SELINSGROVE, PA - In front of a packed Orlando W. Houts Gymnasium, the Susquehanna University Basketball team controlled throughout the 40 minute affair with defending conference champions Drew, earning their second Landmark Championship. Danny Frauenheim was the tournament MVP, as the senior guard finished with 15 points, three assists, and four steals to lead the way for the River Hawks.

The Susquehanna offense was rolling on all cylinders on Saturday night, evidenced by a 21-7 start after a Jay Martin three-point basket. After that point, the Rangers would never get closer than seven, as the SU offense posted a balanced effort with five players in double figure scoring. 

Frauenehim was the leading scorer for the River Hawks on the night with 15 points, followed closely by Dominic Dunn who posted 14. Jack Van Syckle had an excellent night in the post, as the senior finished with 11 points and nine rebounds, along with three assists and two blocks. Howie Rankine, Jr. excelled in his role of the bench, posting 11 points and six boards. The final double-digit scoring effort came from Lukas Yurasits, who contributed 10 points and five rebounds on the night. 

The Rangers struggled to take care of the ball in the first half, leading to only 27 shots to Susquehanna's 37. The shot difference allowed Susquehanna to take an eleven point lead in the break, despite shooting a lower percentage from the floor. Andrew Turco provided great minutes of the bench for Drew, as he finished with 14 points. His three pointer in the first half at the 7:02 mark brought Drew the closest they would come after the early run from SU, at 32-25. However, a Van Syckle and-one lay-in immediately after brought the momentum back to Susquehanna as well as the double-digit lead. 

The River Hawks matched their largest lead of the game at that point early in the second half, as a lay-in from Yurasits put SU up 15 with 18:24 to go. The Rangers would continue to hang around, but would not cut the deficit to less than nine until the closing moments. With 3:03 to go, Susquehanna took their largest lead of the entire game when a Frauenheim jump shot put SU up 16 with three minutes to go. A strong fight form Drew would keep the game somewhat withing reach, but solid free throw shooting and strong ball-handling to break the Drew press allowed Susquehanna to keep their edge until the waning moments when a buzzer beating three fell for the Rangers.

The River Hawks have now won 13 straight games, the most since a 15 game win streak to begin the 2015-16 season. Susquehanna has also clinched the Landmark Conference automatic qualifier to the NCAA tournament, which will have their bracket announced on Monday at 12:30 p.m.

Up Next

• The River Hawks now await their potential seed in the NCAA tournament with an announcement set for Monday February 28, at 12:30 p.m. when the entire Division III bracket is announced. 

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--RIVER HAWKS--