MADISON, N.J. – The Drew University men's basketball team outscored the University of Scranton 46-27 in the second half en route to a big 79-65 Landmark Conference victory Wednesday evening in front of a packed and boisterous crowd in Baldwin Gym.
 
With the win, the Rangers moved into a tie with Scranton for second place in the Landmark Conference standings.
 
Junior guard Charlie Thornton scored a game- and season-high 20 points while shooting 4-for-5 from 3-point range for the Rangers (14-4, 8-3 LC), who broke it open with a late 16-6 run that made it a 17-point game with just over four minutes left.
 
Junior guard Eli Yusavage added 16 points, five rebounds, and four assists for Drew, which held the Royals to 36.8% shooting and outrebounded Scranton 39-29.
 
Senior forward David Musial posted his third double-double of the season with 12 points and 10 rebounds for the Rangers while sophomore guard Marc Herasme also tossed in a dozen points. Sophomore forward Ben Manns contributed 11 rebounds for the Blue and Green.
 
Jon Spatola posted 16 points and five assists to pace the Royals, who received votes in the latest D3hoops.com Top-25 poll.
 
Drew led for all but 54 seconds in the first half and led 31-23 after a layup from senior forward Kevin Cronin with 6:08 on the clock. But Scranton ended the half on a 15-2 run to assume a five-point lead at the break.
 
The Rangers wasted little time reclaiming control in the second half, outscoring the Royals 9-0 to open the period to go in front to stay. Drew's lead hit double figures for the first time when Yusavage fed Herasme on a fastbreak layup that made it 53-43 with 10:36 remaining.
 
Scranton trailed 56-49 with 8:42 left, but that's when the Rangers posted their aforementioned 16-6 run. Cronin and Manns opened the stretch with two free throws each before Manns converted a lay-in that made it 62-49. Yusavage added a bucket of his own before Thornton capped the decisive stretch with a pair of foul shots and a 3-pointer at the 4:08 mark, making it 69-52. Scranton was unable to get closer than 12 the rest of the way.
 
The Rangers continue their season on Saturday, when they visit Lycoming College at 2 p.m. in another Landmark Conference affair.