2021 Hercules Tires CAA Men's Basketball Championship

Drexel Wins CAA Tournament To Punch First March Madness Ticket In 25 Years

Drexel Wins CAA Tournament To Punch First March Madness Ticket In 25 Years

Sixth-seeded Drexel captured its first Hercules Tires CAA Men’s Basketball Championship and earned a trip to the NCAA Tournament.

Mar 10, 2021 by FloHoops Staff
Drexel Wins CAA Tournament To Punch First March Madness Ticket In 25 Years

HARRISONBURG, Va., Sixth-seeded Drexel captured its first Hercules Tires CAA Men’s Basketball Championship and earned a trip to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1996 after a 63-56 win over eighth-seeded Elon on Tuesday night at the Atlantic Union Bank Center in Harrisonburg, Va.

The Dragons (12-7) showed their depth as Mate Okros hit 4-of-5 from 3-point range and scored a team-high 14 points off the bench while freshman Xavier Bell contributed 11 points, more than three times his season average. Drexel, which became the first #6 seed to ever win the CAA title, went 10-of-17 (58.8%) from beyond the arc while limiting the Phoenix to 4-of-19 three-point shooting.

Elon (10-9), which was the first #8 seed to ever advance to the CAA championship game, got a game-high 19 points from guard Hunter McIntosh and 16 points from backcourt mate Ikenna Ndugba. The loss snapped a seven-game winning streak for the Phoenix.

Elon sprinted out to a 17-9 lead midway through the first half, but Drexel battled back and took a 32-27 advantage into intermission on a three-pointer by Zach Walton at the buzzer.

The Dragons stayed in control early in the second half before Elon closed to within 48-44 on Ndugba bucket with 8:26 left. Drexel responded with back-to-back triples from Walton and Okros to push its cushion back to 10.

The Phoenix pulled back within four, 57-53 with 1:02 to go, but Drexel went 6-of-6 at the free throw line down the stretch to seal the victory.

Drexel, which joined the CAA in 2001-02, was making its third appearance in the CAA title game. The NCAA Tournament berth is the fifth in school history and first since a stretch of three straight from 1994-96.

Drexel junior guard Camren Wynter was named the Most Outstanding Performer of the tournament and was joined on the all-tournament squad by teammates James Butler and Walton. Also making the team were Elon’s McIntosh and Ndugba and Hofstra’s Jalen Ray.