JERSEY CITY, N.J. - Tournament MVP
Riley Collins pumped in a career-high 35 points, including 16 in the final 4:56, and the men's basketball team captured the Drew University Larry Horner C'40 Rose City Classic title for the first time in 17 years with an 88-73 victory over Washington and Lee University on Saturday at New Jersey City University. Collins scored 59 points for the tournament, setting a Rose City Classic record. Senior forward
Sky Harris added 12 points off the bench and joined Collins on the All-Tournament Team.
TURNING POINT: The Rangers (3-0) bolted to a 26-point lead (33-7) midway through the first half, only to see the Generals (2-1) rally to make it a six-point game (69-63) following a Roy McMillan dunk with 5:26 remaining. But that's when Collins took over the game, starting with a jumper at the 4:56 mark. A 3-pointer from Devin Kearns pulled W&L to within seven (73-66) with 4:18 left, but Drew pulled away with an 8-2 run, capped by a Collins triple with 1:45 to go. Collins iced the game at the foul line, going 9-for-10 at the foul line over the final 2:48.
BLISTERING START: Drew's offense was in high gear from the get-go, hitting a trio of 3-pointers to start the game and outscoring the Generals 13-0 to open the contest. A triple from senior guard
Darius Reiter made it 48-24 with 2:24 on the clock and the Rangers would take a 50-31 advantage into the locker room. The Blue and Green shot 58.6 percent in the opening half, including 53.3 percent (8-for-15) from 3-point range. W&L would come storming back in the second half, however, and a 12-0 run trimmed the deficit to seven (56-49) with 10:50 remaining.
TOP PERFORMERS: Collins shot 11-for-17 from the field, including 4-for-6 from 3-point range. He also added six rebounds, four assists, and three steals. His 35 points were six more than his previous career-high, and also marked the highest scoring output by a Ranger since Asmar Capers scored 36 versus Merchant Marine on Dec. 3, 2011. He nipped the previous tournament scoring record by one point, bettering the previous mark of 58 points held by John Long of FDU-Florham since 1975. Sophomore forward
Malachi Walker contributed nine points and eight rebounds while Reiter finished with eight points.
STAT SHEET: The Rangers shot 49.1 percent for the game, including 50.0 percent (10-for-20) from beyond the arc. They also connected on 80 percent (24-for-30) of their free throws. Washington and Lee held a 41-36 rebounding edge.
NOTES: Drew earned its first Rose City Classic title since its 70-47 win over SUNY Maritime in 2001...The tournament was not held from 2009-13...The Rangers are now 3-0 for the first time since the 1999-2000 campaign...The All-Tournament team was rounded out by Kearns, Elijah Wright of Dickinson College, and Duaka Ekwensi of Wheaton (Mass.) College, which defeated Dickinson 91-69 in the consolation game.
UP NEXT: The Rangers host the College of Saint Elizabeth on Tuesday at 7 p.m. in a non-conference tilt.
