Akira Jacobs displays poise at college basketball Mecca

Aerosmith’s “Dream On” blaring on the sound system at Allen Fieldhouse as the Kansas intro video played displaying the history of the Jayhawks: 32 all-Americans, 63 conference titles, 15 Final Fours, six national championships.

Chills.

And the accomplishments of former players in the NBA and in international competition is countless too.

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But looking at the current KU men’s roster and comparing it to that of Fordham, its opening-night opponent, there’s one noticeable difference pointed in the Rams’ favor. A current Olympian.

Fordham senior forward Akira Jacobs represented his home country, Japan, at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics.

So, when the second-year Ram poured in a career-high 20 points on 5-of-6 shooting from beyond the arc Monday night in a 95-65 loss, it was no surprise.

“He’s had a consistent approach, and he’s played in an Olympics,” Fordham head coach Mike Magpayo told Mid-Major Madness. “So, perhaps these bright lights didn’t faze him as much as some of the others. And I’m really happy for him. He had a great game.”

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Jacobs served as a major catalyst as the Rams fought hard through the first half and trailed by just a dozen at the break. He was 3-for-3 from beyond the arc in the opening 20 minutes and was one of two players in double figures in the half.

The transfer from Hawaii started 30 of 32 games for the Rams last season and averaged 7.2 points and 4.8 rebounds across 28.4 minutes a game.

“I have this inkling that he was going to get more comfortable in our program and getting coached by us in year two,” Magpayo said. “He really embodies everything that we’re about as far as being a great attitude, great work ethic, and really wanting to be at Fordham.”

Jacobs’ numbers have improved throughout his college career. He averaged 2.6 points in just 7.2 minutes per game as a freshman with the Rainbow Warriors. He notched 6.9 points a game as a sophomore before making the move to Rose Hill.

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The Yokohama, Japan, native’s improvement…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/akira-jacobs-displays-poise-college-195230475.html

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Publish date : 2026-11-04 19:52:00

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