Sports & Health Rams Tested in Tumultuous Toss-Ups

The Forwards

Following the departure of Chuba Ohams, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS) ’22, who joined a professional team in northern France late in the summer of 2022, the Rams’ interior play was fraught with questions and doubts. The next two men up were Rostyslav Novitskyi, FCRH ’23, and Abdou Tsimbila, FCRH ’24, and suffice to say that they have worked together brilliantly.

Tsimbila’s minutes have shot north two-fold and in his new role, he is scoring 6.4 points per game, a radical improvement over his 2.7 in the 2021-22 campaign. He is averaging 7.7 rebounds, twice that of the previous season and, most notably for a post player, his free throw percentage has improved by nearly 10%.

on the early season has been one of progression, not reward. If his squad came out with a win and marked improvement, that was enough to warrant satisfaction.

“We just want to get 1% better each and every day,” Rose said after the VMI game.

A rude first test of the season against No. 10-ranked University of Arkansas on Nov. 11 ended predictably with a resounding 74-48 defeat for the Rams. But it steeled their resolve, invigorating them and sending them off on a decimating sweep of their pre-conference schedule.

After mediocre seasons, the men’s basketball team was finally performing. The Rose Hill Gymnasium felt alive for the first time in a while, and the Rams seemed poised to add basketball to its list of truly competitive programs. Part of this success can also be attributed to unity. Urgo sounded off on the camaraderie of his team.

“These guys really like each other,” he said. “They root for each other, and there’s no animosity.”

Urgo has been a powerful leading presence for the Rams. While the Rams’ 12-1 record entering the A10 demonstrated their dominance, the looming specter of conference play would soon give them another wake up call that they aren’t soon to forget.

Winter Break

Novitskyi, an imposing and physical forward from Kyiv, Ukraine, has been Tsimbila’s frontcourt partner. What Novitskyi does to defenders is almost magical: He is shooting at a 72% clip from the field and is averaging 5.2 rebounds a game — 40% of which are offensive boards. Novitskyi’s interior abilities and footwork are prized skills in a game that increasingly prioritizes the 3-point shot.

But the most significant change for the Rams this season came on the coaching front. When former Head Coach Kyle Neptune left Fordham to take the reins of the famed program at Villanova University, the Rams were faced with the distasteful reality of a third coach in as many years. Nevertheless, the program proceeded under the leadership of Head Coach Keith Urgo, who has elevated his squad.

“Whatever is necessary,” Urgo said of his players’ mentality after a 72-67 victory over the University of Maine. “We talk about having a great attitude and playing for 40 minutes; it doesn’t have to be pretty every night, but we just find a way to get it done.”

Rose, the starting guard, remains level-headed. His outlook

On Dec. 28, the Rams scored just 43 points in a total breakdown versus Davidson. Stephen Curry’s alma mater is now second-to-last in the conference standings, adding tremendous weight to Fordham’s second loss of the season.

The A10 slate over winter break demonstrated one thing above all: that Fordham is not invincible. The Rams’ historic win streak ended when reality rolled down the window. The A10 is a fierce competition, and if the Rams’ performance in five conference games is any indication, a difficult road lies ahead.

A brief review of the Rams’ tumultuous January games follows.

Jan. 4 at Rhode Island

The New Year was yet another heartbreaker for the Rams, who suffered a defeat at the hands of the University of Rhode Island (URI), 82-79. The deceptive box score highlights Darius Quisenberry’s, GSAS ’23, tremendous 33-point night, off 4-of-11 from behind the arc and 91% from the stripe. The rest of the Rams carried their weight, and URI hardly out-rebounded or out-shot its competition until the waning minutes of the first half.

By the end of the first half, Rhode Island had jumped to a double-digit lead that they would only briefly relinquish for the rest of the contest. Tsimbila’s 12 rebounds were insufficient. Rhode Island star Martin Malik, URI ’23, led the way with 23 points and 5-of-9 from 3-point range.

Jan. 7 vs. SJU

After dropping their 11-game win streak and adding two losses to their season, the Rams secured a hopeful 12-point victory against Saint Joseph’s University (SJU) on Jan. 4. In the initial 10 minutes of the first half, SJU scored 25 points against the Rams, holding a ninepoint lead. Quisenberry and Charlton led the Rams in points, each scoring in the double digits.

Jan. 10 vs. Dayton

On Jan. 10, the Rams lost by 24 points to the University of Dayton. Dayton scored 15 points in the first seven minutes, and the Rams quipped back with only two. Quisenberry underperformed as he only put up three points, well below his 16.3 average.

Both teams had offensive highs in this competition. Fordham’s star this game was Will Richardson, FCRH ’26, who put up 19 points in 26 minutes. Much has been expected from Richardson, and the LaSalle game was his breakout performance.

Looking Ahead

The competition was not in the Rams’ favor until the end of the first half, when they began to close out SJU’s lead. The Rams made their move in the second half. Eight minutes remained as the Rams’ lead increased, 53-47. After a barrage of Fordham free-throws, the competition closed out 66-54.

However, the outcome was not entirely surprising. Dayton hasn’t allowed its opponents to score more than 60 points in its past seven games.

The Rams struggled in the first half, only scoring 18 points as Dayton scored 33. Fordham’s pace changed in the second half as the team put up 40 points to Dayton’s 49. It wasn’t enough, and the Rams lost 82-55.

The Fordham men’s team had a gloomy January, far from what fans were expecting after their historic run. But a 65-58 win over Duquesne University on Jan. 21 may hold off a complete fall from grace.

The Rams will face the St. Bonaventure University Bonnies on Jan. 25. The outcome of the game will likely have little impact on the standings, as the Bonnies (7) are just one spot above Fordham (8). However, a win against the Bonnies would extend the Rams’ win streak to three.

Fordham is now eighth in the A10, and the next four games for the team are all against higher-ranked competitors. However, Urgo is hardly discouraged. His attitude has been consistent this season: Fordham is a new team, and it is ready for what lies ahead.

Jan. 14 at LaSalle

The Rams picked themselves back up after their loss against Dayton, as four days later they won a close contest against La Salle University, 66-64. The game was won at the buzzer, and it wasn’t short of spectacular as Charlton drained the finisher.

“I’m not so sure that any teams here at Fordham have had this much depth in a long time,” Urgo said. “Everyone’s contributed at some point or another.”

This sentiment has been echoed multiple times by Urgo and his players. If there is one thing to look forward to as the Rams march on, it’s their grit and

By MIRANDA SAENZ DI VITERI Contributing Writer

The new year is officially in full swing. January offers a fresh start for people to compile their ambitious resolutions to better themselves, their lives and their overall well-being. Some people are determined to learn a new skill or to save money, but perhaps the most prominent collective goal seems to be to get in better shape.

According to a 2021 survey by YouGov, 23% of Americans set goals pertaining to living healthier. Like others, I made a physical fitness resolution. I decided to switch up my typical routine to see how alternative workouts would affect my overall health and fitness. You can typically find me with the free weights, bench pressing with the bar or at the squat rack, but I decided to spice things up and give another activity a try — yoga.

Yoga was nowhere close to being on my fitness radar. I had always been involved with some sort of sport and saw yoga only as