Fordham’s Chris Gaston was the biggest dog in the fight against La Salle on Saturday.
Gaston, the Rams’ leading scorer and rebounder, tied a career-high with 35 points and added 16 rebounds in Fordham’s 67-62 win.
“Obviously, monster game here by Chris,” Fordham head coach Tom Pecora said.
Of Gaston’s 16 rebounds, 15 of them came on the offensive end.
“I don’t know if I’ve ever seen that kind of line before,” Pecora said.
Fordham (10-17, 3-11 Atlantic 10) kept the game close in the first half until the La Salle (18-11, 7-7 A-10) pulled away with a 15-0 run and went into the locker room with a 42-31 lead. The second half was a different story. A Branden Frazier (11 points, eight assists) trey capped off a 12-0 run in the second half to regain the lead 53-52 and give the Rams momentum.
“It was the tale of two halves,” Pecora said. “The first half I was trying to get them to play with a little energy, I think defensively in the second half we did a wonderful job. I said [at halftime] ‘Hey guys, the only way we’re going to do this is if we play like a pack of dogs.’”
Fordham’s inspired play also got the crowd back into the game. On a day where the Rose Hill Gym held a “White-Out” the Rams’ home court advantage was enormous.
“At home, we’ve been there before and we’ve come back,” Pecora said. “I tell [the players] all of the time, just give [the fans] a reason to get into this game. If they get up on their feet, this whole thing changes, the way the opponent feels, the way the opponent executes, the way the officials call the game. That’s what home court advantage is.”
In addition to the crowd, Gaston was also fired up on several occasions in the emotional win. After an embarrassing home loss to St. Bonaventure last Wednesday, in which he did not start due to disciplinary reasons, Gaston wanted to make his presence known.
“I think [Andrew] Nicholson got the best of me and I wanted to use that to carry over from [the Bonaventure] game and play with a chip on my shoulder,” Gaston said. “I wanted to take it out on La Salle and get this win. I was thinking about that the whole day yesterday.”
Gaston, in his third season at Fordham, has yet to make it to the A-10 tournament, and for the first time in his career, Gaston’s Rams can taste the postseason.
“I was just playing really competitive, I hate to lose,” Gaston said. “I really wanted to win this game, I really want to go to the A-10 tournament. That was just my mindset the whole game. We needed to win this game.”
The win keeps Fordham’s A-10 hopes alive. The Rams trail George Washington for the final seed in next month’s tournament, but the Rams hold a tiebreaker over the Colonials if they finish with the same record.
Facing another two potential must-win games, Coach Pecora has discussed with his team the importance of momentum. With the Lombardi Trophy on hand at Saturday’s game, Pecora’s Rams can try and replicate the Super Bowl run made by the Giants earlier this year.
“We’ve talked about [the Giants],” Pecora said. “In every sport, get hot late. You see teams get rolling going into the playoffs or a tournament. We’re hot today, let’s see what we can do on Wednesday [at Rhode Island]. If we can keep rolling off this, magic happens. Magic’s happened before and it can happen again.”
asulla-heffinger@nypost.com