Men's Basketball Drops 57-50 Decision at William & Mary
Evan Neisler scored nine points off the bench for Drexel
Box Score
Williamsburg, Va. – William & Mary held off a late Drexel rally and defeated the Dragons, 57-50. The Tribe (14-12, 10-6 CAA) made 15 of its 17 free throws in the second half, including four in the final 37 seconds after Drexel made it a three-point game. The loss dropped the Dragons record to 11-17 overall and 4-12 in conference play.
The Tribe went on a 10-2 run midway through the second half and went ahead for good when Marcus Kitts scored on a lay-up to make it a 33-32 lead. The lead increased to seven, but Drexel cut it to 53-50 with just 37 seconds remaining after Evan Neisler (Raleigh, N.C./Boston College) made a pair of free throws and a driving lay-up.
The Dragons took a three-point lead to the break despite leading-scorer Frank Elegar (Bronx, N.Y./St. Raymond's) being held to two points and junior Scott Rodgers (Philadelphia, Pa./Central) playing just six minutes due to foul trouble. Tramayne Hawthorne (Steelton, Pa./Steelton-Highspire) picked up the slack by scoring 11 of his team-high 14 points in the half and sinking three three-pointers. Drexel held the Tribe to just 30 percent shooting during that time.
Nathan Mann led four William & Mary players in double figures with 13 points. The Tribe was held to just 35 percent shooting, but made 20 of its 23 free throws in the game. Frank Elegar (Bronx, N.Y./St. Raymond's) and Neisler each finished with nine points for the Dragons. Rodgers played just 13 minutes before fouling out.
The Dragons return home on Saturday to face Fairfield. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m. and the game can be heard live on WNTP.