MADISON, N.J. – The Drew University men's basketball team started its season on a high note, downing Centenary University 93-70 in the opening round of the Drew Tip-Off Tournament Saturday evening in Baldwin Gym.
 
The win gave first-year Head Coach Ryan Van Zelst a victory in his first game on the sidelines for the Rangers.
 
Drew will now take on No. 24 College of New Jersey, a 96-71 winner over FDU-Florham, in the tournament championship game on Sunday at 4 p.m.  Centenary and FDU will face off in the consolation game at 2 p.m.
 
The Blue and Green dished out 28 assists, a mark that ranks tied for sixth in team history.
 
Twelve of the 16 Rangers who saw the court found their way into the scoring column, and the Drew bench accounted for 32 points.
 
Junior guard Eli Yusavage scored a game-high 19 points on 4-of-7 3-point shooting for Drew while classmate Andre De Los Reyes netted 17 points in his first career start. Senior forward Kevin Cronin posted 11 points, six assists, five rebounds, and three blocked shots while junior forward and transfer Jalen Holmes scored 12 points in 10 minutes off the bench. Senior forward David Musial added 11 points and four steals, and sophomore guard Ben Kipnis dished out seven assists.
 
Darnelle Forrest led the Cyclones with 15 points.
 
The Rangers came out clicking on all cylinders, outscoring Centenary 20-6 to start the game. Yusavage scored nine points during the run while De Los Reyes dropped in seven points.
 
Drew pushed its lead to 19 (38-19) on a 3-pointer from sophomore guard Marc Herasme with 8:11 on the clock, and a layup from Musial with just over a minute left put the hosts up by 20. Centenary scored the last bucket of the half to make it a 54-36 game at the break.
 
The Cyclones edged to within 16 early in the second half, but the Rangers broke it open with a 20-4 run over a seven-and-a-half minute stretch midway through the stanza.