Drexel University Athletics
Drexel University
Old Dominion
Marginean Pours in 33 Points, But Dragons Fall 69-59 at Old Dominion
1/10/2010 4:16:41 PM | Women's Basketball
Box Score
Norfolk, Va. - Gabriela Marginean exploded for a season-high 33 points, but it was not enough to hold off at second-half rally by Old Dominion, who held on for a 69-59 victory over the Dragons (8-6, 2-1). The loss snaps a 15-game CAA winning streak for Drexel, who is back on the road to face Hofstra on Thursday.
Jasmine Parker led Old Dominion with 22 points, including 12-for-12 shooting from the free-throw line. The Lady Monarchs outscored Drexel 45-34 in the second half after trailing 25-24 at halftime. Old Dominion did not hit a shot from the floor for the final 10:09 but was able to convert 20 free throws down the stretch to pull away for the win.
The Lady Monarchs outrebounded Drexel handily, 42-28 and 16-12 on the offensive glass. While Old Dominion hit just eight shots from the field in the second half and managed 37 percent shooting for the game, a 30-for-36 performance from the free-throw stripe proved to be the difference in the contest. Drexel shot 35.7 percent in the game and was 16-for-20 from the free-throw line. The Dragons struggled from three-point range, however, making just 3-of-19 shots from deep.
Old Dominion pulled ahead with an 8-2 run to open the second half and used the hot shooting hand of Jackie Cook to build a 44-37 lead by the 13:19 mark in the half. Cook scored 10 points in a matter of two and a half minutes during a 12-6 Lady Monarch spurt that put the home team in command by the midway point in the period. ODU knocked down its first four three-point attempts of the period in a much improved shooting effort.
The Lady Monarchs built their lead as large as 12 points, 49-37, following their fifth three-pointer at the 10:09 mark. Marginean reasserted herself on offense with a three-pointer, a hard-fought layup and a trip to the foul line. She scored the first six points of a 12-0 Drexel run to energize her team and draw the game to a 49-49 tie with 6:21 to play.
From that juncture, the Lady Monarchs would work their way to the foul line on their next six possessions and convert 10-of-12 from the stripe to pull ahead 59-54 on two tosses by Jasmine Parker with 1:47 to play.
Drexel's trapping defense forced two turnovers in the final minute and a half and the Dragons were able to cut the lead to 59-56 with a minute left. But the game would turn on their next trip down the court as a foul was whistled on Tyler Hale and Head Coach Denise Dillon received a technical foul. The chorus of whistles allowed Old Dominion to take a 63-56 lead and pull away for the victory.
Marginean scored 14 of Drexel's 25 points in the first half to help the Dragons take a 25-24 lead into the locker room. Drexel led by as many as eight points in the period, but a late push by the Lady Monarchs closed the margin to one point at half. Drexel shot just over 38 percent from the floor and converted 10 Old Dominion turnovers into 13 points. The Dragons were uncharacteristically cold from three-point range, however, making just 1-of-11 attempts in the half.
In her second career start, rookie forward Taylor Wootton helped Drexel set the tempo early by keeping the ball alive on a number of hustle plays. She tipped out an offensive rebound in the opening possession and deflected a post-entry pass on one of Old Dominion's first trips down the court.
Marisa Crane kept up this defensive intensity with a pair of steals midway through the period. Following a poach at the top of the key, Crane led a breakaway down the court before hitting Rosseel in stride with a bounce pass for a layup to cap a 6-0 run and put Drexel on top 21-13 with 7:06 on the clock.
A Marginean pull-up jumper at the 5:58 mark gave Drexel a 23-15 lead and the Dragons looked to have the game in hand. But a 9-2 run by Old Dominion to close the half kept the game within one point, 25-24, at the break.
Drexel will return to action on Thursday, Jan. 14 when the Dragons travel to play Hofstra in a 7:00 p.m. tilt in Hempstead, N.Y.
