MADISON, N.J. - The Drew University men's basketball team cut a seven-point deficit down to two in the final minute, but Catholic University held on for a 73-71 win over the Rangers in Landmark Conference (LC) action Saturday afternoon in Baldwin Gym.

With four games left in the regular season, the Rangers (13-8, 7-3 LC) find themselves in second place in the Landmark standings, holding a half game lead over both Catholic and the University of Scranton.

The Cardinals (13-5, 6-3 LC) had a chance to ice the game at the line with 0.9 seconds left, but missed the front end of a 1-and-1. The Rangers rebounded and immediately called timeout, and a halfcourt heave from senior guard David Gervase nearly found the mark. But it bounced off the backboard and the rim as time expired.

Gervase led the Rangers (13-8, 7-3 LC) with 16 points while junior forward Howard McBurnie, Jr. posted a big double-double of 15 points and a season-high-tying 17 rebounds. He also broke into the school's all-time top-10 list in rebounding and now ranks eighth with 545 career boards. Senior guard Miles Lewis contributed with 12 points.

Jesse Hafemeister paced the Cardinals with 17 points.

It was a tight game in the first half, though the Rangers pushed their lead to eight (31-23) with 6:21 left following an 11-2 run. Sophomore guard Andrew Turco started the surge with back-to-back 3-pointers, and McBurnie capped it with another triple. But Catholic rallied to go back in front with a 9-0 run, and the Rangers would lead just 35-34 at the half.

The Cardinals led for most of the second half, but the Rangers used a 6-0 spurt to take a 53-51 lead with 9:34 to go. Lewis scored all six points during the run, connecting on a 3-pointer and an old-fashioned 3-point play.

Later in the period, Catholic used an 11-2 run to build its largest lead of the game (65-58) with 4:40 remaining. The Cardinals led 73-67 after hitting a pair of free throws with 1:07 left before Drew mounted a comeback.

Turco knocked down a pair of free throws with 52 seconds left to make it a four-point game before the Rangers' full-court press created a turnover. Gervase picked up a steal before dropping in a lay-up with 40 seconds to go, scoring what held up as the final points of the night.

Catholic then missed a 3-pointer that McBurnie rebounded with 17 seconds left. The Rangers called timeout with eight ticks showing, but would turn the ball over in the lane in the closing seconds. Hafemeister came up with the loose ball before getting fouled, setting up the finish.

The Rangers continue their season on Wednesday, when they visit Scranton at 7 p.m. in another Landmark Conference tilt.