HUNTINGDON, Pa. – The Drew University men's basketball team rallied from eight points down with just over six minutes left and the Rangers and earned a big 76-73 Landmark Conference victory at Juniata College Friday afternoon.
Senior guard Andrew Turco scored a team-high 18 points, none bigger than his two free throws with 13 seconds left. After the two sides exchanged turnovers, the Eagles called timeout with three seconds left before missing a 3-pointer at the buzzer.
The game featured two of the top teams in the Landmark Conference standings, and the Rangers (13-1, 6-1 LC) pulled even in the win column with conference-leading Susquehanna University (6-0 LC), who they will face on Sunday at the Palestra starting at 5 p.m.
Drew has posted the best record through 14 games in team history.
Junior guard Pat Higgins added 15 points, eight rebounds, five assists, and three steals for the Rangers while junior guards Josh Kline and Papie Roberts added 11 points apiece. Sophomore forward Kevin Cronin chipped in with eight points while junior forward Peso Crump grabbed seven rebounds.
In a game that featured 44 fouls, the Rangers made their most of their trips to the charity stripe, where they shot 75.0% (22-28) and were a perfect 12-for-12 inside the last six minutes. The last time Drew hit 22 free throws was, ironically, in a 72-69 overtime win at Juniata on Feb. 19, 2021, when they went 22-for-37.
Tyler Lapetina scored 21 points for Juniata (8-6, 4-3 LC) while Chase Husted posted 16 points, 11 rebounds, and five assists.
Juniata led 63-55 with 6:11 to go and 69-63 with 3:54 remaining but were unable to shake the Rangers down the stretch. Turco hit a fastbreak 3-pointer before Cronin made it a one-point game when he canned a pair of free throws with 3:16 on the clock.
Husted pushed the lead back to three (71-68) for Juniata with two foul shots before Higgins pulled Drew back to within one when he also drained a pair at the stripe. The Rangers then forced Juniata into a shot-clock violation before Higgins hit a late go-ahead shot for the second game in a row, driving inside for a lay-in to put the Rangers up 72-71 with 1:36 to go.
After Husted was forced into a miss at the other end, sophomore forward David Musial converted a clutch bucket for Drew, driving in for a lay-up to make it a three-point game with 43 ticks showing. Husted then knocked down two more free throws, but the Eagles were forced to foul, setting up Turco's big shots.
The Eagles led most of the way, and the hosts held a 14-7 advantage before the Rangers came back to tie it at 21-21 on a layup from Kline with 5:46 left in the opening half. After Juniata pushed its lead back to six, the Rangers tied it again following a 7-1 run that was capped by a pair of free throws from Kline with 1:21 showing. But the Eagles scored the last four points of the half to claim a 32-28 lead at the intermission.
Drew took command early in the second half and led as much as four (41-37) on a jumper from Higgins with 17:34 remaining. The Rangers still held a four-point edge (52-48) after a lay-in from Crump with 11:14 left, but an 8-0 run, capped by six straight points from Lapetina, put Juniata up four with 8:46 to go.
A bucket from Evan Eisenhart gave the Eagles their eight-point lead, but Drew stayed in it, thanks in large part to their free-throw shooting. Roberts and Turco each went 2-for-2 before Musial knocked down a pair to make it 66-63 with 4:01 to go. Gabe Guidinger answered with a 3-pointer for Juniata, setting up Drew's late rally.
