Drexel fries Towson, but hold the steaks

Drexel's DAC Pack was up in arms. Meanwhile, the owners of Abner's were probably breathing a sigh of relief.

Abner's, a West Philly cheesesteak joint located on 38th and Chestnut Street in University City, guarantees free cheesesteaks to all fans with tickets if the Dragons score 100 points in a home game.

Drexel was scoring at an astronomical rate last night at the Daskalakis Athletic Center, and it appeared that Abner's was going to have to fire up the grill and feed hundreds of hungry college students. But when the final buzzer sounded, the Dragons fell short of eclipsing the century mark by three - and cheesesteaks at Abner's still cost $6.35 - much to the chagrin of the 1,218 in attendance.

Although, the way he shot the lights out, Drexel freshman marksman Chris Fouch deserves a free steak. Fouch was 6-for-7 from three-point range and scored a game-high 28 points as the Dragons demolished Towson, 97-55, to win their fourth game in five opportunities.

"So, you wanted a free cheesesteak?" chuckled Drexel coach Bruiser Flint, whose team hadn't scored that many points since Jan. 26, 2002, when the Dragons dropped 100 on George Mason at the DAC in a 31-point rout that was dubbed "The Cheesesteak Game" for the aforementioned reason.

Coming off a 54-51 loss Sunday at William & Mary, a contest in which Drexel shot a dismal 38.8 percent from the field and an even more abysmal 40.9 percent from the free throw line, Flint was hoping his team would bounce back.

"Sometimes we don't seize the moment," Flint said.

But this time, behind Fouch's instant offense off the bench, the Dragons (13-11, 8-4 Colonial Athletic Association) did.

Holding a 17-16 lead with 12 minutes, 55 seconds remaining in the first half, Fouch entered the game and proceeded to drain a pair of threes and a layup during a 13-1 run that put Drexel up 30-17. In all he finished with 15 first-half points on 4-for-4 shooting from beyond the arc as the Dragons extended their lead to a 47-30 halftime cushion.

"I was just focusing in," Fouch said. "I was tired of hearing [Flint] yell at me [for my defensive lapses]."

Drexel continued its hot shooting after intermission, opening up the second half on a 19-2 spurt to take a 66-32 advantage. The Dragons led by as many as 45, 87-42, with 6:02 left when Fouch hit three consecutive free throws after being fouled on a three-point attempt.

Fouch, who came into the game shooting 48.3 percent from three-point range at home compared to just 28.8 percent on the road, has now hit 12 of his last 18 three-point attempts over his last two games at the DAC.

"I really don't know what it is," Fouch said of the wide differential in his home and away shooting. "I guess it's just being at home and having that environment around me."

Drexel, the same team that ranked 312th in scoring offense among 334 Division I teams in games played through Jan. 31 (62.3 ppg), shot 48.6 percent from the field and 12-for-24 from three-point range. The Dragons improved to 11-1 when shooting 40 to 49 percent. They also limited the Tigers (5-17, 2-10) to 38.5 percent shooting.

"We've been playing well, especially defensively," Flint said. "We've been clamping down."

Freshman guard Derrick Thomas added 12 points, while sophomore forward Kevin Phillip posted nine points. Five Drexel players, including sophomore forward Samme Givens (game-high 10 rebounds), had eight points apiece, contributing to a balanced offensive outburst.

The Dragons had 95 points with 1:56 remaining, but with Flint subbing out his starters and putting in a pair of walk-ons, they failed to reach triple digits, prompting boos to rain down from the stands.

No free cheesesteaks, but at the end of the day, the Drexel faithful will take pride in this win.

Drexel senior forward Evan Neisler missed the game with a left knee sprain (day-to-day) . . . Drexel will travel to Peoria, Ill., to take on Bradley (Missouri Valley Conference) on Feb. 20 at 8:05 p.m. (EST) as part of ESPN's BracketBuster series. The game will not be televised.