Drexel University
Hofstra
Slow Start Dooms Dragons in 61-52 Loss to Hofstra
2/15/2007 9:23:02 PM | Women's Basketball
Hempstead, N.Y. - After trailing by as much as 25 points in the second half, Drexel (6-19, 1-13 CAA) turned up the pressure to force five turnovers in the final seven minutes while mounting a 17-4 run to make it a nine-point game with 2:38 remaining. Hofstra (19-6, 9-5 CAA) snared two key steals in the final two minutes to hold on for a 61-52 victory. Gabriela Marginean led all scorers with 23 points to go with nine rebounds.
Hofstra opened the game with an 11-0 run and never looked back as the Dragons did not get on the board until the 14:26 mark in the game. A similar four-and-a-half minute scoring drought to start the second half allowed the Pride to build a 20-point lead before Drexel moved the twine in the second stanza.
The Pride's 54-percent shooting in the first half helped bolster the early lead. But most of the team's scoring came from the perimeter where Hofstra shot 5-for-10, led by Cigi McCollin's 3-for-3 performance from deep. Drexel limited Hofstra's trio of dominant forwards to just three field goals, including shutting out Lizanne Murphy, the Pride's third leading scorer, in the opening period.
The Dragons' defense anchored the team in the second half until its shots started to fall, holding Hofstra to just five field goals in the period and 23-percent shooting from the floor. Drexel also forced Hofstra into 12 second-half turnovers and capitalized for 12 points off of them.
Drexel's rally was ignited when Kira Karlstrom got open off a back screen and knocked down a layup while being fouled. She converted the three-point play and then nailed a three-pointer from the corner after a steal by Delise Johnson. Drexel got the ball back after another Hofstra turnover and Marginean put back an offensive rebound to make it 56-43 with 6:40 on the clock.
A jumper by Karlstrom in the lane at the 2:38 mark cut Hofstra's mountainous lead to just nine points. The Dragons, who held the Pride without a field goal for the final 8:48 of the game, had a chance to draw closer but they could not get a pair of shots in the lane to fall on their next possession. Another put back by Marginean with 55 seconds give Drexel its final total. A steal by Niki Williams, who missed a triple-double by two assists, sealed the game in the final seconds.
Drexel shot 41 percent in the second half, but made just three of its 18 attempts from deep in the game. Marginean, the two-time reigning CAA Rookie of the Week, hit the 20-point mark for the third time in the last four games.
The Dragons head south to challenge UNC Wilmington on Sunday Feb. 18 at 1:00 p.m.
