BY CHARLES COSTELLO

Judging by what was on display tonight at the Rose Hill Gym, one would never know just how close the Manhattan-Fordham rivalry has been over the years. In 100 previous meetings, the Jaspers had won 51. Tonight, however, the two teams could not have been further apart.

With a balanced scoring attack that saw Chris Smith (21 points), Devon Austin (19 points), and Darryl Crawford (17 points) frustrate the Rams all night with their offensive prowess, the Jaspers relied on their poise and execution, and took advantage of Fordham’s ineffectiveness on both ends of the floor, to win the annual ”Battle of the Bronx” by a convincing 81-67 margin.

“I’m really proud of our team getting a win on the road,” Manhattan head coach Barry Rohrssen said after his team improved to 3-0 on the year. “It’s nice for our team and important for our team. We’re still a work in progress. It takes everyone on the team to come in every day prepared and give their best effort and have a good attitude. It’s nice to see the growth and development of some of our younger guys.”

It is that same growth and development that Fordham head coach Dereck Whittenburg is still waiting to see from of his team. Through the first three games, losses to Columbia, Villanova, and now Manhattan, Whittenburg remains disappointed with his players’ leadership, or more accurately, the lack thereof.

“We have none,” the head coach said, referring to the absence of leadership. “We haven’t had any in two years. Guys don’t want to follow the right kid, they want to follow the best player.

“[The lack of leadership] affects everything especially when you have a young team. They’re still learning. It’s going to take some time.”

Whittenburg was most disappointed with the negative assist-to-turnover ratio that plagued the Rams in tonight’s game. Fordham had just nine assists while turning the ball over 13 times.

“We don’t know how to execute,” he said. “We had some shots we could have made. A lot of it is our offensive execution and what we’re doing with our mindset. The guys just don’t understand the mentality of why we’ve had some success here in the past.

“I think I know a little about this game. It comes down to the mental. It’s about our mindset.”

As the head coach, and the 2592 in attendance, can attest to, the Rams have a long way to go before they even get to where Manhattan is at this point in the season. At times tonight the Jaspers looked like they were in another league. After Fordham drew to within four at 21-17 with 8:13 to play in the first half, Manhattan would go on a 10-1 run to take a 31-18 lead, their largest lead of the half. Trey Blue and Brenton Butler knocked down three-pointers on successive possessions to keep the game within reach, and then Blue provided a lift at the end of the half with a three-pointer at the buzzer to send the teams into halftime with Manhattan ahead, 41-34.

“We obviously spoke about trying to get the last shot of the half,” Rohrssen said. “It was a big play for them. We didn’t want what we did in the first half to evaporate away.”

Despite the coach’s fears, it didn’t. Smith, Austin, and Crawford dominated the Rams in the second half, and the Jaspers were able to limit their turnovers to just three, a sign of poise and maturity. Despite a strong second half by Chris Bethel, Fordham’s offensive decision making and execution were poor, and the Jaspers poured it on offensively to cruise to the win.

“We talked about their energy and intensity,” Rohrssen said about preparing for Fordham. “We thought they would get up and pressure us. We had to be better with the basketball in the second half.

Leading 6-0 less than two minutes into the game thanks to two field goals and two made free throws by Smith the Jaspers took control early on. The Rams were able to keep up with Manhattan early as Chris Bethel and Jio Fontan had strong starts. Bethel scored 10 of the team’s first 21 points en route to a season high 24-point night. Fontan was more aggressive than he had been in the team’s first two games, consistently driving to the basket and scoring 10 first-half points. Though Whittenburg was happy with his freshman’s penetration he expects more passing from the point guard.

“Our point guard cannot lead us in shots,” the head coach said, referring to the team high 15 field goal attempts by the freshman. “In 25 years it’s something I’ve never had before. He comes from a program (St. Anthony’s in Jersey City, New Jersey) where he didn’t take a shot. He didn’t have to do as much. You’ve got to run some offense here in college.”

In fact, Whittenburg was disappointed in his team’s offensive mindset throughout the night. Not in their execution, but in their approach.

“We just looked like a young, out-of-control team,” he said. “We had some chances but offensively we’re not smart right now. We don’t know how to execute.”

Despite the offensive struggles, the Rams were able to get back into the game in the second half. A Fontan free throw cut Manhattan’s lead to 66-57 with 6:00 to play. But the Jaspers would quickly build their lead back, scoring six unanswered on three field goals by Darryl Crawford. And that was it for the Rams as Manhattan dominated the rest of the way.

“I thought we had a chance in the second half,” Whittenburg said. “Our offense and our mindset just never gave us a chance.”

BY CHARLES COSTELLO

The Villanova Wildcats won for the 17th straight time at The Pavilion, blowing out Fordham 107-68 Monday night in Philadelphia. It was the second straight loss to open the 2008-09 season for the Rams, who fell to Columbia last Friday. Meanwhile, the 23rd ranked Wildcats improved to 2-0.

