landscape of college athletics is changing. Let's hope Fordham's standards stay the same.

Unless otherwise noted, quotes were obtained firsthand.

The Fordham Rams finished the 2013-14 season with a record of 10-21. They lost nine of their last 10 games, including eight in a row to close out the regular season.

It's a good thing, then, that changes are on the way.

Talk about the future occupied a good chunk of time during Tom Pecora's season-ending interview with WFUV Radio.

"We're really going to look at the dynamic of the team as we move forward," he said during the interview, which was conducted on March 15, two days after Fordham's season ended in the first round of the Atlantic 10 tournament.

By no means was this past season a total loss. Fordham won seven non-conference games to start the season, almost pulled off two upsets (against La Salle and George Washington) at the end of the year and won the play-in game of the A-10 tournament for its first win in almost six weeks.

It was Year 4 of the Tom Pecora era at Rose Hill. Pecora is 34-85 since taking over the program in 2010. He insists better days are ahead.

"We continue to move forward," he said. "I think we're about to turn the corner in Year 5."

You can be sure Pecora is aware of Fordham's struggles over its 19 seasons in the Atlantic 10. But the head coach remains optimistic he can turn this around.

"I know it's frustrating," Pecora said. "It's been a rough 20-year run here but I was brought in to change that. I'm not about quick fixes. When we turn the corner it will be for the long term, and I anticipate it being next year."

Even though Branden Frazier was the only senior who played regularly, you can expect to see changes in 2014-15. Pecora said during the radio interview he expects one or two players to leave the program. But the big news is on the recruiting front where Pecora thinks he's making strides.

The Rams already have an official commitment from Eric Paschall, who played this season at Connecticut's St. Thomas More Prep. He'll arrive at Rose Hill with high expectations.

"Eric Paschall was named prep player of the year in New England as a 12th grader." Pecora said. "In that league you're playing with a lot of post-grad guys. That puts him in rarefied air.

"When you look at the history of the guys who've come out of there, it's a very high level. We expect him to come in and be a big part of everything we do right from the get-go."

In an interview with ESPN New York's Ian O'Connor, Paschall, who is from Dobbs Ferry, NY, sounded excited about joining the Rams.

"It's great to go somewhere 15 minutes from my house, and I think we can turn the program around quickly," he said.

Tom Konchalski, a highly respected scout and talent evaluator, thinks Fordham will be in good shape with Jon Severe, who was second on the team in scoring this season, and Paschall.

"And you have to give Tom Pecora a lot of credit for getting them," Konchalski said via the ESPN New York article. "These are signature recruits, the foundation of a program. They're the kind of kids who can raise Fordham a level in the Atlantic 10 and give them a real chance to win in that league."

Paschall's father, Juan, agrees.

"There's no better place to win than in New York, and I think Eric and Jon Severe will have Fordham winning a lot sooner than later," he told O'Connor.

Next season, the Rams will also count on Manny Suarez and Antwoine Anderson, who were both ineligible this year. And Pecora expects an additional player or two to come on board.

"We're involved with a number of point guards for next season," he said. "We are out and we're actively recruiting point guards."

Another key returning player will be forward Ryan Canty, who will be a senior next season.

Canty played as well down the stretch as anyone on the roster, giving the Rams a much-needed presence down low. In five of the last six games, he pulled down 10 or more rebounds. Against George Washington, he grabbed 16 rebounds and followed that up with 19 rebounds against George Mason and 10 more against Dayton in the A-10 tournament.

Canty took a leave of absence in November and missed six games. When he eventually returned to form, he provided a huge boost.

"One of the most impressive things was Ryan Canty's performance the last couple weeks of the season," Pecora said. "As Ryan moves into his senior year we have to make sure that he has the kind of offseason that can lead him to come in as a senior starting center for us and have the ability to put up big numbers."

Big numbers the Rams hope to get from others, too, leading to success not seen at Rose Hill in a long time.

If you want an example of how difficult it is to build a winning program in college basketball, look no further than the Fordham Rams.

Fordham has struggled mightily since joining the Atlantic 10 Conference prior to the 1995 season.

