Men’s Basketball Defeats Fordham 70-66 After Defensive Struggle

The Loyola men’s basketball team defeated Fordham University 70-66 Jan. 22 at the annual Jesuit Jam in Gentile Arena. Graduate guard Sheldon Edwards Jr. led the Ramblers with 13 points, while graduate guard Japhet Medor and fourth-year guard Jackie Johnson III both scored 22 points for the Rams. 

After recording nine turnovers in the second half and 14 overall, head coach Drew Valentine said confidence within the team is faltering. 

“A lot of self-inflicted wounds out there tonight — self-inflicted errors, a lot of mentality errors from our guys — and we gotta be better,” Valentine said. “I gotta be better as a coach. You just feel it as a fan — you don’t even have to have a lot of basketball knowledge. The guys just gotta look at themselves in the mirror. I gotta look at myself in the mirror and figure out how to get this team playing better because I am not doing a good job.” 

After winning the tipoff, the Ramblers got on the board first with a layup from fourth-year guard Des Watson. Edwards Jr. stole the ball from Fordham’s fourth-year guard Zach Riley and sent it down floor to third-year guard Jalen Quinn for a fast break layup and a 4-0 lead. 

Third-year Fordham forward Romad Dean netted a three before Medor added another a minute later to put the Rams ahead. Edwards Jr. tied the game with a layup on the next possession. 

Fourth-year forward Francis Nwaokorie received a technical foul for hanging on the rim after a missed dunk, allowing Johnson III to add a free throw for the Rams. Johnson III made a three soon after to give Fordham a 10-6 advantage. 

The Ramblers retook the lead with a dunk by second-year center Miles Rubin and a three-point play from third-year guard Kymany Houinsou. After the Ramblers failed to capitalize on two straight Fordham turnovers, Medor made a 3-pointer to retake a 13-11 lead. 

Third-year guard Jayden Dawson tied the game with a successful trip to the line, but Medor kept the Rams a step ahead with a reverse layup at the other end. 

A Quinn driving layup was blocked by Fordham’s graduate forward Abdou Tsimbila, while Johnson III added two at the line for the Rams on the next possession. Another steal by Edwards Jr. set up Nwaokorie for a layup, closing the gap to two. 

Johnson III added a layup to the board before Watson closed the gap again with a trip to the line. Third-year Fordham forward Joshua Rivera rebounded a missed Watson layup and drained a 3-pointer on the other end, making it 22-17. 

Medor made a layup, which was followed by a run of misses by both sides. Quinn and Dawson ended the drought with 3-pointers, keeping the Ramblers close behind 24-23. 

Johnson III made a 3-pointer, Houinsou scored a layup and Medor added one at the line. Edwards Jr. tied it at 28 after hitting a deep three with just under three minutes remaining in the half. 

An alley-oop dunk by Rivera came before a Ramblers shot-clock violation. Two consecutive Edwards Jr. threes and a Riley free throw ended the half with the Ramblers up 34-31.

Johnson III opened the second half with a mid-range jumper, and Medor gave the lead back to the Rams with a successful trip to the line. Johnson III increased the lead to 37-34 with a driving layup.

Tsimbila slammed a second-chance dunk before Nwaokorie added two at the line. A fast-passing offensive play led to a Watson 3-pointer, tying it at 39. 

After three missed opportunities off Rambler turnovers, Rivera drove the lane for a layup and Medor sank a 3-pointer putting Fordham ahead 44-39. 

Houinsou shrunk the lead to three with a layup before Fordham’s graduate guard Matt Zona added two at the line. 

Edwards Jr. intercepted a Fordham pass and took it coast to coast for a dunk, and Watson made a layup on the next possession to bring it within one. 

The teams both scored during the next string of possessions. Johnson III was the lone Fordham scorer during the stretch with a jumper and a 3-pointer, while Dawson and Houinsou each made a layup as Loyola continued to trail 51-49. 

The offenses stayed hot following a media timeout, as Zona and Rivera both made layups and Rubin jammed two dunks. 

Fourth-year forward Jalen DeLoach tied the game at 55 with a tip-in and sparked an unanswered run, scoring on a dunk and a jumper. Dawson joined in with a jumper before Medor made two at the line with Loyola now ahead 61-57.

Rubin added one at the line following a Johnson III layup. Medor had another successful trip to the line to make it 64-61. Nwaokorie added two at the line after a foul was called against Zona following a review.

Zona fouled Dawson, who made just one of his attempts. Medor made a driving layup with 28 seconds remaining to cut into the four-point Rambler lead.

Dawson made the first on a one-and-one opportunity before Watson made two at the line. Rivera catapulted a buzzer-beating three into the net, but it wasn’t enough as the Ramblers came out victorious 70-66. 

Even after adding the win column, Valentine said there’s a lot the group still needs to work on, including guarding the ball and returning to the team’s foundation of committing to the championship culture. 

Valentine said the Fordham team was hungrier for the win, despite the Ramblers focusing on being a “championship team.” 

“They want to maximize themselves and be individual,” Valentine said. “If you want to be a pro and you want to win a championship, you’re going to do everything that the team needs, but then you’re also going to be confident and prepared and do everything you can as an individual.” 

The Ramblers have a week off before heading to Fairfax, Va. to face George Mason University Jan 29. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. and streaming information has yet to be released.