WILLIAMSBURG, Va.— William & Mary women's basketball hosts Drexel for the Gold Rush game on Sunday at Kaplan Arena. Tip is scheduled for 1 p.m. with the first 500 fans receiving Gold Rush t-shirts.
Fans can keep up with W&M women's basketball by following the program on social media as well. Be sure to check out the Tribe on Twitter (@WMTribeWBB), Facebook (WMTribeWBB), and Instagram (WMTribeWBB).
Clear Bag Policy
William & Mary Athletics, in conjunction with the William & Mary Police Department, has implemented a clear bag policy that regulates the size and type of bag that may be carried into W&M Athletics facilities during the 2023-24 year, including Busch Field, Kaplan Arena, Martin Family Stadium, Plumeri Park, and Zable Stadium. Information as well as approved and prohibited items is available at TribeAtheltics.com.
TRIBE NOTES
• The Matchup
William & Mary comes off their first bye of the season to host their Gold Rush game against Drexel on Sunday. The first 500 fans in attendance will receive a free t-shirt. The game will be broadcast on FloHoops.
• The Opponent
Drexel enters this weekend of CAA play in a very similar position as W&M at 9-9, 4-3 CAA. Drexel hosts Delaware on Friday night before making the trip to Williamsburg. The Dragons pride themselves on fundamentally sound play, ranking 1st in the CAA in turnover avoidance and scoring defense. They are also 2nd in the league in assists per game and FT%.
• Last Time Out
Monmouth's hot shooting second half led them to a 67-56 win at Kaplan Arena last Sunday. The Hawks were 17-of-23 from the floor in the last 20 minutes as they powered back from a one-point halftime deficit. W&M was paced by Bella Nascimento who led all scorers with 19 points. Nylah Young (13) and Cassidy Geddes (10) also found double figures for the Tribe.
•Golden Era
Sunday marks the seventh Gold Rush/Golden Game for W&M women's basketball with the Tribe holding a 3-3 record in such contests. Drexel will be the opponent in the Gold Rush game for the second time and are the second repeat opponent following James Madison. All three losses in Gold Rush games have come against the Dukes and the Dragons. Drexel won 62-58 in 2019. Last year the Tribe took care of Monmouth 73-68 in the "gold-out".
•Fresh Five
Erin Dickerson Davis rolled out her sixth different starting five vs. Hofstra and Monmouth. Only Cassidy Geddes and Alexa Mikeska remained in the first five after the Towson game. Dickerson Davis also was not shy about getting the bench involved, 11 players playing in the win vs. the Pride. W&M turned to Geddes, Monet Dance, Kayla Beckwith, Rebekah Frisby-Smith and Anahi-Lee Cauley to get them over the finish line. Those five played the final 8:11 of the game.
• Not Bad, Rook
Freshman guard Cassidy Geddes has impressed all year, but has been extra impressive over the two weeks. Geddes has scored 20 and 22 in W&M's last two Friday games, both good for career-highs. Geddes scored 17 of the Tribe's 25 points in the fourth quarter vs. Hofstra, and finished the game with a career-best 8-of-10 mark from the free throw line. She followed that one up with 10 against Monmouth for her sixth double-figure game of the season.
• Home Sweet Home
After opening conference play with four of their first six contests away from home, the Tribe conclude a three game homestand inside the friendly confines of Kaplan Arena. W&M boasted a 7-2 record at home in CAA play last year.
•Time for Rest
William & Mary is coming off their first CAA bye of the season on Friday. The Tribe and Campbell were the only teams to play on the first eight dates of the conference season. W&M's second bye-date is on Feb. 16.
• Bottleneck at the Top
Nearing the halfway point of CAA play, the top of the league standings is a bit congested. William & Mary is one of five teams with at least five CAA wins, with Stony Brook and N.C. A&T setting the pace at 6-1 heading into the weekend.
• Holding 'em to Less Than 10
The Tribe held Monmouth to eight points in the second quarter last time out. That was the fifth time in conference play this year that W&M has held an opponent to less than 10 points in a frame.
• O-Boards for Beckwith
Kayla Beckwith grabbed a team-high eight rebounds in the win over Hofstra with seven of those rebounds coming on the offensive end. Beckwith, making her first start since Nov. 15, added six points in the victory. It was her eighth game with six-plus rebounds.
• Protecting the Rock
W&M has won the turnover battle in 10 of the last 11 games and have a 8-5 record when doing so this season.
• Halftime Leads
Holding a one point at the half in their last two games, W&M is 7-4 this year when leading after the first 20 minutes. The Tribe is now 19-5 under Erin Dickerson Davis when leading at the break over her first two seasons.
• 60 is the Magic Number
The Tribe has held their opponents under 60 points in seven of their nine wins this season, while opponents have scored over 60 in eight of the nine W&M losses. The Tribe is 14-3 under Erin Dickerson Davis when holding teams below 60. While team's have had a mixed bag of success scoring in the 60s vs. W&M, opponents are 25-4 against them when scoring 70+ since 2020-21.
• Formidable Opponents
William & Mary's non-conference slate was set up to be a challenging one and proved to be. The seven teams who beat the Tribe owned a combined record of 62-18 in the non-conference.
