Drexel upsets top CAA rival Northeastern

DREXEL HADN'T had a winning streak since the end of November.

Northeastern hadn't lost two in a row in 11 months.

Wednesday night at the Daskalakis Athletic Center, both of those things came to an end.

The Dragons obviously have been hurt big-time by injuries this season. But junior guard Damion Lee is one of the city's best. And sophomore forward Rodney Williams was back after sitting out seven games with a stress fracture in his foot.

Four of the five previous meetings had either gone to overtime or were decided by two points. Northeastern had won all but one, including last March's Colonial Athletic Association quarterfinal. So maybe it was just Drexel's turn, though it didn't look that way when the Dragons trailed by 10 early in the second half.

But they never trailed in the closing 10 minutes. And Lee, who finished with a season-high 33, made all 10 of the free throws he took within the final 44 seconds to seal a 65-60 victory. He finished 12-for-12 from the line.

The Dragons shot 43.8 percent after intermission, 44.4 from the arc. Which for them is, well, something else.

"We shoot 30 percent every game," said coach Bruiser Flint, whose 6-14 team (4-5 in the CAA) has now won three of its last four. "At halftime, I told them they weren't going to win if they did that. Forget about defense and all that stuff. You have to have confidence that when the ball comes to you, be ready to score. I don't get it. I was a cocky player. When you play sports, if you don't have confidence in you, then who's going to?

"We don't take bad shots. We just don't make many. Offense is all about confidence. I might be able to get you open, but I can't draw [a play] to make you make it. We shot better. That was it."

In the first half, the numbers were 32.0 overall and 11.1 from deep. There is a difference.

Lee had 24 in the second half, despite missing some time early on after he picked up his third personal. Still, it wasn't all about him. Sammy Mojica had 10 on 4-for-7 shooting. Tavon Allen, who went 3-for-14, nonetheless made two huge jumpers, a tough fallaway from 15 feet that put Drexel ahead for good at 42-40 and a three from the right wing that stretched the margin to four 2 minutes later.

Williams gave them four points and as many rebounds in 26 minutes off the bench.

Northeastern (14-8, 6-3), which was in a three-way tie for first place, has lost three of four. The Huskies went 5 minutes without scoring when it mattered most, as the deficit grew from two to eight. They got 15 in the last 1:15, mostly at the line, and moved to within three with 12 seconds remaining on a trey by Caleb Donnelly on his lone shot. Lee made four freebies in the ensuing 7 seconds.

"I was thinking 'just play smart' [when he came back in]," said Lee, who shot 9-for-16, 3-for-5 from distance. "In the first half, we lacked energy. We came out more energetic. Everyone started getting in tune."

He's converting nearly 87 percent from the line. Still . . .

"It's something I don't pride myself on," he said. "It's free points. If you add them on and it helps you win, I'll take it."

Three Huskies reached double digits, topped by T.J. Williams' 16.

Should we mention that the Dragons didn't turn it over in the second half?

"I think they're the best team in the league, because they're the most balanced," Flint said. "When you get a win against them, it means you can get a win against a lot of teams in this league."

On Saturday, the Dragons will host North Carolina-Wilmington (12-8, 7-2), which is now tied for the top spot in the CAA with William & Mary (13-7, 7-2). Drexel lost there by seven on Jan. 10.

"What scares me is, I've got a lot of young guys," Flint cautioned. "Some of them might start feeling a little too good. So I'll be cussing on Friday."

Some things don't change.