Drexel Rally Falls Short in 66-59 Loss at Hofstra

Thursday, February 10

Hempstead, N.Y.

7:00

Drexel University

Hofstra

Drexel Rally Falls Short in 66-59 Loss at Hofstra

2/10/2011 9:09:19 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

Hempstead, N.Y. - Drexel charged back from a 12-point second-half deficit to bring the game within one with under three minutes to play, but the Dragons couldn't get their shots to fall down the stretch and Hofsta held on for a 66-59 victory. Hollie Mershon led Drexel with 15 points, seven rebounds and four assits and Jasmina Rosseel chipped in 14 points. The loss drops Drexel to 13-10 overall and 5-7 in CAA play. Hofstra is now 14-9 (6-6 CAA). Shante Evans led the Pride with 21 points an 13 rebounds, she also led a 23-for-27 free-throw shooting performance by Hofstra by making 9-of-9 from the stripe.

Drexel shot 38.3 percent from the floor and made 7-for-20 from deep. A 50-percent effort in the second half could not make up for the team's meager 7-for-28 shooting performance to open the game. Hofstra scored 20 points of 19 Drexel turnovers and put in 28 points in the paint, led by Evans' 21.

Ayana Lee helped fuel Drexel's second-half rally and finished with one of the finest all-around performances of her career, with eight points, seven rebounds, an assist, a block and a career-high four steals. Lee's efforts on the glass helped Drexel outrebound Hofstra 40-36 despite Evans' 13-board game.

The Dragons saw themselves sink into a hole as deep as 12 points early in the second half. The team's defense did well to keep it within grasp of daylight as they clawed their way back.

A put-back layup by Rosseel began a 17-6 Drexel run that got the Dragons within one point, 58-57, on a layup by Lee at the 3:22 mark. Lee's score was the second of two straight for the junior forward and she followed it with a steal that led to a Taylor Wootton bucket, putting Drexel within one at the 2:52 mark.

Candace Bond and Nicole Capurso answered for the Pride with a pair of jumpers that stretched their lead back to five points with under two to play.

After a missed layup by Nacickaite the Dragons were forced to foul to get the ball back. Jael Pena converted two from the line and Nacickaite answered with a jumper to make it a 64-59 game. But that would be the last shot the Dragons could get to fall in the contest.

Drexel sprung a 11-2 run on the Pride midway through the period that turned a 11-10 Hofstra lead at the 14:21 mark into a sizeable 22-13 margin for the Dragons on a Nacickaite three-pointer with 7:56 to play.

The Pride answered with a 17-1 run of their own to close the half with a 30-23 lead. The spurt came predominantly from the free-throw line as Capurso, Pena, Bond and Evans converted 9-of-10 from the stripe. A three-pointer by Bellocchio and a three-point play by Capurso gave Hofstra a seven-point advantage going into the locker room.

Evans scored 14 of the Pride's points by halftime with eight of them coming from the free-throw line. Hofstra also used 13 Drexel turnovers to score 14 points.

Drexel held Hofstra to just 26.9 percent from the floor in the half, but the Pride converted 14-of-15 from the line. The Dragons struggled from deep, shooting 3-for-12, with Rosseel converting just 1-of-6 attempts from long range.

Drexel is now 1-6 on the road in conference games, with its only victory coming at William & Mary. The Dragons return to the friendly confines of the Daskalakis Athletic Center for three straight games, the first of which is this Sunday against Northeastern at 2:00.