Looking to continue their winning ways, the Drexel Dragons hosted the Elon University Phoenix’s on January 16, the start of a two-game homestand. Coming into the game Elon had a record of (5-13, 1-4 CAA) compared to Drexel’s record of (10-8, 3-2 CAA).

Elon came out strong behind senior Marcus Sheffield, who on the season is averaging 16 points, five rebounds and three assists.

The first half between the two teams was a seesaw battle. The largest lead in the first half was just seven points, which Elon held with less than three minutes left to go in the half. Drexel countered with a 4-0 run to go into the half trailing by just one point. Several players and coaches on the Drexel bench let their displeasure be known to the officials with what they thought were questionable calls being made in the first half.

The second half was a different story. The Dragons came out of the locker room looking motivated and focused, and their play showed that. Right out of the gate the Dragons got off to an 18-4 run. Elon was able to make a comeback attempt with just under seven minutes left to play getting the game within five points.

Fortunately, Drexel’s defense came roaring back. The Dragons didn’t let Elon get any closer, and the team erupted for a 22-5 run to finish the game and earn a 63-41 victory. Camren Wynter led the Dragons with 27 points, five rebounds, two assists, and two steals. Zach Walton also was impressive, finishing with 16 points and James Butler contributed with his usual double-double with 15 points and 15 rebounds.

The Dragon’s next game came on Saturday, January 18, against the number one seed in the Colonial Athletic Conference, the Tribe of William & Mary (14-6,6-1 CAA). The Dragons were clear underdogs due largely to William & Mary’s Senior Nathan Knight, who is widely considered as one of the best big men in college basketball with averages of 20 points and 10 rebounds this season.

With the game also being homecoming for the Drexel Seniors, the team seemed to be playing with extra motivation. The student section was raucous and almost sold out which seemed to clearly fuel the Dragons effort.

While the first half was competitive, Drexel was in control and led by 10 at the end of the half. The Dragons were able to keep Knight in check in the first half and made sure not to allow anyone else on William and Mary to get on fire. William and Mary’s 24 points in the first half were the fewest points they’ve scored all season in a half.

In the second half, the Dragons had too much offensive firepower for William and Mary to keep pace. The Dragons outscored the Tribe 43-20 thanks to Drexel’s spread offensive attack. Senior Zach Walton led the way for the Dragons scoring a team-high 23 points, including five three-pointers. Camren Wynter continued his excellent play finishing with 20 points and seven assists. Despite the Dragons high scoring offense, it was the defense that won them this game.

William and Mary were held to 37 percent shooting and 22 percent from three. Coach Zach Spiker’s defensive plan was executed perfectly. While Nathan Knight finished the game with 28 points, the Dragons made sure that the other players on the Tribe didn’t have a major impact on the game, and they did just that to hand the Tribe their first CA loss of the season. The final score of the game ended up being 84-57.

This Victory was the biggest win of Drexels season so far. Beating top-ranked William and Mary is a major accomplishment for a Drexel program trying to establish themselves in the CAA conference. The win moves Drexel up to third in the CAA conference.

When Liverpool signed Virgil van Dijk from Southampton two years ago, it was met with ridicule in some quarters. Having already pinched five other players from the south coast club, the joke was that Liverpool should just set up a standing order with Southampton to speed up the process of acquiring their players.

Not all of those signings had been successful, either. Sadio Mané was the only unqualified success. Adam Lallana and Dejan Lovren may have been useful squad options – but for a combined outlay of over $100 million, they were probably expecting more from their five from Southampton.

The fee for van Dijk was an eye-watering $100 million. That was over five times what Southampton paid to Scottish outfit Celtic for the Dutch defender just two-and-a-half years prior. Van Dijk was a respected, proven Premier League player but with such a high fee came very high expectations and skepticism he could meet them.

Not even van Dijk’s biggest admirers could have predicted how successful they’d be with him marshaling Liverpool’s back four. A debut goal against cross-town rivals Everton was a perfect start to a thus-far glittering career with the Reds.

Liverpool’s defensive record has been miserable since he arrived, and he has picked up personal accolades too – a Premier League Player of the Year award last season. Only Lionel Messi finished ahead of him in votes for the Ballon d’Or trophy awarded to the world’s best player over the last year.

Van Dijk showed his credentials with a tremendous performance in Liverpool’s 2-0 victory over Manchester United at Anfield. Early in the first half, he towered over everyone to nod Trent Alexander-Arnold’s out-swinging corner kick into the back of the net to give Liverpool the lead.

