SELINSGROVE, Pa. – Howie Rankine hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer and host Susquehanna University handed the Drew University men's basketball a heartbreaking 73-71 setback in Landmark Conference action Saturday afternoon.
 
The Rangers led 71-68 before Rankine made two free throws with six seconds left. One second later, Drew missed the front end of a 1-and-1 before Rankine raced the ball up the court and sunk an off-balance runner from the left side of the arc.
 
Senior forward Howard McBurnie, Jr. led Drew (11-10, 3-7 LC) with 19 points and 16 rebounds for his ninth double-double of the season. Junior guard Andrew Turco added 18 points while shooting 4-for-10 from beyond the arc, and senior guard Mario Haklaj contributed 12 points off the bench. Senior forward Michael Kane added 11 points.
 
Rankine scored a game-high 24 points while Brandon Lavitt posted 19 points and nine rebounds for Susquehanna (12-9, 7-3 LC).
 
The Rangers trailed 68-63 with 3:37 left before mounting a comeback, scoring eight unanswered points. Sophomore guard Papie Roberts connected on a pull-up jumper before Kane made a pair of foul shots in a 1-and-1 situation, brining Drew within 68-67 with 50 seconds to go.
 
With the Rangers in a press, Turco then forced a turnover, tipping a pass that was recovered by McBurnie in the frontcourt. Roberts followed up with a driving lay-up to put Drew up 69-68 with 27 seconds remaining.
 
The River Hawks turned it over again on their next possession, throwing away an entry pass that Haklaj picked up in the post. He was immediately fouled and went 2-for-2 at the charity stripe, making it 71-68 with six ticks showing.
 
With his team in the double bonus, Rankine was fouled after receiving the inbound pass on the left sideline, setting up the wild finish.
 
It was a nip-and-tuck affair right from the start, and there were five lead changes over the opening four minutes. Susquehanna used a 14-5 run to take the largest lead of the game for either team at 27-18, but the Rangers answered with a 7-0 surge to pull to within two.
 
Turco drained a triple from the right corner to tie the game at 33-33 with 4:56 left in the half, and a lay-up from McBurnie with 27 seconds left pulled Drew to within a point (40-39) at the intermission.
 
The second half started similarly as the opening stanza, as there were eight lead changes and one tie over the opening nine minutes. McBurnie knocked down a pair of free throws with 9:52 remaining to make it 56-56, and Turco worked inside for a lay-up that deadlocked the score at 58-all with 8:41 left. The River Hawks then used a 10-5 run to open up their late five-point advantage before Drew embarked on its rally.
 
The Rangers play their final two home games of the season next week, starting with a Landmark Conference tilt with the University of Scranton at 7 p.m. on Wednesday.