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HAMILTON – Colgate saw a tough Fordham squad come from behind to steal the 77-73 win here Tuesday night in this non-conference men's basketball matchup.

"We didn't play with composure late in the game," Colgate head coach Matt Langel said. "They went zone and we acted as if we hadn't attacked the zone earlier in the game. Offensively our strategy is always to take what the defense gives you. They played zone in the first half and we attacked it pretty well. We got some open shots and drives to the basket. In the second half they played more man-to-man. We had some size advantages and got some good looks. But at the end of the day it was our defense and lack of composure that hurt us."

In a game that featured eight lead changes and six ties, Colgate and Fordham battled until the final whistle blew. With less than a minute to play and the game tied at 70-70, the Rams ultimately secured their win making seven of their eight free throws down the stretch.

Colgate (4-4) notched four players in double-digits for the fifth time this season. Austin Tillotson led the way with a team-high 18 points. Damon Sherman-Newsome and Ethan Jacobs were close behind with 14 points each. Sherman-Newsome also went 4-for-6 from behind the arc while Matt McMullen went 3-of-4 from downtown for his 11 points. Sherman-Newsome tied his career-high four assists on the night as well.

The Raiders outshot Fordham 50.9 percent to 45.5 percent and also slightly outrebounded the Rams 32-30. Colgate drained eight of its 23 attempts from long range for 35 percent shooting.

Fordham (5-3) received a game-high performance from Brandon Frazier, who recorded 27 points. Mandell Thomas and Travion Leonard added 18 and 10 points, respectively. Ryan Rhoomes earned eight boards to lead all scorers.

After the Rams scored off the opening tip-off, the Raiders settled into their game plan, rattling off six straight points to take the early 6-2 lead with 16:22 remaining in the half.

A McMullen 3-pointer extended the Raiders' edge to 12 points, the largest of the game, at 26-14 with 9:35 left to play before the break.

The teams exchanged baskets and at the 3:26 mark McMullen found Jacobs down low for a dunk to keep the Raiders ahead by 10, at 37-27.

Fordham would not go away, however, as they went on a 7-4 run to pull within seven heading into halftime.

The Rams came out of the locker room and quickly cut Colgate's advantage to two at 45-43 following a good 3-pointer from Frazier.

The teams would take turns holding the lead over the course of the next four minutes but an 8-0 run by the Raiders created a 60-52 edge with less than 10 minutes to play.

Yet again, the Rams rallied back going on a 9-2 run to pull within one, at 61-60 with 5:09 remaining in the game.

A trey from Tillotson at the 2:52 mark, however, formed a four-point margin between the teams but Fordham answered with an and-1 to pull back to within one at 67-66.

With the game knotted for the eighth time at 70-all, the Rams came up with a steal and two makes at the charity stripe to go up by two with 31 seconds remaining. Colgate tried to fight back, but 7-of-8 made free throws by Fordham in the final seconds earned the Rams the victory.

Colgate is back in action Saturday when it travels to Albany for another non-conference matchup at 7 p.m.

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