SELINSGROVE, PA (February 4, 2023) -- Senior
Howie Rankine, Jr. connected on 30-footer at the buzzer to lift the Susquehanna University men's basketball bast Drew University 73-71 from O.W. Houts Gymnasium in a rematch of the 2022 Landmark Conference title contest.
With the River Hawks trailing 71-70 with seven seconds to go after a pair of free throws by Rankine, Jr., Papie Roberts of Drew went to the line with a one-and-one trying to extend Drew's lead. Roberts would miss the front end of the one-and-one, senior
Quincy Haughton got the board and pushed the ball up to Rankine, Jr.
The senior would catch the ball at the opposing free throw line with four seconds to go, dribbled across mid-court and drilled a heave from 30-foot away right in front of the Susquehanna bench to send O.W. Houts Gymnasium into a frenzy.
The game was a thriller from start to finish, as the teams exchanged the lead 16 times throughout the contest. The River Hawks posted their largest lead of the game of nine with 9:11 to play in the first frame, as
Luke Edwards drilled a three-pointer to make the score 27-18.
Drew rallied back into the game to tie the contest at 33 on a three-pointer by Andrew Turco, but SU would regain its lead for the remainder of the half to go into intermission up 40-39. Drew came out of intermission and took the lead at 41-40, but the two teams would be within four points of each other for until the 3:39 mark when a
Billy Anderson hook shot put SU up 68-63.
The Rangers would tally the next eight points over 3:30 of game time to take a three-point lead with nine seconds left. Drew elected to foul with seven seconds to play, setting up the two free throws by Rankine, Jr. and the wild win for SU.
Rankine, Jr. tallied a game-high 24 points for the River Hawks, adding three steals and five rebounds. First-year
Brandon Lavitt had a solid game, missing another double-double by one rebound as he tallied 19 points and nine rebounds. Anderson also contributed 11 points, and Haughton added seven points and six boards. First-year
Audric Washington also pulled in eight rebounds for SU.
Howard McBurnie, Jr. recorded a double-double of 19 points and 16 caroms in the loss for Drew (11-10, 3-7 Landmark), while Turco added 18 points. Mario Haklaj finished with 12 points and Michael Kane posted 11 points and seven rebounds.
The River Hawks will host Juniata College Wednesday evening at 7 p.m. in O.W. Houts Gymnasium in a big Landmark Conference contest.
--RIVER HAWKS--
