Drexel University
James Madison
Dukes Deal Dragons Tough 52-50 Loss
2/10/2006 12:00:00 AM
Philadelphia, Pa. - James Madison (17-4, 9-3 CAA) recovered from a 11-point halftime deficit to edge Drexel (10-11, 5-7 CAA) in an excruciatingly close 52-50 contest.
With 8 seconds left in and the Dragons trailing 50-49, Jackie Falson drove the length of the court after a missed free throw by Shirley McCall and drew a foul. The senior hit one of two free-throws and James Madison gathered the rebound. Meredith Alexis hit one of two to seal a 52-50 comeback win for the Dukes.
Catherine Scanlon scored 13 of her game-high 20 points in the first half. Narissa Suber chipped in 13 for the Dragons. James Madison was led by Shirley McCall's 13 points. Meredith Alexis and Andrea Benvenuto also reached double-figures for the Dukes who are in third place in the conference.
Drexel held a lead the majority of the game after jumping out to a 12-4 advantage in the first five minutes of play. Scanlon score nine of the Dragons' first dozen points in the scoring jaunt with a three-pointer, a layup and a pair of free throws. The Dukes drew the score as a close as two points at 18-16 with 6:18 in the period. But Drexel closed out the half on a 11-2 run capped by a Kira Karlstrom steal and layup to give Drexel its largest lead of the game, 11 points, going into the half.
The Dragons held James Madison to just 23 percent shooting from the field, as the team's defense collapsed snuggly around the Dukes drive-prone guards. The Dragons, who swatted a season-high five shots in the first half, held Young, the CAA's second-leading scorer at 16.4 points per game, to nine total points and shutout Alexis in the first half.
In the second half, James Madison came out of the locker room and greeted Drexel with a 16-3 run capped by a McCall layup to tie the game at 34-34 at the eight-minute mark. The Dukes took their first lead at the 5:39 mark when Benvenuto hit a three-pointer to make the score 39-38. Drexel answered with a Scanlon jumper in the lane but James Madison took back the lead for good at 4:33 with a pair of Alexis free throws.
Alexis scored eight-straight points for the Dukes in a span of just over three minutes to put them on top 45-40 with 3:02 in the game. Suber hit a three from the wing to shave the advantage to two points, but Benvenuto answered with a long jumper to make it 49-44 with 1:36 left.
Suber, who was guarded well on the perimeter, capitalized on the charging defender to drive the lane more in the second half. The aggressive maneuvers put Young in foul trouble with about eight minutes to play. After Benvenuto's jumper, Suber drove the lane again and rolled in a layup to make the score 49-47 with 46 seconds in the game.
A foul and one made layup gave Drexel the chance to tie the game with the ball and 18.1 seconds on the clock. Suber again knifed through the lane and got an off-balance layup to fall making it a 50-49 James Madison lead. A quick foul sent McCall to the line. She hit one of two and the Dragons snared the rebound, sending Falson flying to the other end for a foul and the ensuing free throws that brought the game to its dramatic resolution.
The Dukes edged the Dragons in board gathering, 38-33 and held a slight edge in field-goal percentage 36 percent to 32.7 percent. Drexel shot an icy 22.2 percent from the floor in the second half.
Drexel migrates south to take on the Seahawks of UNC Wilmington on Sunday, Feb. 12 at 2:00 p.m. With Virginia Commonwealth's overtime loss to Towson, the Dragons maintain sole posession of seventh place in the conference.