Consider that the Rams have finished below .500 in 17 of their 19 seasons in the A-10, only three times have they had a .500 or better record in conference play, and they've won only five conference tournament games (including one last week in the play-in game).

This year, Fordham started the season with some hope. Branden Frazier, a four-year starter, returned for his final season. And the Rams welcomed Jon Severe, Mr. New York Basketball in 2013, to Rose Hill. Fordham got off to a decent start, going 7-6 in nonconference games. It looked poised to take that next step.

But the Rams would struggle over the last two months of the season. They went 2-14 in conference play, lost their last eight games to close out the regular season and had trouble competing in a league that, despite losing Xavier, Temple, Charlotte and Butler, might be as good as ever.

"It's as competitive as it's ever been," Fordham head coach Tom Pecora said about the A-10. "It's gotten better each year since I've been here."

Pecora just wrapped up his fourth season with the Rams. In those four years, they've gone 34-85. They're 9-55 in regular-season conference play.

"It continues to get better and better and I think this year you'll see that come Selection Sunday," Pecora said earlier this year.

He was right. The Atlantic 10 will have a record six teams in the tournament—Virginia Commonwealth, Dayton, Saint Louis, Massachusetts, George Washington and Saint Joseph's. 

"You'll see the A-10 get as many if not more teams in the tournament than some conferences that people perceive as being better basketball conferences," Pecora said.

He was right with that prediction, too. For example, the Big East got four teams in and the A-10 had just as many teams selected as the Atlantic Coast Conference and the Big Ten did.

Two decades ago when it went from the Patriot League to the Atlantic 10, Fordham must have known that there would be a huge difference playing in a major basketball conference. But to what extent could the school have predicted this? The league is better now, top to bottom, than it was back then. That's made the rebuilding process much more difficult.

Pecora is the latest in a succession of coaches who have found the task of building a winner in the Bronx to be a difficult one. Nick Macarchuk, Bob Hill and Dereck Whittenburg had no better luck.

Pecora isn't alone in thinking that the conference has gotten better. It was a staple of many press conferences across the league this year.

"I think it's a terrific league," Virginia Commonwealth head coach Shaka Smart said. Smart's team lost to Saint Joseph's, 65-61, in the Atlantic 10 Championship Game on Sunday afternoon.

"I think from top to bottom it's very underrated. So much is made of so-called BCS leagues and high-major leagues, but I think the basketball that's been played in our conference can stand up to a whole lot of people. I'm not going to say we're the best league in the country, but I think we can compete with any league in the country.

"A lot of people were down on the A-10 after some teams left, but they neglected to see that there were a lot of teams coming back that had very good players returning and good players coming in, and I think the coaches in this league are terrific as well."

In fact, like others, Smart doesn't feel the A-10 gets the credit it deserves.

“Our conference is still undervalued,” he said last month, according to NBC Sports' College Basketball Talk. “I don’t think people realized the gauntlet that you have to go through in this league."

With six teams selected to play in this year's NCAA tournament, that might be changing.

“Don’t take this the wrong way, but there is a lack of sophistication out there right now as it relates to the Atlantic 10," Smart said in the NBC Sports article. "There are fill-in-the-blank high-major programs and they carry a weight because of their name, first and foremost. But the reality is if you look closer and you compare them to some of the teams in our league, I think our league shapes out pretty well."

In the current RPI, nine Atlantic 10 teams are ranked in the Top 100 (Virginia Commonwealth, Massachusetts, Saint Louis, George Washington, Saint Joseph’s, Dayton, Richmond, St. Bonaventure and La Salle).

“The proof is really right there in the numbers," Massachusetts head coach Derek Kellogg said, via the NBC Sports article.

After his George Washington team beat Fordham last weekend to close out the regular season, head coach Mike Lonergan said that in the Atlantic 10 "anybody can beat you," and predicted that the conference tournament would be wide open with all teams having a chance to win on those first couple of days.

Like Pecora, he predicted big things for the A-10 on Selection Sunday.

"I really feel five or six will definitely get in," he said. "Part of that is [because] the league is great, and also [in] those other leagues people keep knocking each other off.

"This is a great conference."

Something Fordham knows all too well.

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

Fordham's season wasn't the only thing that came to an end on Thursday afternoon at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY.

