MADISON, N.J. – Last season, the Drew University men's basketball team put together a comeback for the ages in its Landmark Conference semifinal versus Catholic University in Baldwin Gym, erasing a 19-point deficit in the final five minutes to win in the closing seconds.
 
The next time the two teams met, it almost happened again.
 
The Rangers wiped out a 25-point deficit in the last 13 minutes to force overtime, but the Cardinals would prevail in two OTs, 96-90, in a thriller in front of a packed house in Baldwin Gym Saturday afternoon in Landmark Conference action.
 
Senior forward Howard McBurnie, Jr. turned in a monster double-double that included a career-high 34 points – the most by a Ranger since Riley Collins C'20 scored 35 in a win over Washington and Lee in the Rose City Classic championship game on Nov. 17, 2018. McBurnie also tied a career-best with 19 rebounds and dished out five assists.
 
Senior forward Michael Kane and junior guard James Anderson contributed with 21 points and 16 points, respectively, for the Rangers (9-8, 1-5 LC).
 
Jesse Hafemeister led Catholic (16-1, 5-1 LC) with 28 points and 15 rebounds.

Drew was playing its first overtime contest since its 84-78 win over Scranton in the 2021 Landmark Conference championship game and its first double-overtime affair since a 94-87 loss at Merchant Marine on Dec. 3, 2011.
 
The Cardinals led 65-40 after Sean Neylon hit a 3-pointer with 12:57 left before the Rangers embarked on their comeback, outscoring Catholic 38-13 over the remainder of regulation.
 
Six different Rangers scored during the run, with sophomore guard Papie Roberts kicking it off with a 3-pointer – one of five from Drew during the run. A McBurnie jumper in the paint made it an 18-point game with 10:04 remaining, and Anderson drained a triple that made it 69-54 with 9:01 left.
 
Anderson knocked down another trey with 6:46 showing to make it a 12-point game with 6:46 left, and he would hit a pair of free throws to pull the Rangers to within singles digits (71-63) with 5:34 on the clock.
 
Junior guard Andrew Turco dialed long distance with 4:27 left to make it a two-possession game (73-67). Catholic pushed its lead back to nine (78-69) with 2:30 showing, but that would turn out to be the team's final points of regulation. Kane hit a pair of foul shots with 1:20 left that made it 78-71 before McBurnie knocked down a 3-pointer from the left elbow to make it a four-point game with 53 seconds to go, sending the crowd to its feet.
 
Meanwhile, Catholic ran into trouble at the free-throw line, where it went 0-for-6 and twice missed the front end of a 1-and-1 inside the final 1:49.
 
Kane connected on two more free throws with 36 ticks showing to bring the Rangers to within 78-76. Drew then jumped into a swarming full-court press, and McBurnie tipped a pass and recovered it himself in the backcourt, bringing the crowd to a fever pitch. Freshman forward Kevin Cronin then drew a foul on a put-back attempt, and he went on to sink both shots with 6.3 seconds left.
 
Catholic's Brian Herbert managed to get off a 3-pointer at the buzzer, but his shot missed the rim, sending the game to bonus basketball.
 
McBurnie gave his team its first lead since midway through the first half when he dropped in a floater 14 seconds into the extra session. Anderson would make a pair of free throws before McBurnie connected on a hook shot with 2:13 left to put the Rangers up 84-80. However, the Cardinals would score the final four points of the period. The Rangers had the ball in the closing seconds, but McBurnie's fadeaway from the right baseline bounced out.
 
The Rangers struck first in the second OT as well, as McBurnie backed in for a layup to make it 86-84 with 3:26 left. After a Catholic basket, McBurnie would hit 1-of-2 at the foul line with 2:56 showing to make it 87-86. However, that would be Drew's final point until Kane hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer. Catholic used a 10-0 run to pull away, shooting 6-for-8 at the foul line along the way.
 
Drew outscored Catholic 15-7 to start the game and still led by eight (19-11) with 12:39 left, only to see the Cardinals rally. The visitors ended the half on a 17-4 run and led 40-25 at the break.
 
An 18-7 Catholic run midway through the second half pushed its lead to 25, setting up the epic rally.
 
The Rangers return to Landmark Conference action on Wednesday, when they host Elizabethtown College at 7 p.m.