SELINSGROVE, PA (January 25, 2023) – The Susquehanna men's basketball team was back in action at home on Wednesday evening, fresh off a victory over Moravian on Saturday. The River Hawks continued their winning ways and earned their tenth win of the season, defeating Goucher 67-58.

SU jumped out to a sizable lead at the start of the game, leading 15-4 just over five minutes into the game. But the basket would then shut as SU went nearly five minutes without a point as Goucher took advantage and worked their way back to a 15-15 tie. Susquehanna would finally score to keep themselves ahead but were unable to restore their lead to double-digits before half time and the whistle blew with the River Hawks leading 33-26 at the half.

The River Hawks opened the second half with three-pointers from Jackson Van Wagener and Howie Rankine, Jr. to push the lead back into double-digits. They reached their biggest lead of 17 points with 11:38 remaining in the game, again thanks to a three-point shot, one of six made by the River Hawks in the half. Their 6 of 14 from long range in the frame would be a marked improvement on their 2 of 11 effort from deep in the first half.

Despite leading by 11 as late as the 6:14 mark in the second half, Susquehanna couldn't quite bury the Gophers, as they ate away at the advantage with some timely scoring and some help from foul trouble for SU. They cut the gap to five points with 2:57 remaining, but Rankine, Jr. would hit a clutch three at the 2:28 mark the make the score 62-54, and Goucher would be forced to begin fouling to stop the clock after a couple of empty offensive possessions. The River Hawks would make five of eight free throw attempts in the last two minutes to close out the game.

As has been typical for much of the season, the River Hawks were led by a strong scoring performance from Rankine, Jr., who produced a 20-point performance even despite sharing some of the shooting woes that plagued the team on the night. He would also grab 10 rebounds to register a double-double, and continued to be a menace on the defensive end with four steals. Brandon Lavitt joined Howie in double figures, scoring 14 points and adding six rebounds and three assists. Luke Edwards was the third River Hawk with a double-digit points total, tallying 11 points that included three three-point makes.

Now 10-8 overall and 5-2 in the Landmark Conference, the River Hawks sit squarely in the middle of the playoff picture in third place, just a game behind Catholic and Juniata who both sit at 6-1. SU will get to play both at home as part of their remaining regular season schedule. Their next contest will take them on the road, however, as they'll travel to face Elizabethtown on Saturday afternoon. The Blue Jays dealt SU one of their two conference losses this season, beating SU at home in heartbreaking fashion, 57-56. With that game having come in early December, the River Hawks have won seven of the 11 games they've played since that loss and will undoubtedly be looking to get a winning result from the rematch.

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--RIVER HAWKS--