The 87-74 loss to Dayton in the first round of the Atlantic 10 tournament also ended the Fordham career of Branden Frazier, the Rams' senior guard who will go down as one of the best to ever play basketball at Rose Hill.

In Frazier's four years at Fordham, the Rams went 34-85. This year, one that started out with some promise, ended with 21 losses, including the last eight games leading up to the conference tournament.

Still, head coach Tom Pecora, who just completed his fourth season at the school, insisted after the final regular-season game that his team is "close to turning the corner."

Surely, some will snicker at that comment given Fordham's struggles since joining the Atlantic 10 nearly two decades ago. After all, in 19 seasons in the conference, the Rams have finished .500 or better just twice, and in that time, they've won only five games (if you include their 70-67 win over George Mason in Wednesday night's play-in game) in the conference tournament.

Others might look at guys like Frazier and think that if Fordham can continue to bring in players, and young men, of that caliber, then better days are certainly ahead.

Truth be told, however, it didn't happen with Frazier. This past season, there were times when Fordham was as bad as its conference record (2-14) would indicate.

Frankly, and this was more evident this year than ever before, Frazier didn't have the supporting cast. For starters, he was the only senior who played regularly. If you watched him play, it was obvious that he was one of the better guards in the Atlantic 10. You can't help but wonder what could have been, if only he had a bit more talent around him.

"It's hard when you have one senior trying to teach a bunch of young guys how to do things," Pecora said. 

"I feel bad that he's kind of Butch without Sundance. If we had had another guy in that class that really progressed like he did we would have turned this thing around."

Ask anyone, from opposing coaches to those who know him best, and they'll tell you how much respect they have for Frazier. On Senior Day last Saturday at the Rose Hill Gym, the ovation said it all.

Frazier admitted after that game that walking to center court where he was greeted by the coaching staff was, as you would expect, an emotional moment for him. But in typical fashion, he said that winning the game—Fordham lost to George Washington, 70-67—would have made it even better.

But that's not how things have gone for Fordham over the last four seasons, something Frazier has handled about as well as anyone could.

Consider that he played for Bishop Loughlin, one of New York City's best high school programs. In his senior season alone, he won 23 games, just 11 shy of what he won in four years at Fordham. But you won't hear Frazier question his decision to come to the Bronx.

"Although the team has been going through its ups and downs, just being at Fordham and being a part of Fordham is the best decision I ever made," Frazier said. "Coming here and getting my degree, and just being around a bunch of people that supported me, made me who I am. 

"Basketball isn't everything. Fordham made me a man."

On a team that doesn't receive a whole lot of attention, Frazier is as big as it gets. He's on the cover of the team's media guide, a photo of him appeared on press credentials and, this week, he was featured in The Wall Street Journal, where he talked about his time at Fordham and what it would be like playing in the Atlantic 10 tournament right down the street from where he grew up.

"It's going to be hard to say goodbye," Frazier said in the WSJ article via Dave Caldwell. "But I'm ready to move on, too. Coach has molded me. It's not like he's pushing me on. It's like he's saying, 'You're ready.'"

The next step for Frazier will be playing professionally at some level, but Pecora says that there will always be a place for him at Fordham.

"When he's done playing there will be Fordham people lining up to hire him," he said. "That's why you come to Fordham. It's not about four years; it's about 40 years."

No one knows Frazier better than Pecora. He recruited him to play at Hofstra, and when Pecora took the Fordham job, he convinced Frazier to come with him.

They will forever be linked.

"When I made the decision to come here it wasn't an easy one, and he didn't hesitate," Pecora said. "He's a big part of this. He's been so involved with our recruiting and our ability to get players like Jon Severe and others." (Pecora also mentioned Eric Paschall from Connecticut's St. Thomas More Prep who will join the Rams next season.)

Pecora and Frazier have a good relationship, one built on honesty and trust. The coach is honest with his player, and the player trusts his coach. That bond was on display following Fordham's near-upset of George Washington last Saturday when Frazier missed a three-pointer at the buzzer that would have sent the game into overtime.

At the press conference after the game, with the two sitting side by side, Pecora talked about how much Frazier has meant to the program.

