Quick Report: High Point 75, Drexel 66

A sharpshooting night from Tavon Allen (above) wasn't enough to help Drexel...

Josh Verlin (@jmverlin) &
Alex Bonner (@abonn610)
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Turnover issues and poor foul shooting plagued Drexel all game long against High Point, and they would prove to be the difference-makers as the Panthers came up to Philadelphia and downed the Dragons, 75-66.

At First…
The Dragons looked like they would be in control early, jumping out to an 8-2 lead, but that would be just about all the momentum Drexel would control in the first half. High Point scored 21 of the next 29 points and would lead by as many as 10 in the first half before taking a 40-32 lead into the locker rooms at halftime. The Dragons struggled with turnovers early on, giving it away 10 times in the opening 20 minutes, which turned into 14 points the other way.

Turning Point…
After Drexel fought back from an eight-point deficit to tie it up at 64 with 4:12 left to play, the Dragons couldn’t buy another bucket. High Point scored the next nine points over nearly a four-minute span to pull away for the win. The dagger was a corner 3-pointer from Lorenzo Cugini with a minute left that put High Point up 71-66, followed by an offensive foul on Rashann London that gave HPU back the ball and forced the Dragons to intentionally foul.

Standout Stars…
Tavon Allen was lights-out from behind the 3-point line against High Point, making his first six 3-point attempts and finishing with 21 points on 6-of-11 shooting, including 6-of-8 from beyond the arc. Allen hasn’t exactly made a name for himself as a sharpshooter in his Drexel career, making around 28 percent of his 3-point attempts in each of the last two years, but he’s certainly capable of getting hot as he showed on Wednesday night.

High Point senior John Brown came into this season with high expectations, and he didn’t disappoint against the Dragons. A 6-foot-8, 210 pound forward, Brown averaged a little over 19 points per game last season, and was averaging 18 points per game in the first two games of this season. He kept that going with a season-high 23 points and nine rebounds on the night on 8-of-13 shooting, and was accurate from the line as well, shooting 7-of-10.

Noteworthy Numbers…
As has been the case with a lot of games to start off the year, this was a foul-heavy affair as both teams struggled to adjust to the way the game is being officiated across Division I hoops. The teams combined for 26 fouls in the first half and 50 for the game, resulting in 51 total foul shots taken in the game.

Drexel struggled at the line all night shooting just 50 percent on the night. Terrell Allen, a 6-foot-2 freshman guard, led the Dragons with 15 foul shots attempted, making nine. Last season, free-throw shooting was a strength for the Dragons who shot 74.3 percent from the line; however, a lot of that production came from Damion Lee (88.9 percent), who is now playing his final year of eligibility at Louisville.

Drexel also committed 17 turnovers to nine by High Point, resulting in a 22-6 disadvantage in points off turnovers.

Up Next…
Drexel (0-2) vs. Monmouth (1-1) (Nov. 21, 2 PM, Daskalakis Athletic Center)
High Point (2-1) vs. Western Carolina (1-1) (Nov. 21, 7 PM, High Point, N.C.)