Mal Vishwanath
The Drew University men’s basketball team completed a historical season sweep by securing a victory against Catholic University on Saturday, Feb. 3. With a score of 76-75, the Rangers outscored the Cardinals for the first time in program history.
After having an early 10-3 lead and taking a 40-47 edge into halftime, the Rangers had a comfortable 10-point advantage during the fourth quarter. However, with less than five minutes left, the Cardinals were not deterred, as they tied the score with a 73-73. A Darius Reiter (’19) three-pointer gave the Rangers a 76-73 edge, to which the Cardinals responded with two points, bringing the margin back down to a narrow 76-75. However, this was as far as they could get, as a failed three-point attempt by the Cardinals ultimately gave the Rangers their well-earned victory.
Leading the Rangers’ scores was Yonathan Napoleon (’18), with a tremendous 19 points to his name. He was followed by Reiter and Riley Collins (’20), who each tallied 14 points and six rebounds. Sky Harris (’19) accounted for 10 points, while Nate Aldrich (’19) accounted for nine points and eight rebounds.
The Rangers were unable to keep up the momentum on Thursday night, dropping their game against Scranton 77-65, ending their seven-game winning streak. The game was back and forth until halftime, when after several rallies, Scranton took the lead with 46-36. The Rangers were unable to catch up, and early in the second half, the Royals were able to extend their lead to 51-39. The Rangers fought back, with Napoleon sinking a three-pointer to give Drew a 10-2 run to lower the deficit to 4.
Scranton went on another scoring run, scoring 14 points over six minutes; extending their lead to 15 points with only six minutes left on the clock. The Rangers rallied once again, bringing the score within 11 points of their opponents, but they were unable to make a comeback with Scranton walking away with a 77-65 victory. The Royals swept the regular season series against the Rangers, but the Rangers have managed to remain in first in the Landmark Conference rankings.
Napoleon once again led the Rangers in scoring, tallying 18 points for the game. Collins was close behind with 12 points, along with five assists and four steals. Aldrich turned in another strong performance, with 10 points, eight rebounds and two blocks against the Royals.
The Rangers will conclude their regular season home schedule with a 2 pm game against Landmark opponent Susquehanna University, whom they have previously beaten this season. The Rangers will be honoring their four seniors at this game as well.
