TOWSON, Md. (Jan. 25, 2016) – Final-second free throws made the difference in the Drew University women's basketball team's 62-61 setback at Goucher College in a Landmark Conference contest on Monday evening.
The Rangers' (7-11, 4-5) fate was decided at the free throw line, a spot that had been kind to the Rangers all game long, with 3.2 seconds left on the clock. With the Gophers (6-12, 1-8) having just hit a pair of go-ahead freebies on the other end four seconds earlier for the 62-61 lead, Drew missed two during the final seconds, but managed to grab the offensive rebound. With the final seconds desperately ticking away, the put-back attempt bounced off the rim and Goucher came down with the rebound and the one-point victory.
Junior guard
Hannah Miller led all scorers with 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting, while adding six rebounds. Senior forward
Courtney Stephens led Drew in rebounding with nine and added 15 points, 10 of which came during the final quarter. Junior forward
Sam Lane tossed in 13 points on the strength of 6-of-8 free throw shooting.
Accuracy from all areas of the court paced the Rangers out to a big lead as early as halfway through the first period when Drew held a 9-0 lead. The Gophers responded with a 6-0 run of their own before the Rangers retook the advantage with a 10-2 spurt to the end quarter up 19-8.
Miller's jump shooting and Stephen's presence in the paint helped Drew maintain a double-digit lead throughout the second period. Miller converted a three-point play as part of an 11-2 run in the second en route to the Rangers taking a 39-21 into halftime. Drew shot 52% from the field in the opening half, including a 5-of-9 mark from beyond the three-point arc. The Rangers also did their part at the charity stripe, sinking 12-of-15 from the line in an extremely accurate opening 20 minutes.
The third quarter spelled a different story as the Gophers bounced back to take the period, 21-8, and set up an exciting final quarter with Drew's lead down to 47-42. Miller continued her solid shooting with five more points in the quarter to bring her total to 17.
The Gophers came all the way back to tie it at 49-49 with 7:03 left in the contest. From there, Stephens scored six straight points for the Rangers, but Goucher kept pace and trailed 61-60 with 45 seconds left after two free throws. The Gophers got a stop on the other end on the ensuing possession and drew a foul before converting both freebies to set up the dramatics finish.
Goucher won the rebounding battle 41-33, which included 17 boards on the offensive glass, leading to 13 second chance points compared to Drew's three. The Gophers' major advantage came by way of bench points, which the dominated 39-12.
Drew returns home to Baldwin Gymnasium on Wednesday, Jan. 27 at 7:00 p.m. to host undefeated The University of Scranton – currently ranked No. 5 in NCAA Division III – in a Landmark Conference contest.
