Drexel Rallies Past Delaware, 63-52, To Capture First CAA Women's Basketball Championship Since 2009
Rob Washburn
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ELON, N.C. (March 13, 2021) – Third-seeded Drexel shot 59% in the second half to overcome a nine-point halftime deficit and defeat top-seeded Delaware, 63-52, to capture the CAA Women’s Basketball Championship presented by Sonabank for the first time since 2009.
The Dragons (14-8) earned the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. Delaware, which claimed the CAA regular-season title for the first time since 2012-13, dropped to 21-4 and will await a berth in postseason play.
Drexel junior guard Keishana Washington was named the championship’s Most Outstanding Player after pouring in a team-best 30 points in the victory, one night after scoring a career-high 35 points in a semifinal win over James Madison. Backcourt mate Hannah Nihill added 14 points, six rebounds and four steals.
Trailing 34-25 at halftime, Drexel held the Blue Hens to one field goal in the third quarter and outscored them 20-5. Delaware was up by five midway through the third quarter when the Dragons turned the tables with a 13-2 run over the final 4:33 of the period. Washington and Nihill combined for 11 points during the surge, with Washington nailing a jumper at the buzzer to give Drexel a 45-39 advantage heading into the fourth quarter.
Drexel shot 70% from the floor (7-10) to maintain control throughout the fourth quarter. After the Dragons expanded the lead to 49-39 on a Washington jumper with 7:42 left, Delaware could only get as close as seven on three occasions.
Drexel jumped out to a 6-0 lead on back-to-back treys from Kate Connolly and Washington, but Delaware responded with an 11-2 run to move on top. Neither team led by more than three over the remainder of the first quarter and the contest was tied at 17-17 after the opening 10 minutes.
The game remained tight through the first half of the second quarter, with the Dragons taking a 25-21 lead with five minutes to go on Kayla Bacon’s jumper. However, those would be the final points of the period for Drexel as the Blue Hens closed the half on a 13-0 run to take a 34-25 halftime advantage. Jewel Smalls drained a 3-pointer to put the Hens ahead and then closed the half with a layup.
Paris McBride led Delaware with 11 points and Jasmine Dickey recorded a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds.
Drexel shot 51% for the game, including 6-of-15 (40%) from 3-point range. Delaware was held 29.5% field goal shooting for the game and was just 5-of-32 from the floor in the final 20 minutes. The Blue Hens outrebounded the Dragons 44-25.
Washington was joined on the all-tournament team by teammates Nihill and Connolly. Also making the team were Delaware’s Dickey and Ty Battle as well as James Madison’s Kiki Jefferson.
Drexel became the first school to win the CAA men’s and women’s basketball championships in the same season since Old Dominion in 2005.
CAA All-Tournament Team
Keishana Washington, Drexel (Most Outstanding Player)
Kate Connolly, Drexel
Hannah Nihill, Drexel
Ty Battle, Delaware
Jasmine Dickey, Delaware
Kiki Jefferson, James Madison