Drexel's D Slows Down State's Offense

The GSU Men's Basketball team suffered its third consecutive loss last Wednesday, falling to the Drexel Dragons 64-47 on Drexel's Philadelpia, P.A. home court.

The Dragons dominated the Panthers throughout the game, out rebounding GSU 46-25 and making 21 of 24 free throw shots, compared to the Panthers' 6-15. Drexel pulled down 24 offensive rebounds alone, almost as many as the Panthers' total.

Problems began for the Panthers almost at the outset. GSU took the lead 10-9 with 11:22 left in the first quarter, but failed to score another point for nearly nine minutes, allowing Drexel to push their lead to 20-12. Drexel then scored consecutive three pointers and went to the locker room with a 30-15 lead.

The Dragons came out strong in the second half, leading by as many as 23 points. Despite the Panthers shooting 54 percent from the field in the half, they were never able to close the gap. GSU's 47 total points were a season low.

"Drexel is playing the best defense of any team in this league in my two years," said Panthers head coach Rod Barnes. "They play defense the way I would like my teams to play. And offensively, they've won six straight now, so they've got the confidence to knock down shots."

Junior Trey Hampton led the Panthers in scoring with 10 points and four blocks. Senior Leonard Mendez, juniors Kevin Lott and Joe Dukes, and freshman James Fields each contributed seven points. Juniors Trae Goldston and Xavier Hansbro, as well as senior Rashad Chase grabbed four rebounds each.

Drexel's Scott Rodgers led all scorers with 17 points. Evan Neisler got 10 rebounds for the Dragons, with Leon Spencer getting 6 offensive boards. Spencer also fouled out.
The Panthers' next home appearance will be tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. in the Sports Arena. GSU students are admitted free with a valid Student ID.