Bonnies unable to take over Rose Hill, fall to Fordham

Mark Schmidt looks on as St. Bonaventure battles Fordham. (Photo by Bob Dea/Daly Dose Of Hoops)

By Ray Floriani (@rfloriani)

NEW YORK — Last month Fordham, went into Reilly Center and handed St. Bonaventure a 79-68 loss. The Bonnies rarely lose in the friendly confines of Olean, but a double-digit loss? Following the game, Bonnies head coach Mark Schmidt talked about how his team was just beaten by a tougher, more physical Fordham team.

The rematch was set for mid-February at Rose Hill Gymnasium. Despite dropping their previous two games, Schmidt and his team were anxious to change the script. They knew how they were beaten the first time out. They knew what had to be done to avoid the first Bona loss at Rose Hill since 2008. Knowing and doing are two different entities.

The Bonnies were beaten, 78-63. They fell to 13-14 while the Rams, on a magical run, captured their third straight and eighth in their last nine to improve to 21-5.

“They were just tougher and more physical,” Schmidt said of Fordham. 

The Rams jumped out to a 9-2 lead in the first two-plus minutes. The Rose Hill capacity crowd was in a frenzy, but the Bonnies settled down, not allowing Fordham to speed them up and instead getting stops. The Bonnies grabbed a lead and were up 24-20 with just over six minutes left before halftime, but Fordham coach Keith Urgo did not need a white board. 

“We didn’t draw an X or O,” Urgo said. “We just talked about cleaning up our mental errors.” 

Fordham responded by going on a run that saw them take a 37-30 lead into the intermission, and again came out the aggressor in building an 11-point lead. 

“When we lost at Richmond, we came out complacent with a halftime lead,” Fordham guard Darius Quisenberry said. “Tonight, we wanted to keep our foot on the gas pedal.” 

St. Bonaventure responded, getting its deficit down to five and poised to make a run. The Rams answered, getting the edge back to double digits and were never challenged thereafter.

“We missed layups, we missed shots,” Schmidt lamented when explaining the foundation of the Fordham run. In that regard, credit the Rams, as Urgo said, “the final half, we played as good defense as we have all year.” Also credit Fordham’s efficiency on offense, running screen-and-roll sets  that had very often created space for shooters with Quisenberry, a 16 point scorer for the game, on the wing.

One of the Bonnie’s’ priorities was keeping 6’10” center Chad Venning out of trouble. Venning picked up his fourth foul early in the second half and eventually fouled out with 4:32 remaining. By that point, the Ram lead had mushroomed to 23 and Rose Hill was in a state of pandemonium.

“They were plus-15 in rebounding,” Schmidt lamented. “They are a mature, veteran team. They were just more physical.”

Despite the loss, Schmidt could appreciate the new found atmosphere in the gym Urgo calls “Rose Thrill.” 

“The crowd was great,” the Bona mentor noted. “A great atmosphere and exciting.” A lot different from recent years when a Fordham trip may have meant a packed gym, with mostly Bonnies faithful.

Urgo praised his team, calling the Rams a group that is “as connected as any team I’ve been with.” The Bonnies are in the midst of a three-game slide, yet Schmidt remains optimistic. 

“We are 7-7 and have four games before Brooklyn (A-10 Tournament),” he said. “Two are home and two away. We hope to win both at home and steal one on the road. Next is George Washington at home (Sunday). That’s our concern now, get ready for George Washington.”