Defense Helps Women's Basketball Advance, 65-61 Over VCU

Friday, March 9

Upper Marlboro, Md.

7:30 p.m.

Drexel University

VCU

Photo by: CAA/Rafael Suanes

Defense Helps Women's Basketball Advance, 65-61 Over VCU

3/9/2012 10:31:00 PM | Women's Basketball

BOX SCORE

UPPER MARLBORO, Md. – After a record-setting defensive performance in the first half, the Drexel women's basketball team withstood a late charge by sixth-seeded VCU to advance to the CAA semifinals with a 65-61 victory at the Show Place Arena on Friday night. Kamile Nacickaite led all scorers with 25 points, one of four Dragons to reach double figures.

The Dragons have thrived on the defensive end all season, leading the CAA in scoring defense heading into the tournament. That showed early on, as Drexel held the Rams scoreless for a 7:59 stretch in the middle of the first half, extending their lead from 10-8 with 13:06 to play to 25-10 with 5:07 remaining. VCU knocked down two free throws to end the drought. The field goal stretch would extend a full 9:14 of gametime before a short jumper by Robyn Parks cut the Dragons' lead to 27-12.

Drexel kept the Rams right there for the rest of the stanza, taking a 30-12 lead into halftime. VCU's 12 points marked the lowest by a Drexel opponent in any half this year, and tied the CAA record for the lowest point total in a half at the CAA Tournament. VCU turned the ball over 10 times in the first half, and shot just 19.0 percent from the floor.

The Dragons maintained a double-digit lead for most of the second half, leading by as many as 22 points early in the period. VCU cut into that and got it down to 11 points midway through the period, but Drexel rebuild the advantage and held a 53-40 lead with 2:28 remaining. From there, the Rams took advantage of some Drexel turnovers and scored eight straight points in the next 1:24. Drexel pushed the margin back to eight on a pair of Tyler Hale free throws with 35 seconds to go, but the Rams kept forcing the action. They got the game down to two points with 1.1 seconds to go, but Nacickaite hit two free throws to secure the victory.

Hale finished with 12 points and eight rebounds, just shy of her second double double of the season. She added three assists and two steals. Hollie Mershon had 13 points and Taylor Wootton added 10. Marisa Crane dished out four assists and grabbed four rebounds, matching a season high. She played 25 minutes, her most since returning from an injury which sidelined her for three games late in the season.

Drexel won the game with a solid showing at the free throw line, where they went 24-for-31 on the night and 22-for-28 in the second half. Nacickiate in particular was reliable at the charity stripe, hitting 12-of-14, including 11-of-12 in the second half.

In addition to their reliability at the free throw line, the Dragons won by neutralizing the Rams on the boards, one of their main goals heading into the game. Although the final rebounding margin was just two, with Drexel pulling down 32 to VCU's 30, the Dragons held a 28-21 advantage on the board late in the game before the Rams' frenetic comeback.

Drexel will now play in the CAA semifinals for the first time since winning the conference crown in 2009. They will take on second-seeded James Madison, which handled George Mason in the evening's earlier quarterfinals. That game will tip at 2:30 p.m. Fans can catch the action on the Comcast Network in Philadelphia. Ari Bluestein will have the call for the radio broadcast on DrexelDragons.com.