He also played a big part in a controversially disallowed goal. He challenged Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea for an aerial ball and was whistled for a foul after Roberto Firmino struck the loose ball into the back of the net. Van Dijk did not go in with his arm, and he will feel aggrieved that Liverpool’s goal was chalked off.

However, it was not just his attacking contribution that was exceptional against Manchester United, Liverpool’s biggest rivals. Anthony Martial started up front against van Dijk – his power and pace makes him a tricky player to deal with, as his eight Premier League goals demonstrate. Van Dijk didn’t give him a sniff at making it nine.

It wasn’t just a one-man effort from Liverpool. Indeed, what makes them so impressive is how Jürgen Klopp’s system makes them greater than the sum of their parts. All their players were impressive in how they relentlessly pursued the ball in packs – it was surprising that they only had 54 percent possession according to the official stats.

The midfield three of Jordan Henderson, Georginio Wijnaldum and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was particularly impressive. They formed a barrier to protect the defense from onrushing United players and were good at advancing the ball quickly to the Liverpool attacking triumvirate once they won it.

In injury time, Manchester United manager Ole Solskjaer bizarrely stopped de Gea going up for a late attacking corner. His opposite number Alisson claimed it before launching a drop kick towards Mo Salah. The fact that de Gea was back in goal didn’t matter – Salah calmly finished past him to give Liverpool a deserved 2-0 win.

The most impressive part of this goal was Alisson’s celebration. Having set Salah up with a perfectly weighted kick from his hands, he sprinted the entire length of the pitch to be the first to congratulate Salah after he scored.

The last Liverpool team to win the league, 30 years ago, had just four players born outside of Britain and Ireland. This team features just one regular starting player (Alexander-Arnold) from the city of Liverpool and finished the game against Manchester United with as many players from Brazil as from England.

This team has drawn from a much more eclectic background than that of thirty years ago, but it would mean no less to the people of Liverpool if they could deliver the title back to Merseyside. This is still a club deeply rooted in its local community – unless you’re an Everton supporter.

Jan. 9 the Dragons lost to the Trinity College Bantams, losing 0-9 at home in their first match of 2020.

The Dragons rebounded after their Jan. 9 loss to Trinity College with a 9-0 win for the men’s team and 8-1 win for the women’s team against Middlebury January 12 at home in the Kline & Specter Squash Center.

In the fight against Middlebury, freshman Karina Tyma (top seed) secured her sixth win, which ties her with sophomore Alina Bushman for most wins this season.

Junior Hannah Blatt, senior Anna Hughes, freshman Ciara Richards, sophomore Brooke Herring, Junior Stephanie Ryan, freshman Hatti Specter, junior Ona Prokes and Tyma all beat Middlebury in three consecutive games to secure the 8-1 win.

The men’s team also did exceptionally well against the Panthers, with senior Lucas Rousselet, junior Dylan Kachur and freshmen Dragons Matthew Lucente, José López and Gautam Nagpal winning in three-game sweeps. Notably, freshman Michael Berry secured his first win after beating his Middlebury component 3-0 in the ninth and final match of the day.

Drexel then went on to conquer Cornell, ranked 14, in yet another home meet. The 7-2 victory over the Ivy League school pushed the Dragon record 7-3, while the Women’s team remains 6-4 despite also beating the Bears 6-3.

Sophomores Matias Knudsen and Noel Heaton along with Nagpal all won three games against the Bears, which boosted Drexel against Cornell significantly. Similarly, sophomore Alina Bushma along with fellow players Blatt, Hughes, Richards, and Prokes all dominated in three-game sweeps. Herring battled her Cornell opponent to secure the final Drexel point in the No. 6 position.

Today the Dragons travel to Hanover, New Hampshire to play Dartmouth, ranked 9 before tackling the number one seed, Harvard, in Cambridge tomorrow.

It was an exciting night for fans at the Daskalakis Athletic Center, as the women’s basketball team took on the University of Delaware on Sunday, Jan. 19, at the conclusion of Homecoming Week. In a thrilling overtime game, the Dragons looked to win against their CAA rivals, the Blue Hens. It is no question that the two teams play tough when they face each other. At the DAC there have been three overtime games between the two.

