Women's Basketball Survives Scare, Advances to CAA Title Game

Friday, March 15

Newark, Del.

4 p.m.

Drexel University

24-7

Northeastern

20-11

OT 1

Northeastern

Drexel

Photo by: Greg Carroccio/Sideline Photos

Women's Basketball Survives Scare, Advances to CAA Title Game

3/15/2019 8:17:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

NEWARK, Del. – In a tournament that has seen its fair share of upsets so far, the Drexel women's basketball team survived a scare on Friday afternoon, fending off Northeastern in overtime, 73-69. The second-seeded Dragons (24-7) trailed by as many as six and had to get a defensive stop in the final seconds to force overtime, but came through in the extra session to thwart the sixth-seeded Huskies.

The win pushed Drexel into its sixth Colonial Athletic Association title game appearance, where it will face fourth-seeded Towson on Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m.

Niki Metzel scored a game-high 24 points, a new career high for the junior who netted 20 on Thursday in the quarterfinal win over William & Mary. Bailey Greenberg, the CAA's Player of the Year, added 15 points and a career-best 15 rebounds for her fifth double-double of the season. Greenberg's 15 boards were the most for any Dragon since Hollie Mershon pulled down that many at South Carolina on Nov. 28, 2012.

The Dragons were down by four heading into the fourth quarter, but held the Huskies to just one point over the first 5:08 of the period to pull back in front, 48-46. Aubree Brown gave Drexel that lead with three free throws, though the Dragons did not make a three in the game for the first time this season. Northeastern inched back ahead with just under two minutes to go, but Greenberg drained a pair of free throws to even the score with 1:27 to play and neither team scored in the stretch run. The Huskies had the final look at the basket, but Drexel forced an off-balanced three-point attempt that went long.

In overtime, the Dragons scored on their first six possessions, building a 66-59 lead that proved to be their largest of the evening. Greenberg and Ana Ferariu got things started with cuts to the hoop, and after Keishana Washington followed with her own lay-up, she hit a pair of free throws on the ensuing Drexel possession to start a trend that continued through the rest of overtime. In all, the Dragons got points on 10 of their 11 trips down the court in overtime, though the three field goals to start it were all they would get off from the floor. Drexel finished 13-for-14 from the line in overtime, including a 7-for-8 showing from Metzel, to methodically end the Huskies' hopes of an upset.

Northeastern got the start it was looking for, particularly defensively where the Huskies held Drexel to a 4-for-16 start in the first quarter. They held a 15-9 lead after the opening period, but Drexel gathered itself in the second quarter and its trademark defense stepped up to keep the Dragons close. The Huskies hit just three of 13 from the field in the second quarter and Drexel got six big points from Ferariu in the final 3:24 of the half to pull back even at the break. Despite the Dragons' slow start, Drexel's 11-for-30 showing in the opening half was actually one shot better than Northeastern's 10-for-30.

The second half belonged in large part to Metzel and Greenberg, who scored a combined 35 points after halftime on 11-of-14 shooting. Metzel, who got in early foul trouble that had her on the bench for all but two minutes of the opening half, finished the afternoon 8-for-10 from the floor, as well as 8-for-10 from the line, to go along with six boards. Greenberg started 1-for-9, but hit four of her final five shots and sank all five of her attempts from the charity stripe.

Washington added 14 points and a team-best five assists. Ferariu scored eight, coming through in the clutch late in the first half when Drexel was struggling offensively. Aubree Brown added seven points including a 5-for-5 showing at the free throw line, all of which came in the fourth quarter and overtime. Kayla Bacon added three and Mariah Leonard chipped in two while Hannah Nihill recorded an assist and a steal as part of a defensive effort that frustrated Northeastern's First Team All-CAA performer Jess Genco, who finished the game 2-for-15 from the field.

Drexel will now set its sights on a second CAA championship as the Dragons take on Towson tomorrow afternoon at the Bob Carpenter Center at the University of Delaware. The teams split their regular season matchups, with Towson winning the CAA opener at the DAC on a buzzer beater and the Dragons closing the regular season with an emphatic 77-44 win at Towson on Mar. 9.