"Branden's been a spokesman for this program," he said. "When guys graduate you want them to be Fordham men, and without a doubt he's grown into becoming a great Fordham man."

Though they didn't do much winning, Frazier should be remembered for the role he played in helping a struggling program take that next step. He was a four-year starter who is second in school history with 495 assists and ninth in points with 1,642. This season, he led the team in scoring and assists.

"I know he would give all of that away to be able to say he was here and he helped us turn it around and have a winning season," Pecora said.

It's clear that his contributions, on and off the court, won't be forgotten.

"When we're winning next year I'll mention Branden Frazier a lot because he set the foundation for that," Pecora said. 

Frazier, too, expressed confidence in the future success of the program.

"I know the program is going to change around," he said. "Although I will not be here, I'll still be a part of the team. I'm leaving Fordham but Fordham will never leave me.

"I know coach is going to make things better here. When they start winning I know I'll be a part of that."

That drew an immediate response from Pecora, who said that Frazier will be "a big part of it."

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

On a day when the sellout crowd of 3,200 at the Rose Hill Gym said goodbye to senior Branden Frazier, Fordham turned in what may have been its best effort of the season.

In a seesaw battle that produced 15 ties, the Rams couldn't get shots to fall in the final minute, and a series of turnovers down the stretch ended any hope they had of upsetting George Washington, as the Colonials left the Bronx with a hard-fought 70-67 win.

"We're so close to turning the corner here," Fordham head coach Tom Pecora said after the game. "There's a team (George Washington) that's going to the NCAA tournament—one of the top four teams in the conference."

The Colonials, now 23-7 overall and 11-5 in the Atlantic 10, crushed the Rams, 93-67, one month ago, when the two teams met in Washington, D.C. 

Though Fordham lost on Saturday, its effort was much better this time around.

"I thought we showed great toughness and a lot of grit tonight in continuing to grind and never give up," Pecora said.

Fordham, one of the worst rebounding teams in the Atlantic 10, out-rebounded George Washington, one of the best in the conference, 46-28.

"I give Fordham a lot of credit," George Washington head coach Mike Lonergan said. "They out-rebounded us by 18. They played their rear ends off."

As has been the case throughout much of his Fordham career, Frazier led the Rams with 28 points (19 in the second half) and four assists. He also grabbed eight rebounds.

In his final home game, Frazier came out of halftime on fire, scoring six points and dishing out an assist in the first three minutes of the second half. He missed a couple of shots late, including a three-pointer at the buzzer that would have sent the game into overtime, but without him this one would have been over a lot earlier.

"It felt good to play out there with the crowd," Frazier said when asked about his emotions playing in his final home game.

"It's bad that we didn't get the win. It's bittersweet. I was just anxious to win."

At halftime, George Washington led by only two, 31-29, thanks to Frazier and junior Ryan Canty, who turned in his best performance of the season. 

Especially in the first half, Canty embodied the type of effort Pecora expects from his team. Canty was a physical presence on both ends of the floor. He grabbed 11 rebounds (five offensive) and scored eight points in the first half. He finished with a game-high 16 rebounds and added 12 points. 

Though Fordham led 61-56 with five minutes and 10 seconds to go in the game, the Colonials went on a 9-0 run over the next two minutes. Fordham had its chances late but couldn't knock down the big shot and couldn't overcome key turnovers with the game on the line.

"We only had seven turnovers for the game but a couple of them were real tough ones," Pecora said. "I thought we got some pretty good looks at different times."

"It's been that kind of year."

While Frazier and Canty were doing their thing, Fordham didn't get a whole lot from anyone else. Freshman Jon Severe, the team's second-leading scorer, was 3-of-13 from the floor. Mandell Thomas was 2-of-13. Bryan Smith didn't connect on any of his four attempts. Offensively, Fordham needed more.

"I thought Branden was superb [and] Ryan Canty's performance was exceptional," Pecora said. "We're just searching for that third guy. We got some good looks. We just couldn't knock them down."

What they did do was play a brand of basketball that Pecora says has been missing at times this year. The rebounding alone explains why Fordham had a chance to upset George Washington.