The Dragons just came off an exceptional team win over Hofstra and were looking to continue their three-game win streak against their big-time rival. Drexel almost has a perfect record at home, losing only once to the Pacific Tigers. On the other hand, Delaware was looking to get back in the win column as they suffered a loss from Northeastern.

The 5-11 record of the Blue Hens can be deceiving because they definitely held their own on the road. From the jump, the Hens had a 12-6 lead to start off the game. Bailey Greenberg, Hannah Nihill and Mariah Leonard all scored baskets in the first quarter to get the dragons going. Delaware made a statement in the first. The Blue Hens had two field goals from long range and a total of six field goals. The Hens took a 15-12 lead at the end of the first.

Drexel was determined to get back into the game to start the second. Leading the way were Niki Metzel and Kate Connolly. The Dragons had their first lead of the game as Metzel hit a two-point shot followed by Connolly who buried a three-pointer.  The Dragons now had a 21-17 edge. Delaware took a timeout to regroup after the surge by Drexel. The relentless Blue Hens stayed in the game evening it back to 21 apiece, but to end the half the Dragons took a 25-21 advantage going into the locker room.

At the end of the half, senior, Bailey Greenberg dropped eight points, while Kate Connolly had seven points.

At the start of the second half, the Dragons had a 12 point advantage, their largest lead yet, to control the beginning of the half. Once again, the Blue Hens fought back from a deficit and shut the Dragons out on a 12-0 run. Greenberg never gave up during the game and eventually took over. At the end of the third, she made a layup and continued her momentum into the last period. The score going into to fourth was 39-37.

Greenberg showed why she is one of the best. The Dragons had 16 points in the last quarter and Greenberg dropped 10 of the 16. The Hens didn’t go away though, as they took a 44-43 lead. Greenberg made a key three-point play in the fourth to keep the game close. She went on a 7-0 run by herself to give the Dragons a six point lead. Delaware went on a 6-0 run as well to tie the game at 50.

Delaware’s, Nicole Enabosi, was called for a technical foul and Niki Metzel converted on two clutch free throws with 10 seconds left on the clock. The game was now 55-52. As time expired, Delaware’s, Kayla Shaw, hit a three-pointer to send the game into overtime. During the overtime period, Metzel scored the only basket and from there it was a free throw contest. The Dragons outscored the Blue Hens 8-4 in overtime. The final score was 63-59 as the Dragons held off a tough and persistent Delaware team.

Guiding the way was Bailey Greenberg as she scored a game-high 26 points. Kate Connolly added seven points. Hannah Nihill had six points and a notable five assists. Aubree Brown facilitated the ball well with eight assists and she also had six points.

This season,  Bailey Greenberg is averaging 19.7 points and is certainly a top prospect for another CAA Player of the Year title, as she won it her junior year. With her 26 point performance, she moved up to number seven in the career points leaderboard. She has 1,563 points total and doesn’t seem to be slowing down anytime soon. Recently, she was honored at the 116 annual Philadelphia Sports Writer Association Banquet. The senior looks to continue her stellar season and help lead her team to a number of different goals.

Drexel will now go on a two-game road trip against Elon on Jan. 24 and William and Mary on Jan. 26. The Dragons will look to continue their home game win streak as they face Towson on Jan. 31 at the DAC.

“I thought I came here to study, but instead I get Molotov cocktails thrown over my head,” says my German roommate, as he casually walks in from a night out in Hong Kong.

I feel that this has been the theme of my study abroad experience in Hong Kong, especially in the last few weeks. Even from my dorm room, I can smell the remnants of tear gas in the air after the police fired upon protesters at a nearby mall. Although this unrest has been a nuisance in terms of travelling, I still feel completely safe in Hong Kong and urge others to keep an open mind, despite the negative media coverage from American news outlets.

While coming here, I had so much fear regarding my safety in Hong Kong. It increased when I learned that I would not be living on campus, but instead 20 minutes away from it in a nearby town. I always regarded myself as safe when I was on Drexel University’s premises, so I used that same logic for Hong Kong University of Science and Technology; if I am at the university, I will be fine. But, after speaking to a former exchange student, I knew that luck was on my side in terms of accommodation. So I made my way over to Hong Kong, hoping for the best. To my surprise, I came across possibly the best roommate I could have had and some pretty awesome neighbors from all across the globe.

