WILLIAMSBURG, Va. (Courtesy of W&M Athletics) – Senior Matteus Case scored a career-high 19 points and William & Mary closed the game on a 15-2 run to dispose of Drexel, 72-59, at Kaplan Arena on Saturday afternoon.
 
With the game tied at 57, senior Caleb Dorsey knocked down a 3-pointer to put the Tribe (16-11, 10-4 CAA) on top for good with 6:47 remaining. Graduate student Malachi Ndur hit a fast-break triple off a rebound and pass from freshman Isaiah Mbeng to extend the Tribe advantage to 64-57 and force Drexel timeout with 3:39 left.
 
After a Yame Butler jumper, Drexel’s lone field goal over the game’s final eight minutes, W&M twice beat the shot clock with a 3-point play and a 3-pointer to put the game out of reach. Junior Chase Lowe pulled down an offensive rebound on a missed shot-clock beating 3-point attempt. He scored the putback, drew the foul and completed the 3-point play with less than two minutes remaining.
 
Following a stop of the defensive end, W&M worked the clock before Case canned a step-back 3-pointer to extend the margin to double figures, 70-59, and but the game on ice. Senior Gabe Dorsey added a pair of free throws with seven seconds left to provide the final margin.
 
In total, the Dragons (13-14, 5-9 CAA) were just one of their final eight from the field. It was all part of a stout second-half defensive effort in which the Tribe held the visitors to just 16 points, 25% shooting (7-of-28) and 0-of-9 from 3-point range. The 16 points marked the best defensive half for a Tribe team since limiting James Madison to 15 points during the 2016 CAA Tournament. The win was the Tribe’s 10th in CAA play, marking the 11th time in school history W&M has won double-digit CAA contests.

Case equaled his career-high with 19 points, hitting 8-of-10 from the floor. Senior Gabe Dorsey finished with 17 points on 5-of-8 from 3 to go with a team-high seven rebounds. Lowe turned in nice stat line of nine points, seven rebounds, five assists, and three steals, while Ndur added nine points, including 2-of-5 from 3-point range, and four rebounds.
 
The Tribe connected on 13-of-31 (41.9%) from 3-point range and finished the game at 47.2% (25-of-53) overall. W&M controlled the glass, outrebounding the Dragons, 36-29, and had 12 offensive rebounds.
 
W&M scored the game’s opening six points, but Dragons answered with an 8-0 run to take its first lead of the game, 11-8, at the 13:30 mark on back-to-back 3-pointers from Kobe MaGee and Shane Blakeney.
 
Drexel led for the final 7:58 of the first half. After a Ndur 3-pointer tied the game at 21, Cole Hargrove scored on back-to-back possessions to put the Dragons back on top. In total, Drexel hit eight of its final 10 shots in the first half and shot 60.7% (17-of-28) from the floor in the opening 20 minutes, including 7-of-15 (46.7%) from 3.
 
W&M scored the first five points of the second half, pulling even at 43 on a Gabe Dorsey 3-pointer just 1:46 into the frame.
 
Drexel answered with a six-point run to open up a 49-43 lead at the 16:15 mark on a Blakeney jumper.
 
The Tribe responded back with an 11-2 run to take its first lead since 13-11. Case scored six points during the run, and Caleb Dorsey capped it with a 3-pointer to give W&M a 54-51 lead with 9:33 left.
 
Drexel shot 42.9% (24-of-56) from the field, including just 7-of-24 (29.2%) from 3. Blakeney led the visitors with 15 points, hitting 5-of-8 from the field and 3-of-6 from 3-point range. Butler tallied 14 points, while Jason Drake added 11 points and five assists.

Caleb Dorsey scored eight points off the bench and added four rebounds, while graduate student Keller Boothby finished with seven. Mbang dished out four assists off the bench. 

Up Next
The Tribe wraps up a three-game homestand when it welcomes UNCW to Kaplan Arena on Thursday, Feb. 20. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. and the game will be broadcast on FloCollege. Fans can hear the action over the Tribe Sports Network with Jay Colley and Bobby Dwyer on the call. The Tide 92.3 FM in Williamsburg is the flagship station of the Tribe Sports Network.