MADISON, N.J. – The Drew University men's basketball team rallied from a 16-point second-half deficit to beat Neumann University 71-68 in the opening round of the ECAC Division III Championships Wednesday evening in Baldwin Gym. Junior guard Riley Collins, named the Landmark Conference Player of the Year earlier in the day, broke the single-season school record for assists as the Rangers (22-6) captured a rematch of the exact same game from last season, which Neumann won 114-110 in overtime.
 
How it Happened: The Rangers, playing without a pair of guards that start or come off the bench, went scoreless over the final six minutes of the opening half and trailed 37-25 at the break. The Knights led 41-25 with 18:33 before the Rangers embarked on their comeback, which started with a trio of 3-pointers from senior guard Darius Reiter that quickly sliced the deficit to seven. Drew would continue to dial long distance over the remainder of the half, knocking down five additional 3-pointers, including another triple from Reiter that tied the game (54-54) with 7:59 to go. Senior forward Nate Aldrich also provided a highlight during the rally with a dunk off feed from Collins.
 
Sophomore guard Jereme Johnson and Collins each pulled the Rangers even on 3-pointers down the stretch while senior forward Sky Harris nailed a jumper in the paint that made it 63-all with 2:41 showing. Sophomore forward Malachi Walker dropped in a lay-up through contact to give the Rangers their first lead (65-63) since the opening half, drawing the crowd to its feet. Collins took care of business the rest of the way, scoring the team's final six points. He went 4-for-4 at the free-throw line and made a huge jumper with the shot clock winding down that made it a two-possession game (69-65) with 34 seconds left.
 
Top Performers: Collins posted 12 points and 10 assists for his third double-double of the season and with his fourth assist of the night, he surpassed Diego Reino's single-season record of 149 set in 2001-02. Reiter finished with 19 points for the night, shooting 5-for-10 from 3-point range. His third trey of the night was the 200th of his career, as he became just the fifth player in school history to reach the milestone. Aldrich, the Landmark Conference Defensive Player of the Year, finished with his 14th double-double of the season and his 11th in the last 14 games. Harris added nine points and six rebounds while Walker had eight points, seven rebounds, and three blocks. Raquan Brown-Johnson posted 22 points, 10 rebounds, and seven assists for the Knights (13-13).
 
Stat Sheet: After shooting 27.8 percent in the opening half, the Rangers got hot in the second period, shooting 53.3 percent. Neumann finished with a 48-35 rebounding advantage and outscored the Rangers 30-16 in the paint. However, Drew held a 19-10 advantage in points off turnovers and outscored the Knights' bench 15-4.
 
Up Next: The Rangers travel to Hood College for the remainder of the ECAC Championship. Drew takes on Marymount University in the quarterfinals on Friday at 8 p.m. in the fourth and final game of the day.