Despite this positive turn of events, I had some concerns about living in Tseung Kwan O. Although the location was away from all the action on Hong Kong Island, I thought there would still be side effects from the unrest. But, as I learned in my first month of living in Hong Kong, this really wasn’t the case. Everywhere I went, there were people chanting in Cantonese, which we quickly understood as protesters peacefully speaking their mind. Similar to climate change and women’s rights marches, it was just people there to voice their opinion. Whoever passed by those groups could hear the determination in their voices. Everywhere you go, you would see how much the citizens of Hong Kong care about this topic. Even sitting at the waterfront at Victoria Harbor, other visitors around us would erupt in chants, feeling proud about this current movement.

In the last few weeks, however, I have seen the number of protesters rise and have felt it firsthand. Even in the very residential town I live in, I could see more and more people wearing all black with black face masks. The movement is mainly led by the younger generation, but elderly still help out in any way possible.

For example, my dorm is situated between two parallel streets, with a mall on either side of my building. There is a bridge that connects the two, and every day, a batch of new, very creative posters lined the walls, floors and ceilings. Most were in Chinese, but I stopped to read the few that were in English, just to gather more perspective on why Hong Kong is protesting.

As I was walking by one day, a banner had been crumpled due to the weather. As there were teenagers putting up new posters, this elderly man stood and fixed it. It was surprising to me, as I thought the older generation would condemn the violence. But as I kept walking, I remembered what a local street vendor had mentioned to my roommate when he was walking downtown: “we have been waiting for this moment our entire lives.”

The older generation still remembers very vividly the return of colonial Hong Kong from Britain, Tiananmen Square and the rapid increase in the Chinese government’s power over the past decades. So this must have seemed inevitable when China tried to increase its power over Hong Kong.

Still, there was no reason to worry, as the protests were not near me. The international students I live with continued to go clubbing, and I took a spontaneous trip to South Korea. In short, it felt like what study abroad is supposed to feel like.

That all changed when Carrie Lam, Chief Executive of Hong Kong, passed the law banning face masks at public gatherings. After this, the protests became more violent than they ever had, and I got to see it first hand. It became real to me when I went to see a movie, and I couldn’t get a taxi back because the drivers were too scared to go in my area. In the two hours I watched the movie, it went from protesters spray painting the local Starbucks to a small-scale war. My friends sent me videos of police shooting tear gas at crowds and whole subway stations on fire; the whole subway system of Hong Kong quickly shut down. We were able to take an Uber back, but at that time, I learned how to handle myself with composure in a time of crisis.

The same thing happened the next weekend, but this time, I stayed indoors and observed the chaos from the safety of my own dorm. I had friends that were “brave” enough to go out and take videos of the teargas being fired, but what I saw amazed me. The protesters were so coordinated, purposely setting a distraction somewhere to gather police, while making a disruption somewhere else; it was like sending the police on a wild goose chase. The organization required for this was something I had never seen before. In the end, although the subway station was closed due to destruction from the last protest, there was still damage done to the area. Any store or company that had backed the Chinese government, if it was still open, was destroyed. We walked by a local bakery that had all of its glass destroyed, and the Starbucks was eventually destroyed after the initial spray painting.

After all of this, however, I still feel completely safe in Hong Kong, Sure, it is a nuisance to get around since the metro system, Hong Kong’s main mode of transportation, is down, but after seeing the protests up close, I understand that I need to be cautious when traveling or just stay indoors. Hong Kong is such a large place, and even if there is fire and teargas on the next street over, the smartest thing to do is stay inside. Most of the time, when the American media shows an image or video of a protest, it’s not from a location near to me. But still, I just avoid that area.

Yes, it may seem like a dangerous place to visit, but with the right precautions, tourists can have a great time even with the unrest. People go about their day normally, as anyone else would in the world, and I just follow suit. Everyone goes to work and school, so weekdays are the same amount of boring and blah as the U.S.; it’s just the weekends where precaution is needed. Overall, I think that the protests are dangerous and I should avoid getting in the middle of them. But if I continue on with my life and only observe, why should I, or any other traveller, be scared?

Going into the offseason, fans are often positive about next season. Every team has a chance to win it all before the games start. In that spirit, we’ll be looking at each team’s best case scenario in the offseason. Using salary cap gymnastics that would make Daryl Morey proud, we’re going to look at what is the best vaguely plausible assembly of talent a team can put together this offseason. Plausibility will be looked at in the forms of trades and team decision-making. Whether a particular player will want to go to a destination will largely be ignored, as that is not something a team has much control over and is borderline impossible to predict. With all of that said, our first subject is the Brooklyn Nets.