We told you yesterday that this matchup could be Fordham’stoughest of the season. With Villanova dominating the Rams in every way, it’s hard to imagine Fordham facing a more formidable opponent. Led by senior forward Dante Cunningham, who scored a career-high 31 points and grabbed 11 rebounds, the Wildcats shot 56 percent from the floor, connecting on 35 field goals, and were 30-of-36 from the free throw line. Fordham, on the other hand, struggled from the floor for the second straight game, shooting just 33 percent on 23-of-65 shooting from the floor. The Rams were 8-of-26 from three-point range. And, similar to Friday night against the Lions, Fordham was decisively outrebounded, 45-28.

Corey Fisher and Corey Stokes had 17 points apiece for Villanova, while Scottie Reynolds chipped in with 11 points and seven assists. Fordham was led by Brenton Butler’s 17 points, while Jio Fontan rebounded from his dismal opening night to score 13 points and dish out five assists. Trey Blue (11 points) was the only other Ram in double figures. Chris Bethel had nine points and 11 rebounds, and Herb Tanner and Alberto Estwick added seven point apiece. Blue and Bethel both fouled out, as fouls once again plagued the Rams.

Fordham struggled all night with the more experienced Wildcats, who advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament last year, falling to eventual champion Kansas. Down by just five at 19-14 eight minutes into the game, Fordham was sacked by a 15-2 Villanova run that broke the game open. Fordham trailed big the rest of the way. Villanova led 56-38 at halftime.

Villanova now leads the all-time series, 12-8, and the Wildcats have won the last five contests, and nine of the last 10.

The Rams will return to the Rose Hill Gym Saturday night for a 7:00 game against the Manhattan Jaspers.

Meanwhile, the women return to action tomorrow night as they host Manhattan at 7:00. Fordham SportsNetwill be at Rose Hill covering all the action. And, we’ll be back tomorrow with a preview of the matchup.

BY CHARLES COSTELLO

Tonight’s matchup with nationally ranked Villanova is Fordham’s toughest non-conference game of the year. In fact, the Wildcats could be the best team the Rams face all year. Villanova is ranked No. 23 in the Associated Press poll and No. 25 in the ESPN/USA Today poll. They play in a conference, the Big East, that has seven teams in the top 25 of both polls, and four teams in the top 10, including Connecticut and Louisville at No. 2 and No. 3 respectively.

Villanova opened their season on Friday night with a 78-60 win over Albany. Six players reached double figures in points as the Wildcats won their first game of the season at The Pavilion for the 18th year in a row. Villanova also recorded its 200th victory at the arena. The team is 200-54 (.787) all-time at the Pavilion, their on-campus home, and the Wildcats have won 16 in a row there, including an 11-0 mark last year.

Missing for Villanova Friday night was senior swingman Dwayne Anderson, who sat out with a stress fracture in his left foot. He is out indefinitely. Villanova is also without senior forward Shane Clark, who had arthroscopic surgery on his right knee and is out three-to-six weeks. Dante Cunningham, Scottie Reynolds, and Corey Stokes led the Wildcats with 13 points apiece, while Antonio Pena added 12 points. Reggie Redding (11 points) and Corey Fisher (10 points) rounded out the balanced scoring attack.

Last year the Wildcats finished 22-13 and advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament before being eliminated by Kansas, who would go on to win the national championship. They open up the season with three games in six days, and will play eight games in 21 days before a showdown with Top 10 Texas. Nonetheless, the out of conference schedule is much lighter than the nightly grind Villanova will experience come January when the Big East Conference games begin.

“Setting the non-conference schedule is brutal for us,” Villanova head coach Jay Wright said. “We have to fit in the Big Five games at certain times and we get the Big East schedule so late and have to fit all those games in. It just worked out this way with our schedule. We struggle with scheduling and for the non-conference games we can’t just bring in whoever we want given the arena we play in. Our schedule gives us a chance to learn a lot about our team.”

Fordham, meanwhile, fell to Columbia, 65-62, in their opener Friday night at the Rose Hill Gym. The Rams were led by freshman Trey Blue, who yesterday was named Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week. Fordham shot 40 percent from the floor, 37 percent from beyond the arc, and just 34 percent from the free throw line. They were also outrebounded by Columbia, 52-27, on the night. They are 8-11 all-time against Villanova, and have lost four games in a row to the Wildcats. The last time the schools met was back on December 14, 2004, when Villanova beat Fordham, 68-47. The schools first met during the 1920-21 season when the Rams topped the Wildcats, 31-22.

“Every game is a big game,” Fordham head coach Dereck Whittenburg said when asked after Friday’s loss about playing Villanova. “Against a top 25 team, if we play like we played tonight, it won’t be close.”

Tonight’s game can be heard live on 90.7FM and WFUV.org beginning with the pregame show at 7:25. The opening tip is set for 7:30.