Fordham Prep continues to cement itself has one of the best teams in the CHSAA Class A division.
The Ram boys’ basketball team held off host Monsignor Scanlan 75-70 in hard-fought battle between to of the league’s best teams last Friday night.
Patrick Murray’s 21 points and four rebounds led Fordham Prep and Cameron Pinn tallied 21 points, 12 rebounds and four assists. Eric Hyancithe chipped in 15 points.
The Rams have a good nucleus that they believe can lead them to a deep playoff run. First year Fordham Prep coach Brian Downey feels upbeat about his team, which is now 12-4 overall, and 9-3 in their division. He knows that wouldn’t be possible without the strong play of Murray and Pinn throughout the year.
“Patrick had 19 of his 21 in the first half. Cameron picked up the pace after Scanlan keyed in on Murray in the second half,” Downey said. “Both of them are two of the main scorers and can lead on any given day.”
He also adds that no game in the A division is easy especially in another team’s gym. The Rams are second behind undefeated Kennedy Catholic and in a fight with Xavier (7-3) for second place.
“In our league, any game will be a dog fight on the road, and to pick up a win against an improving Scanlan team was key,” he said. “Our keys to the game were shooting in the first half. Our solid defense caused turnovers that ultimately led to points.”
It was such a tough loss for the Crusaders, which fell to 9-9 overall and 4-6 in their division. However, with their spectacular trio of players in freshman Jordan McCallister, sophomore Saquan Singleton and junior George Pena, Scanlan will still have a chance to make noise in the playoffs.
Fordham Prep is showing it can do the same, just a year after dropping down from the Class AA division. The battles members of this group when through against heavyweights like Christ the King, St. Raymond, Iona Prep and Cardinal Hayes have paid off this season. It wants to play for a city championship in March.
