Drexel University Athletics
Drexel University
Saint Joseph's
Saint Josephs Downs Drexel at the Palestra, 69-59
11/29/2005 12:00:00 AM
Philadelphia - Saint Joseph's opened the game with a 10-0 run and held off a late Drexel rally to defeat the Dragons at the Palestra, 69-59. After trailing by as many as 16 points, the Dragons (3-4) cut the lead down to six with less than a minute to play, but the Hawks (3-1) made all eight of their free throws in the final 1:07 to preserve the win.
The Dragons struggled from the outset and didn't get on the board until Chaz Crawford (Philadelphia, Pa./Hargrave Military) scored at the 14:43 mark. Drexel had four early turnovers during that stretch as well. Saint Joseph's shot 57 percent in the first half. The Hawks were 4-for-6 from deep and took a 31-20 lead at intermission.
Drexel turned up the intensity midway through the second half. Frank Elegar (Bronx, N.Y./St. Raymond's), who was held scoreless in the first half, scored 13 second-half points as the Dragons went inside more in the final 20 minutes. Elegar also had 10 rebounds as he posted his second-straight double-double. Bashir Mason (Jersey City, N.J./St. Benedict's) led the Dragons with 16 points, 13 of them coming in the second half. Mason had four three-pointers in the contest. Drexel got back in the game by making six of their 11 long-range attempts in the half.
Abdulai Jalloh led three Hawks in double figures with 22 points. Chet Stachitas and Dwayne Lee each added 16 points. The Hawks finished the game shooting better than 52 percent and outrebounded Drexel, 32-27.
The Dragons return to the Palestra on Saturday afternoon when they face La Salle in the first game of the Big 5 Classic at noon.
