City of Basketball Love

Stephen Pianovich (@SPianovich)
--

In its final game before starting CAA play, Drexel fell 77-70 to Iona on Monday night. Sammy Mojica scored a career-best 20 points and the Dragons were within two in the final two minutes, but came up short and fell to 2-9.

At first…
Drexel had a rough go in the first half. The Dragons were outscored 41-28 in the first 20 minutes. During that time, Iona shot 61.5 percent from the floor and hit five 3-pointers while Drexel was shooting at a 34.6 percent clip and made only two treys. The Gaels also went on a 25-4 run at one point during the first half.

Turning point…
Drexel cut the Iona lead to one possession in the final minute and had the ball with a chance to tie on two occasions late. On the second of which, Tavon Allen missed a pair of 3-pointers and Iona eventually extended its lead from the free throw line.

Shining stars…
Mojica played the best game of his season, shooting 8-for-12 in 33 minutes off the bench. He also knocked down half of his six 3-point attempts and added two rebounds and two assists. Isaiah Williams led Iona with 19 points and had a double-double as he pulled down 10 rebounds.

Noteworthy numbers…
Allen finished with 16 points on 5-of-14 shooting and recorded his 1,000th career point with his first made bucket. …Drexel was whistled for 26 fouls which led to 28 Iona free throws. Iona was called for just 17 fouls and the Dragons had 20 attempts from the foul line.

Up next…
Drexel (2-9) at UNC Wilmington (12/31, 1 p.m.)
Iona (5-6) at Quinnipiac (1/2, 2 p.m.)