Drew University Athletics

SELINSGROVE, Pa. – Junior guard Eli Yusavage scored a career-high 30 points and the Drew University men's basketball team clinched the No. 2 seed in the Landmark Conference Championship tournament with a 92-84 victory at Susquehanna University in its regular-season finale on Saturday.
 
The Rangers (19-6, 13-5 LC) will now receive a first-round bye in the conference tournament before hosting a semifinal game on Thursday at 7 p.m. They will take on the winner of the first-round game between No. 3-seeded University of Scranton and No. 6 seed Susquehanna.
 
Yusavage shot 9-for-17 from the field, including 5-for-11 from 3-point range. He also went 7-for-8 at the foul line, where he shot 5-for-6 in the final 31 seconds to help stave off a late Susquehanna rally.
 
Senior forward David Musial added 17 points, nine rebounds, and three steals for the Rangers while sophomore forward Ben Manns recorded 17 points and five rebounds while shooting 7-for-8 from the field. Senior guard Andre De Los Reyes contributed 12 assists.
 
Brandon Lavitt posted 36 points and 12 rebounds to lead the River Hawks (13-12, 9-9 LC).
 
After a back-and-forth game in the opening minutes, the Rangers outscored Susquehanna 17-5 over a five-minute stretch to assume a 24-13 lead with 11:32 left in the half. Drew pushed its lead to as much as 14 (36-22) with 5:36 on the clock following a steal and 3-pointer from Yusavage, who scored seven more points over the remainder of the half. The Rangers carried a 46-38 lead into the intermission.
 
Drew maintained a comfortable advantage for most of the second half and twice led by as much as 15, the last coming on a layup from De Los Reyes with 8:27 remaining. The Rangers still led by double digits (84-74) with 1:33 left before the River Hawks rallied, reducing the deficit to five (86-81) on a layup from Jackson Van Wagener with 31 seconds to go. Yusavage answered by going 3-for-4 at the line on Drew's next trip down the court to push the lead back to eight.
 
Susquehanna nailed a jumper and split a pair of free throws on their next two possessions but were unable to make up any ground. Senior guard Devon Musial went 1-for-2 at the stripe before Yusavage set the final score with a pair of foul shots with 15 seconds left.
 
Drew will be appearing in the Landmark Conference Championships for the eighth time in the last nine years and will open the postseason at home for the seventh time in a row.