The Drexel Dragons (3-23) bring the regular season to a close on the road at Kaplan Arena when they square off with the William & Mary Tribe (18-8). Action gets underway at 2:00 pm ET on Saturday, Feb. 20.
The Tribe come into this game hoping to repeat their last performance, dismantling UNC Wilmington 87-69 on Thursday. David Cohn was the game’s high scorer with 21 points on 4-for-8 shooting. The Dragons are coming off an 81-76 loss against Elon on Thursday. Terrell Allen had a team-high 18 points.
Over the last five games, Omar Prewitt has really been playing well for the Tribe, averaging 21.4 points, 4.0 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 1.0 steal, and 1.6 three-pointers.
The productive offense of William & Mary (28th in the nation with an offensive efficiency of 114.2) will square off against the porous defense of Drexel (290th in the nation with a defensive efficiency of 108.6), a matchup that should favor the Tribe.
This will be the second matchup of the season between these two teams. The Tribe won the first game 72-63. Terry Tarpey was the game’s top overall scorer with 21 points.
The Tribe have gone 18-8 Straight Up (SU) and 14-6 Against The Spread (ATS). Over their last 10 games, they have only managed a record of 3-7 ATS. The Tribe have seen a decline in scoring as of late, averaging 59.0 points during the last 10 games compared to their season average of 78.0 points per game. The Tribe are a dangerously accurate shooting team with a .485 field-goal percentage, one of the highest marks in Division I. William & Mary is one of the best passing teams in the nation with an average of 16.8 assists per game. An area where the Tribe are particularly strong is defensive rebounding where they average 28.7 per game, 19th in Division I. Not making mistakes with the ball is a staple of the William & Mary offense, which averages just 10.7 turnovers per game.
In the other locker room, the Dragons have 3-23 SU and 10-14-1 ATS records. Most recently, Drexel is 7-3 ATS over the last 10 games. Drexel has been playing better lately, averaging 83.3 PPG, significantly more than their season average of 62.6. The Dragons average 71.3 points allowed per game, but have damaged those numbers in the past 10 games, allowing 79.1 points per game during that span.
In their previous meeting this season, William & Mary beat Drexel, bringing the head-to-head record to an even 5-5 SU over their most recent meetings. The Tribe lead the matchup ATS with a record of 7-3. Both William & Mary and Drexel have led in three key areas (field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers) once over the last five matchups.
Predictions: SU Winner – W&M, ATS Winner – W&M
Notes
“William & Mary is 11-3 ATS in its last 14 games “.
“William & Mary is 13-5 SU in its last 18 games “.
“The total has gone OVER in 4 of William & Mary’s last 5 games “.
“William & Mary is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games at home”.
“William & Mary is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games at home”.
“The total has gone UNDER in 4 of William & Mary’s last 6 games at home”.
“William & Mary is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Drexel”.
“William & Mary is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing Drexel”.
“The total has gone UNDER in 11 of William & Mary’s last 15 games when playing Drexel”.
“William & Mary is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games when playing at home against Drexel”.
“William & Mary is 6-3 SU in its last 9 games when playing at home against Drexel”.
“The total has gone UNDER in 8 of William & Mary’s last 11 games when playing at home against Drexel”.
William & Mary averages 78.0 points per game (ranked 60th). Drexel, on the other hand, allows 71.3 points per game (ranked 142nd).
In its last game, William & Mary won by a margin of 18 points. Drexel is 0-6 in games decided by a margin of 18 points or more. William & Mary has a 7-1 record in blowouts.
On average, William & Mary has 68.3 possessions per game and scores 1.142 points on each possession. Drexel has both fewer possessions (65.6) and scores fewer points during those possessions (.954).
William & Mary is ranked 19th in the nation with an average effective field goal percentage of 55.6%. Drexel has not won a game this season when opponents have a similar or higher effective field goal percentage (0-10).
Ranked 20th in the nation, William & Mary has an average of 16.8 assists per game. Drexel ranks lower at 278th with 11.9.
William & Mary, the 53rd-ranked team in blocked shots, records an average of 4.7 per game. Drexel does worse, ranked 161st with 3.5.
Drexel makes an average of 4.8 steals per game. William & Mary has a solid 14-8 record when it allows at least 4 steals.