"If you win the battle of the boards you win most games," Pecora said. "If you control the paint and the backboards it's the same as controlling the line of scrimmage in football. You're going to win a lot of games. We controlled the backboards. We didn't do a great job defending the paint."

Fordham gave up 28 points in the paint, 20 in the second half.

Despite the loss—Fordham's eighth in a row—at least this one didn't end with Pecora questioning his team's level of intensity.

"What kept us in the game was they gave great effort," he said. "I think it was as good an effort as we've had all year. You lay this effort out every night and it's a different kind of season for us. If you give effort like we did tonight you'll win a lot of basketball games."

Fordham hasn't won since Feb. 1. The Rams will take the court on Wednesday night in the play-in game of the Atlantic 10 tournament at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

Because of a change in format—all teams now qualify—the Rams, despite their 2-14 conference record (9-20 overall) and last-place finish, will have the opportunity to appear in the tournament as the 13th seed. They'll take on 12th-seeded George Mason.

Pecora said his team's effort on Saturday was the perfect example of why all teams, no matter their regular-season performance, should be given the opportunity to play in the conference tournament.

"If you don't believe you can go into this tournament and win games, you're crazy," he said. "That's why big-time conferences have everyone in the tournament. That's a carrot for me to dangle in front of this team. It would be a shame if we played a game like this (against George Washington) and we weren't in the tournament because they decided to only keep 12 teams."

"It will be a great opportunity for us."

All quotations in this article were obtained firsthand.

Fordham head coach Tom Pecora wasn't sure what to expect from his team on Wednesday, a few days removed from the Rams' heartbreaking loss to La Salle.

"As a coach, you really don't know how your team's going to respond until they throw the ball up," he told WFUV Radio before the game.

It's been like that since conference play started back in early January. The Rams have been difficult to predict. Losing has been the only constant. Fordham's last win came all the way back on Feb. 1 against the University of Rhode Island.

"We have to grow up at some point," Pecora said. "Let's go win a basketball game and stop making excuses. Let's just go out and play our tails off and have multiple guys play to their potential."

Fordham is young, enigmatic and inconsistent. That combination spells disaster for a college basketball team. For the Rams, it's resulted in seven straight losses, a 2-13 conference record (9-19 overall), no road wins in Atlantic 10 play and, after Wednesday night's 77-65 loss to Rhode Island at the Ryan Center, a spot in the play-in game next week on the opening night of the A-10 tournament at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. 

With the conference changing the format of its tournament—all teams now qualify—Pecora knew that his squad would be there. But he admitted last night that he thought his team could do a little better than the play-in game, saying the Rams "let a couple games slip away."

The second half of Wednesday night's contest at Rhode Island was one of those games, though certainly not as devastating a loss as the one Fordham suffered on Saturday when La Salle won it at the buzzer.

Against Rhode Island, Fordham led 33-31 at the half. The Rams got a productive first 20 minutes on the offensive end from Branden Frazier, Bryan Smith and Mandell Thomas. They knocked down six three-pointers, scored eight points off seven Rhode Island turnovers and held URI to 40 percent shooting from the floor.

The second half was a different story, an all-too-familiar one for the Rams.

Fordham missed eight of its first 11 shots coming out of halftime. Rhode Island went on an 18-8 run to take a 49-41 lead and never looked back. Rhode Island shot 65 percent from the floor in the second half, and Fordham struggled to get anything going.

Before the game, Pecora talked about the need to contain Xavier Munford and E.C. Matthews. Both finished with 21 points, 15 each in the second half.

Pecora also talked about controlling the backboards. Rhode Island outrebounded Fordham, 48-38. Hassan Martin (12 rebounds) and T.J. Buchanan (11 rebounds) led the way in that category.

"We struggled shooting the ball in the second half," associate head coach David Duke told WFUV Radio after the game. "They just made some tough plays down the stretch."

After Fordham lost to Virginia Commonwealth University on Thursday night, head coach Tom Pecora summed up his team's plight in just a few words.

"Teams that win find ways to win," he said. "Teams that lose know how to lose."

On Saturday against La Salle, in front of 3,017 at the Rose Hill Gym, Fordham found another way to lose.

With the game tied at 62, the Explorers had the ball underneath the basket with 0.7 seconds left on the clock. It was then that the unthinkable happened.