The Nets finished 42-40 and earned the sixth seed in the East Conference. After a strong showing in game one, they were run off the court by the Philadelphia 76ers in the following four games. They’re young and talented, but clearly need more top talent to be a real competitor. Luckily for them, they’ve got lots of cap space in a summer loaded with top-end free agents, and general manager Sean Marks has demonstrated he’s a shrewd creative decision-maker that fans can trust. There’s been a lot of talk about the possibility of the Nets signing two maximum free agents. Let’s get into whether that is possible, and if so, how.

The Nets have $48,875,803 in salaries for next year. Throw in the $5,474,787 on the books for the ghost of Deron Williams (a player who last played for the team May 1, 2015) and they’re at $54,350,590. They also have $78,635,205 in cap hold for their free agents, including $21,059,094 for All-Star D’Angelo Russell, holds for both of their first-round picks and one incomplete roster charge. That puts the Nets at a payroll of $132,031,353 to start the offseason. With the salary cap for next season set at $108 million, the Nets enter the offseason as an over-the-cap team. Now that we’ve got that base math out of the way, on to the fun part.

In a best-case scenario, they will not be resigning any of their free agents — sorry, Russell. Renouncing the holds on their free agents drops the Nets below the salary cap and gives them $48,870,242 in space. A good start, but not enough for the two max free agents we’ve been talking about. To get there, the team will have to move Allen Crabbe. Crabbe has been a huge disappointment and probably the biggest blemish on general manager Sean Marks’ record. Moving his $18.5 million salary would increase the team’s cap space significantly. A draft pick will have to be attached however, but this too will increase cap space by removing the cap hold for that pick. Trading Crabbe and the Nets’ own 17th pick to a team with cap space (such as the Atlanta Hawks), brings the cap space number to $68,526,266. That’s enough for the two max contracts for players with seven to nine years of experience at $32.7 million each. We did it!

This would be great for the Nets if two max caliber players wanted to come, but it is not the best case scenario. The best free agent available does not have seven to nine years of experience. Kevin Wayne Durant has over 10 years of experience, meaning he would command a first-year salary of $38.15 million. He and Kawhi Leonard, the second-best free agent in my mind, will command a combined first year salary of $70.85 million in cap space. Waiving the non-guaranteed contracts for Shabazz Napier and Treveon Graham brings the team’s cap space number to $70,239,068. Finally, to get the last $600,000, they’d have to get creative. One path they could take is trading away the Denver Nuggets pick they own (pick 27) for second round picks or a future first. Second-round picks do not count against the cap until they are signed, and a future first obviously wouldn’t count against the team’s cap until the future. With the small number of players on the roster, a trade like the Denver pick for the second-round picks Atlanta owns (picks 35, 41, and 44) makes sense.

Let’s take stock of the roster now. The Nets would have a projected starting lineup of Spencer Dinwiddie, Joe Harris, Leonard, Durant and Jarrett Allen, with Caris LeVert, Rodions Kurucs and Dzanan Musa off the bench, and the 27th and 31st picks rounding out the roster. To fill out the rest of the roster, they have $4,716,000 in the form of the room mid-level exception as well as minimum salaries. This is powerhouse of a team with a lot of youth that could contend right away. Depth might be a bit of a problem, but veteran players will often take a pay cut to contend for a championship, and to do so in Brooklyn should be very attractive. What if they could add more top-level talent? This is where things get really fun. As I’m sure everyone has heard by now, Anthony Davis is available via trade. In addition, there have been rumors that Karl Anthony Towns will be requesting a trade this offseason. I’d personally prefer Towns since he’s on a five-year deal and is younger, but the mechanics used will be the same, as their salaries are very similar. The Minnesota Timberwolves are in a market that’s struggled for a long time and will probably want to stay competitive. Given that, a trade of Dinwiddie, Harris and Allen as well as the 27th pick, 31st pick and the Nets’ 2021 first-round pick should be enticing. That would give them a starting lineup of Dinwiddie, Harris, Robert Covington, Dario Saric and Allen, which is a solid lineup that could compete for the eighth seed out west. For Towns, after years under a coach known for being hard on rookies, being on a team known for their development system could allow his defense to flourish. If that were the case, Towns immediately would become a top-10 player. Pair him with two top-five players in Leonard and Durant, as well as an emerging star in LeVert, and this team becomes one of the most talented ever assembled.

