City of Basketball Love

Owen Mccue (@Owen_McCue) &
Dan Wilson (@dan_wilson4)
--
Drexel rode career nights from Tramaine Isabell and Sammy Mojica to pick up an 89-77 win against Rider on Saturday at the Daskalakis Athletic Center. Here are some notes and quotes from the game:

1. Isabell and Mojica dominate in second half

Rider had no answer for the dominant play of Tramaine Isabell and Sammy Mojica.

Isabell poured in 35 points and Mojica added 25 points as both players reached career highs in points. The Dragons starting backcourt combined for 57 points on 19-of-32 shooting, including 6-of-14 from three. Additionally, Isabell came up huge with 13 of the Dragons 35 rebounds.

The pair took over the game in the second half. Isabell scored 22 points in the game’s final 20 minutes, while Mojica scored 18 of his 22 in the second half.

This was the second time this season Isabell had a 30-point game. He scored 32 points in the Dragons’ double overtime loss to Drake. As for Mojica, it was the fifth time in eight games that he’s finished the in double figures.

“I got a couple easy buckets early, and then I just started feeling it,” Isabell said. “I don’t really remember what happened, but I remember in the first half I was feeling good and I haven’t really felt that all year, other than maybe once. I felt like I’ve just been kind of struggling, not struggling, but not really getting into a groove and I felt like I felt that today.”

2. Drexel needs Austin Williams on the floor

Rider scored 77 points on Saturday, 40 of them came in the paint. Senior big man Austin Williams finished the game with 12 points and 5 rebounds, however it was his rim protection that made a huge difference for the Dragons.

Many of the runs that Rider had came in the periods of time when Williams was off of the floor. In 27 minutes, he finished with three blocks and a +/- of 20, the highest of anyone for the Dragons. The defensive presence of the 6-foot-8 forward came up big, shutting down the lane for Rider. Williams finished with three blocks, including two in the second half.

“He’s a valuable piece to what we’re doing,” Drexel coach Zach Spiker said. “He’s a great shot blocker, he’s a natural shot blocker. You can’t coach that. You either have it or you don’t. He’s got the timing. It’s good to have that rim protector because we’re not long on the perimeter.”

3. Dragons finding new rotation after injuries mount

The Dragons were once again without senior guard Miles Overton, junior guard Troy Harper and sophomore forward Sam Green on Saturday afternoon.

Isabell and Mojica each played 39 minutes and sophomore guard Kurk Lee played 36 minutes. Without Overton and Harper, Spiker went with a two-guard rotation for several stretches on Saturday to give his guards a breather.

Senior Austin Williams and sophomore Alihan Demir both played nearly 30 minutes. Freshman Jarvis Doles saw 18 minutes of action. Senior Tyshawn Myles and freshman Tadas Kararinas also got into the mix.

Outside of Williams, the most impressive member of the group was Demir. He scored eight points, grabbed three rebounds and added three blocks and two steals. Demir hit a big-time three off an assist from Isabell with three minutes left in the game after Rider had cut the Dragons’ lead down to three.

“That was a clutch shot,” Isabell said. “That was a dagger that helped win us the game.”

4. Drexel holds Jordan and Allen in check

Rider guards Stevie Jordan (Conwell-Egan) and Jordan Allen combined for 47 points in the Broncs’ loss to Providence on Wednesday night. The pair averages more than 32 points per game this season.

With Lee and Mojica defending them for most of the game, neither could get going on Saturday. Jordan was 3-of-10 from the floor for nine points, while Allen scored 10 points on 3-of-8 shooting.

“You’ve gotta have a plan for the other team’s best players and those guys are dynamic players,” Spiker said. “You add the element that Stevie Jordan is back home in Philadelphia and wants to make a statement and I thought we did a great job.”

5. Philly native Marshall impresses for Rider

Rider sophomore forward Tyere Marshall averaged four points per game and 3.9 rebounds per contest as a freshman last season out of Martin Luther King. This season his averages have jumped to 11 ppg and 6.8 rpg.

The Philly native had a career day on Saturday. Marshall had just three points in the first half. He exploded for 20 point in the second half as he helped Rider cut down Drexel’s lead late in the game.

Marshall scored eight of the Broncs’ 11 points during an 11-2 run in the second half to cut Drexel’s lead down to two points with three and a half minutes to go. It was the second impressive game in a row for Marshall, who scored 16 points in the loss to Providence.

“Our guys are understanding how to get the ball to him and play off him more,” Rider coach Kevin Baggett said. “He’s starting to build his confidence. He still has to get better on the defensive end.”