On the inbounds play, La Salle's D.J. Peterson found a cutting Tyreek Duren, whose layup went in as time expired, stunning everyone and handing the Rams a 64-62 loss, their sixth straight.

Just moments earlier, the game appeared to be headed into overtime.

Fordham's Branden Frazier, who played well all afternoon, blocked a shot in the paint as the buzzer sounded to end the second half.

But after review, the officials decided to put time back on the clock, giving the Explorers one last chance. And as you might expect, given the way things have been going for the Rams all season, they capitalized.

Fordham is now 9-18 overall and 2-12 in the Atlantic 10. With two games left before the conference tournament, time is running out.

"Good teams are consistent teams," Pecora told WFUV Radio before the game. "We're not there yet."

At least on Saturday the effort was there. Despite being down 9-0 and trailing by as many as 15 in the first half, Fordham recovered. Frazier's three-pointer at the end of the half pulled the Rams to within three heading into the break.

And though they fell behind by double digits again in the second half, Fordham battled back. A 9-0 run cut La Salle's lead to one, 47-46, with 11:15 left in the game.

Fordham never led, but a Bryan Smith jumper with 35.2 seconds left tied the game at 62, setting the stage for the dramatic finish.

Turnovers have been an issue all season, and though La Salle (14-14, 6-8 A-10) had its fair share of giveaways (15), the Rams' 13 turnovers didn't help their cause.

Frazier, who has been up and down of late, scored 23 points and had six assists in 38 minutes.

Pecora has talked all season about playing at a high level for 40 minutes. For the most part, that happened on Saturday. And yet the results were the same for the Rams.

"We're doing everything here except winning," Pecora said after the VCU game in a statement that applies to yesterday's loss as well. "We've come a long way in three years. But obviously the last step in the process, the one I get paid for, is winning basketball games. And that's what's got to happen as we move forward."

Thanks to an unbelievable finish, that didn't happen on Saturday.

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

Judging by the size of the crowd at the start of Fordham's game against Virginia Commonwealth University Thursday night, you might say that expectations have been tempered in the Bronx.

Before a half-empty Rose Hill Gym, Fordham played a solid 20 minutes of basketball in a game it was never expected to be in.

But as a few more fans trickled in—the announced crowd was 2,253—the night took a turn for the worse, eventually ending in an 85-66 win for VCU.

Fordham led by seven, 26-19, with 6:22 remaining in the first half. But VCU outscored the Rams, 15-6, to close out the half and totally dominated the game's final 20 minutes, highlighted by a 31-10 run over the first eight minutes coming out of the break. 

"In the second half, we came out with better energy, and just across the board, our guys showed more fight," VCU head coach Shaka Smart said. "When that happens, more stuff happens for you on the offensive end."

Whatever Smart used at halftime to motivate his players obviously worked.

"I told them we have to make a choice to be better, to support each other and play with more energy," Smart said. "When we're the most aggressive team, when we're flying around, when we're pushing the tempo, that's when we're at our best."

While VCU was at its best in the second half, Fordham was at its worst. But the night didn't start that way at all.

For Fordham, there were positives to take into the locker room at halftime.

The Rams led at all four media timeouts. They got strong play on the offensive end from Mandell Thomas (11 points) and Jon Severe (seven points). Ryan Canty played 12 minutes and grabbed seven rebounds. And Fordham was down just two, 34-32, heading into the break.

"I thought Fordham did a great job at the beginning of the game being aggressive and getting us on our heels a little bit," Smart said. "We didn't have as much energy as I would have liked us to have early on."

But it was all VCU in the second half. The level of energy picked up, and the shots started to fall. Fordham didn't have any answers, and suddenly, this one was over with a lot of time left on the clock.

Fordham head coach Tom Pecora talked before the game about limiting VCU's chances in its half-court offense, taking care of the basketball and rebounding. In the second half, VCU shot 9-of-15 from three-point range, forced eight turnovers, grabbed 15 offensive rebounds and blew the Rams out of their own gym.

"As always, you come out of halftime and you talk to the team about the first five minutes," Pecora said. "You have to match their intensity and match their toughness. We didn't do that. That's why they're where they are right now and we are where we are."