Let’s take a step back and look at where we ended up. The team now has only six players on roster: Durant, Leonard, Towns, LeVert, Kurucs and Musa. The rest of the roster must be built using the room mid-level and minimum contracts. Given this core, it’s clear the team is an immediate contender, if not the favorite. Being in Brooklyn and competing for a championship will undoubtedly attract players who are willing to take a pay cut to compete for a ring. Being arguably the favorite to win the title is certainly a win for this team, but it’s not all short term. The length of contract Durant and Leonard might demand is unknown, but having Towns locked up for five years and LeVert, Rodions Kurucs and Musa all on their rookie deal means this team also has a bright future. This is the best of all case scenarios. Will this happen? No one knows for sure, but it is possible, and that possibility by itself should excite fans.

The Western Conference Finals between the favored Golden State Warriors and the underdog Portland Trail Blazers will begin May 14, 2019. While the story of “David vs. Goliath” is common in many playoff matchups, this series is different due to the different storylines involved

Warriors’ superstar Stephen Curry will not only have to deal with the All-Star duo of CJ McCollum and Damian Lillard, but will also have to face off against his own brother, Seth Curry. Tough Seth isn’t quite the All-Star caliber player that his brother is, but one can only imagine some of the tricks he knows to get under his brother’s skin after playing against each other since childhood.

The Warriors will also be without their star small forward Kevin Durant for at least games one and two, since he suffered a strained calf in game 5 of the Western Conference Semifinals against the Houston Rockets. The Warriors have also been without center DeMarcus Cousins since game two of the first round series after he endured a partially torn quadriceps muscle. As the injuries have piled up, questions and concerns about the team have mounted as well.

The Blazers, on the other hand, have injuries of their own to deal with. Rodney Hood is questionable for game one after hyperextending his knee in the decisive game 7 of the Western Conference Semifinals against the Denver Nuggets. Hood was instrumental in the Blazers‘ series win against the Nuggets, as he hit big shot after big shot and averaged 15 points per game. For the Blazers to pull off the upset against the Warriors, they are going to need Hood.

Nuggets Head Coach Mike Malone explained the importance of Hood after his team lost to the Blazers in game 6.

“To me, Rodney Hood is the MVP of the series,” Malone said Saturday. “Damian Lillard is a superstar. You know what you’re going to get with him. CJ McCollum is a potential All-Star, so you know what you’re getting with him. But Rodney Hood in their three wins is at 20 points a game, 61 from the field, 54 from 3. So we have to do a better job of guarding him and game planning for him when he comes in.” (ESPN)

For the Blazers to pull off the upset, it will be important to win one of the first two games in Golden State. The Blazers will look to take advantage of Durant’s absence and hope to steal home court advantage by the time they return to Portland for game 3.

History had already been made before the tie-break game of the NBA Western Conference Semifinals featuring the Portland Trail Blazers and the Denver Nuggets, as Game 3 of the series saw the two teams push each other to a quadruple-overtime. This was the second such occurrence in league history and the first since 1953. Game 7 of the series provided Portland fans with a little more history, as the Trail Blazers clinched a 100-96 win to advance to the Conference finals.

At first, the Blazers’ situation looked bleak, as the Nuggets stormed into the Pepsi Center in Colorado with a 29-17 lead in the first quarter. The home team was able to turn things around in the second quarter, outscoring their opponents 22-19. While the momentum had definitely shifted to their side, the Trail Blazers still had a long way to go before coming back from being down by nine at the half.

Luckily for the home crowd, the Trail Blazers did not let up in the third quarter. Their attack was orchestrated by shooting guard C.J. McCollum, who finished the game with the most points on the court. It was McCollum’s late-in-the-quarter jump shot that gave Portland their first lead of the game, as the group claimed the third 32-24. In spite of holding the lead heading into the final stanza, the Nuggets initiated a back-and-forth dogfight that saw both sides scrambling to get buckets.

McCollum’s masterful execution on the night culminated in the fourth quarter, as his three pointer in the dying minutes of the contest provided Portland with the three point lead that would carry the team to their ultimate victory. An exchange of free throws followed, but by then the game had been decided in favor of the Trail Blazers. Enes Kanter had the most rebounds for Portland with 13, while Damian Lillard posted a team-high of eight assists.

