Spring Break
Dragons eliminated by VCU in CAA Semifinals
Brett Fischer
Issue date: 3/9/07 Section: Sports
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But not even Elegar could overcome the hostile environment at the Richmond Coliseum.
VCU defeated Drexel 63-56 in the semifinals of the CAA Tournament in Richmond, Va., March 4.
Elegar led the Dragons with 15 points and eight rebounds, but was relatively uninvolved in Drexel's offensive strategy. He only took three shots in the second half and nine for the entire game.
Rams guards Jesse Pellot-Rosa and B.A. Walker had 16 and 14 points respectively, but did most of the damage from beyond the arc. The two combined to shoot 7-9 from 3-point range. Forward Michael Anderson also hurt the Dragons, as he picked up 16 points and eight rebounds.
Trailing 48-30, the Dragons found a way to make a comeback with a 12-0 run. Mejia started the run by making a layup. Then he picked off a pass and fed it to Rodgers, who threw a pass to Elegar, who completed an alley-oop dunk.
But after Drexel guard Bashir Mason hit two free throws to cut the deficit to 48-42 with 9:01 remaining in the game, the Rams answered with four straight points, and the Dragons didn't get any close than five the rest of the way.
"I had a good feeling the whole game," Mason said. "Until I fouled out, it never really hit me that we were going to lose the game."
The loss to VCU hurts Drexel's chances of getting an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament for the first time ever. The Dragons won the America East Conference in 1996, giving them an automatic bid to the tournament.
"It's unfortunate we had to end it like this," Drexel forward Chaz Crawford said. "We are looking forward to Selection Sunday so hopefully we will probably play some more."
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