On the night, VCU outrebounded Fordham, 56-32, had 24 second-chance points, scored 14 points off turnovers and had 38 points in the paint.

"It's a grind," Pecora said. "They're a gritty team and we're not right now. That's our biggest problem. We have to find that."

Severe and Thomas finished with 14 points apiece and Branden Frazier added 10 for the Rams. Canty led the team with 10 rebounds, though he had a quiet second half.

For VCU, Juvonte Reddic had a monster game, scoring 22 points and grabbing 12 rebounds. Rob Brandenberg had 16 points and Melvin Johnson added 14.

"Reddic was great," Pecora said. "As a veteran frontcourt guy, he's very efficient in everything that he does."

With the loss, Fordham's fifth in a row, the Rams dropped to 9-17 overall, 2-11 in the Atlantic 10. VCU is now 21-7 overall and 9-4 in conference play.

"Teams that win find ways to win," Pecora said. "Teams that lose know how to lose.

"[We're] trying. [We're] just not making those plays."

All quotations in this article were obtained firsthand.

The Fordham Rams are finding out, once again, just how unforgiving the college basketball season can be.

With their losing streak now at four games, the Rams return home Thursday night to play Virginia Commonwealth University, one of the Atlantic 10's best and a team that could very well be NCAA tournament bound.

Fordham lost to VCU, 76-60, back on Jan. 29. Though VCU has lost its last two, it has an overall record of 20-7 and a conference mark of 8-4. Meanwhile, Fordham comes in struggling, with a 2-10 conference record and a 9-16 mark overall.

For the Rams to have any shot against VCU, head coach Tom Pecora knows what his team will need to do.

"It's always the same against VCU," Pecora said in a phone interview on Wednesday. "You want to take care of the basketball and don't let them beat you up on the boards. If you can make it a half-court game where they need to execute every trip down the floor, and they don't turn you over and in turn get points off those turnovers, and hurt you on the offensive glass by getting second-shot opportunities, then you can play with them. 

"That's our goal. We have to make sure we can do that, control the tempo a little bit and not be out-toughed in our own building."

To stay in it against VCU, Fordham will have to play much better than it has of late. During this current losing streak, the Rams have struggled in just about every facet of the game. 

"What I need this team to do is to raise the level of their effort for 40 minutes," Pecora said. "I need them to have the confidence in themselves to realize they're capable of winning some big games, especially at home.

"We haven't had that marquee upset win at home yet. We might have the opportunity to do that over the next couple of weeks."

With any team, especially one as young as the Rams, it's only natural to question how players will handle the adversity. And Fordham has endured its fair share of losing seasons, something Pecora is well aware of. 

"It's something that we've worked to shake over the last four years," he said of the losing culture. "That's something we continue to work on every day in practice, to try to be positive with them and let them know what they need to do to elevate their games to a level where we can go and string some wins together."

For that to happen, Fordham will need a better effort from Branden Frazier. The senior played a season-low 19 minutes in Saturday's loss at Saint Joseph's after missing a few defensive assignments in the first half.

Pecora said Frazier's "been good in practice this week," but the ultimate test will be how he plays on Thursday night and how he performs the rest of the way.

"He's our senior, captain and leader," Pecora said. "I can't let a senior go out there and not execute the game plan and then expect these younger guys to go execute. He has to set the example and follow suit.

"Branden and I have a great relationship. I can talk to him honestly about what's expected of him, and he understands what I expect of him every day in practice and every game."

To complicate matters for the Rams as they try to finish the season strong, is the fact that they're attempting to right the ship in a conference that Pecora says "continues to get better and better."

"It's as competitive as it's ever been," he said about the A-10. "It's gotten better each year since I've been here."

Rest assured, there is some good news to report out of Rose Hill.

Pecora has been busy recruiting. The Rams already have the highly touted Eric Paschall out of Connecticut's St. Thomas More Prep committed for next year. Pecora is hoping there's more on the way.

"We're in deep with a lot of good players," the head coach said while on his way to see another recruit. "Now it's important to close the deal."

"We continue to move forward and I feel good about it."

All quotations in this article were obtained firsthand in a phone interview conducted with Fordham head coach Tom Pecora.