By Dave Johnson
W&M Athletics
 
As it did three nights earlier against Towson, William & Mary showed continued progress on the offensive end of the floor. Also as it did three nights earlier, the Tribe had trouble getting stops and gave up north of 80 points.
 
With five scorers in double figures, Delaware never trailed in an 84-74 win over W&M Thursday night in Bob Carpenter Center. The Blue Hens shot 51% overall, 41% (12-of-29) from the 3-point arc, and had nine dunks.
 
"We didn't have the focus we needed to early on in protecting the paint, which allowed them to get going and get some confidence," Tribe coach Dane Fischer said. "But I loved the way we responded when we got in a hole and battled back.
 
"I thought we had some really good moments on both sides of the ball. But we continue to give up too many easy baskets and didn't take advantage when we had opportunities on offense."
 
Of Delaware's nine dunks, six came in the second half when the Blue Hens (13-6, 4-2) were 11-of-15 from inside the 3-point arc.
 
"They got one or two in transition but there were a number of them in the half court," Fischer said. "We made a conscious effort of focus that when the ball is around the rim, we've got to swarm it. It can't be uncontested layups or dunks."
 
There were plenty of positives for William & Mary, particularly on the offensive end. W&M had only 11 turnovers, matching the season-low it set three nights earlier against Towson. Ten 3-pointers mark its third-highest total of the season.
 
Ben Wight had a career-high 21 points (9-of-13 from the field) along with 10 rebounds. It was his second career double-double. He gave the coaching staff a bit of a scare when he limped off the floor with 17:39 left, but he returned three minutes later.
 
"Ben was terrific," Fischer said. "He always plays with such a great motor, and he did that tonight. He was active on the offensive glass and finishing on screen and rolls, and he made some good post moves for his jump hook. He did some really good stuff for us tonight."
 
Freshman Julian Lewis finished with 17 points, also a season high, on 7-of-13 shooting (3-of-5 from deep). He had seven rebounds.
 
Connor Kochera had 13 points, five rebounds and three assists. Yuri Covington added 10 points, four rebounds and two steals off the bench.
 
Trailing 38-22 with five minutes left in the first half, William & Mary (3-15, 2-3 CAA) closed with a 14-4 run to make it a six-point game at the break. Delaware missed eight of nine shots in that stretch.
 
Just over four minutes into the second half, the Tribe trailed by four points. But Delaware took control with a 14-2 run and took a 63-47 with 12:33 remaining. The Blue Hens went 4-of-6 from the field with a pair of 3-pointers in those 2½ minutes.
 
NEXT UP: William & Mary will venture further north to go against Drexel (8-7, 3-2) Saturday at 2 p.m. The Dragons are coming off a 77-49 win over Elon Thursday night.