The game was massive for McCollum’s confidence, as the Lehigh University standout was pushed into the background of the team in favor of one of this season’s media darlings, Lillard. And though there can be no doubt Lillard deserves every ounce of praise he has been receiving, McCollum has been just as productive in his output in Portland’s postseason run. He almost single-handedly ensured his team’s survival in the early goings, as the Trail Blazers looked all but eliminated by the looks of the first half.

McCollum also generated most of the third quarter comeback, as he made up for Lillard’s struggles on the night. The support was needed, as Lillard went 3-of-17 from the field.

Though McCollum snatched up most of the headlines, it should be noted that he himself was propped up by his own supporting cast. Portland’s role players, such as Evan Turner and Zach Collins, were eager to assist in turning the tide.

There have been several accusations by critics and fans alike aimed at Turner for the duration of the season. Their main grievance has been Turner’s inability to justify his admittedly large price tag. His struggles in the regular season have followed him to the playoffs, in which the forward has only been able to come away with seven points scored during his time on the court. Turner managed to silence his doubters with a competent performance of 14 points, seven rebounds and two assists. These numbers might not be what the fans are demanding, but they are still a step in the right direction for the oft-maligned Turner, who showed he can put the team on his black in flashes if needed.

Another key factor in the downfall of the Nuggets, who must have surely thought they would be cruising to an emphatic win early on, was the team seeming to refuse to hit their three pointers and free throws. Needless to say, these are the most important shots to take at any level of basketball, and Denver’s multiple jacked shots proved they probably should have lost if they couldn’t make them. In their stead, Portland will continue on to the Conference finals against the Golden State Warriors, in which the Trail Blazers will have to play their best games of the season to overcome their label of underdogs.

Despite having a regular season record of 6-7, the Drexel University men’s lacrosse team did just enough to qualify for the Colonial Athletic Association playoffs. The Dragons did not fail to disappoint in the first round as they beat the 14th ranked team in the country, the University of Massachusetts, in the semifinals by a score of 15-12. Unfortunately, the Dragons’ surprise run fell short the following round, as they lost to 12th ranked Towson University by a score of 16-14.

The semifinal game against UMass took place May 2. Despite quick goals from both teams that resulted in a 1-1 tie midway through the first period, the Dragons rode an offensive hot streak to take a 5-1 lead by the end of the frame and never looked back. Goals were scored by junior Collin Mailman, senior Marshal King, freshman Jack Mulcahy and two from junior Matthew Varian. The Dragons led comfortably throughout the rest of the game; UMass never got closer than three goals. King and Mailman led the Dragons in scoring as they both finished with hat tricks.

Two days later, the Dragons faced off against Towson. The first period was a back and forth battle as Towson only led by one goal. Unfortunately, the Dragons struggled defensively in the second period as Towson outscored the Dragons 7-3. The Dragons found themselves playing catch up for the rest of the game and the Drexel magic ultimately ran out. Despite a strong effort and 5-0 goal advantage in the fourth period, the Dragons could not overcome the deficit and fell to Towson. On a positive note, however, the Dragons lead Towson in faceoffs and ground balls. Drexel won 35 ground balls compares to Towson’s 22, and won 23 faceoffs compared to Towson’s 10.

Despite the loss, Coach Brian Voelker has to be proud of what he’s seen from his squad this year. They were three goals away from making an NCAA tournament appearance and went toe-to-toe with a team that was once ranked first in the nation — Towson University. Leading the Dragons this year was junior Reid Bowering who finished with an unbelievable 47 goals on the season.

The Dragons are hoping next year they will continue to have major production from these key contributors and, with the right mix of luck and skill, make their first appearance in the NCAA tournament since 2014.

For the Drexel University softball team, the start of the regular season showed just how powerful they can be. However, after their game against the University of Pennsylvania, they only managed to win one game of the last eight games. They still managed to secure the No. 4 seed in the CAA championships, but this is not what we expected, looking back at their previous games.

Nonetheless, securing the No. 4 seed in the championships is a great accomplishment. The rest of their regular season started off with a doubleheader against James Madison University. JMU’s pitcher Odicci Alexander had a perfect game going into the fifth inning, when the Dragons finally managed to get a hit with a double by sophomore Megan Trivelpiece. It was quite the opposite story for JMU, scoring four runs in both the second and fourth inning and five in the first inning. With just 14 hits, the Dukes managed to pull away with the win, 14-0.

It was a similar story in the second game, as JMU jumped to a 6-0 lead after two innings. It looked to be another wipeout for the Dragons, but at the last second, their bats came alive. In the fifth inning, they managed to score four runs to cut JMU’s lead in half. However, JMU was able to get the win, 9-4.

