Women's Basketball Handles UNCW, 56-45

Thursday, February 27

Daskalakis Athletic Center

7:00 p.m.

Drexel University

13-14, 8-6

UNCW

4-25, 3-12

UNCW

Drexel

Photo by: Greg Carroccio

2/27/2014 8:55:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

PHILADELPHIA – The Drexel women's basketball team snapped a three-game losing skid on Thursday night by going back to its strong suit and playing stout defense in a 56-45 win over UNCW. Senior Tory Thierolf, starting for a fifth-consecutive game, matched her career high with 16 points. She has reached that total in each of the Dragons' last three games. Freshman Sarah Curran returned to action after missing the last four games, scoring eight points in eight minutes. Junior Jamila Thompson added seven points, one shy of her career best.

The Dragons (13-14, 8-6) led nearly the entire way and held an opponent under 50 points for a ninth time this season. The win kept Drexel in the hunt for a No. 2 seed in the upcoming Colonial Athletic Association Tournament with two games remaining in the regular season.

The Dragons held the Seahawks without a point for over five minutes to start the game, but scored just four themselves, setting the tone for what would be a defensive struggle. The Dragons got nine points from Thierolf in the first half, including one of just two three-pointers Drexel would hit on the evening. UNCW briefly took a 10-9 lead midway through the period, but the Dragons seized it back and never let go, building a 26-20 lead at the break.

After Drexel went up by nine early in the second half on an Abby Redick lay-up, the Seahawks got the difference back down to four when Kelva Atkins, who led UNCW with 13 points, knocked down a jumper at the 16:32 mark. The Dragons responded with a 6-0 run that pushed their lead to double digits for the first time at 36-26 when Curran drove in and scored with 13:07 remaining. As a team, Drexel doubled up the Seahawks with 32 points in the paint compared to just 16 for UNCW.

Any chances of a UNCW comeback were dashed when Drexel went on a 9-2 run over a 2:17 stretch, culminating with a Curran bucket with 4:47 to play. That put the Dragons up by 15, 51-36, marking their largest advantage of the evening.

Drexel got scoring production from nine different players on Thursday, including four points from freshman Alexis Smith. The two-time CAA Rookie of the Week had been held scoreless over her previous four appearances. Fiona Flanagan had five points and a team-best nine rebounds. She added four assists, as did Meghan Creighton. Thierolf, who reeled in six boards to go along with her 16 points, added a team-high five assists against no turnovers. Redick, Jackie Schluth and Rachel Pearson each added four points for the Dragons.

The Dragons now face a stiff road test in their final regular-season trip of the year, a visit to Hofstra on Sunday. That game tips off at 2:00 p.m. as Drexel looks to split the season series with the Pride.