Drexel tried to get at least one game in the series against JMU, but it was to no avail. A solo home-run by senior Taylor Lee was their first run of the game. An RBI single by junior Linda Rush brought in Drexel’s second and last run of the game. However, the Dukes were able to get four runs in each of the three first innings, bringing them to a 12-2 win.

Things started to look better for the Dragons in their next doubleheader against Howard University, where they split the series 1-1. The start of the series was a little rough. Howard got out to a 3-0 lead by the third inning of the first game. However, this was the same inning where Drexel scored their first run. A solo shot by Lee in the fourth brought them within one, but two more runs by Howard in the fifth secured their win, 5-2.

The second game is where Drexel exploded, where they jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the first inning. Sophomores Elena Woulfe and Haley Hulitt both recorded singles to get out to a 3-0 lead, and an RBI double from sophomore Kristi DiMeo got them to a four run lead. After adding one more run in the second, Drexel was out to a 5-0 lead. Junior Taylor Kent helped keep Howard’s run total to one in the fifth inning when she threw out a baserunner from the outfield. A final run by Howard in the seventh sealed Drexel’s 30th win of the year, 5-2.

Next up was Saint Joseph’s University, which was the Dragons’ final regular-season non-conference game. However, this was the start of a downhill path for the rest of the regular season as the Drexel offense was not able to procure enough runs to get the win. An error in the first inning gave SJU a 1-0 lead while a double in the third inning added a run to that total. An additional run in the fourth brought them to a 3-0 lead. Drexel finally scored a run when sophomore Reilly Jo Swanson stole home to give Drexel’s only run of the game. SJU won the game, 3-1.

Things didn’t really get any better for the Dragons in their next doubleheader against Towson University. By the fourth inning, Towson was up 6-0, while Drexel only managed two hits during that time. The fifth inning put Drexel in the game as they scored three runs to cut Towson’s lead to just two. But, Towson was ready for this as they scored five in the sixth to get the 11-4 win.

In game two, Drexel was the first to attack when a DiMeo single put them up 1-0. However, Towson replied with two runs of their own, taking the 2-1 lead. Drexel tied it up in the sixth inning when Hulitt notched an RBI single. But, Towson went out in glorious fashion, hitting a solo home run to win, 3-2.

Drexel finished up their regular season with a chance to avenge their previous two losses with the last game of the series against Towson. Although they lost 3-1, it was a momentous occasion for the Dragons. Rush hit her 20th home run of the season, making her the only Dragon ever to do so. This game also secured them the No. 4 spot in the CAA championships, their first trip in almost 15 years.

The Dragons’ next stop was Harrisonburg, Virginia, for the CAA Championships. Their first opponent was the College of Charleston, the No. 5 seed. An RBI single from junior Hannah Walker in the fifth inning got Drexel on the board. A three-run sixth inning gave the Cougars the lead, but a two-run shot from Rush, her 21st of the year, tied up the game. Charleston took the lead in the ninth, but Drexel was able to come back and tie the game at 4-4. The game went into extra innings, where the Cougars again scored, this time on an RBI double, but Drexel had a response with a home run by Hulitt. But, in the 11th inning, Charleston finally pulled away for the win with an RBI single and double to seal the deal, 7-5.

After a disappointing start to the tournament, the Dragons moved onto an elimination game against Towson. A home run in the second inning gave Towson the lead, but Drexel was able to tie up the game in the seventh with a sacrifice fly by sophomore Elena Woulfe. A bunt by Walker drove another run in and gave Drexel the lead, 2-1. The Dragons were able to stop Towson from scoring again as they took the 2-1 win.

Drexel tried to continue their hot streak with a rematch against Charleston. This time, they were ready for the challenge. Rush hit her 22nd home run of the season to extend her record and give the Dragons a 3-0 lead. She also broke another record this game with her 78th RBI of the season, a new single-season record. Multiple Dragons, including Hulitt, DiMeo and Swanson scored to give the team a crushing 8-0 win.

Drexel then moved onto their first CAA semifinal game in team history against Elon. However, this game defied all expectation. Elon pulled out to a 7-0 lead by the seventh inning, but Drexel fought hard till the last minute. They managed three runs in the seventh to keep the game alive, with two RBIs by Rush to extend her record to 80. But, it wasn’t enough, as the Dragons’ season ended with a 7-3 loss.