MADISON, N.J. - Tournament MVP Malcolm Newman scored a game-high 18 points and the 25th-ranked Drew University men's basketball team rode an incredible start to an 85-70 victory over Catholic University in the Landmark Conference final on Saturday in a packed Baldwin Gym.

By virtue of their conference title, the Rangers (24-3) receive an automatic bid in the NCAA Division III Championships and will make the program's tournament debut in the opening round on Friday. Drew will learn of its opening-round opponent and the location of the game during the NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Selection Show on Monday at noon on NCAA.com.

Drew, which won its second Landmark Conference men's basketball title, also pushed its school-record winning streak to 16 games and broke the program record for victories in a season that was held by the 2018-19 squad that finished 23-7.
 
Senior guard Pat Higgins added 16 points and four assists for the Rangers while coming up with a trio of big plays midway through the second half to help stave off a Catholic comeback. Senior guard Josh Kline added 14 points while senior forward Peso Crump tallied 13 points.
 
Jamie Ntiamoah posted 17 points and 10 rebounds for Catholic (22-5), which will now hope for a possible at-large berth in the NCAA Championships.
 
The Rangers torched the nets for 69.2% shooting, including 58.8% (10-for-17) from 3-point range, in the first half while racing out to a 50-29 lead. Newman scored 14 of his points on 6-of-9 shooting in the opening period.
 
The lead changed hands six times in the early going before the Rangers used an 8-0 run to forge a 13-point lead with 11:07 on the clock. Graduate guard James Anderson kicked off the surge with a 3-pointer before junior forward Kevin Cronin also connected from downtown. Kline capped the run with an acrobatic, driving lay-up to make it 26-13.
 
The Rangers continued to pull away later in the half, erupting for a 16-4 run as their lead ballooned to 48-24 with 1:05 on the clock. Six different players scored during the outburst for Drew, with Newman, Cronin, Anderson, and Higgins all draining 3-pointers.
 
The Cardinals did not go away, however, and rallied to cut the deficit to 10 (54-44) with 12:29 remaining following a 9-0 run. A Ntiamoah free throw made it 57-47 with 11:59 to go, but that's when Higgins gave the Rangers a spark, starting with a triple from the left elbow.
 
After a Ranger stop, Higgins drove the left baseline before pulling up and dropping in a beautiful fallaway jumper, prompting a Catholic timeout. Higgins then lobbed a perfect pass to Crump for a fast-break alley-oop dunk, making  it 64-47 and bringing the noise in the jam-packed gym to a fever pitch. The two connected again with 9:42 remaining, with Higgins feeding Crump for a slam off a pick-and-roll to put the Rangers up 66-49.
 
Catholic came back with the next six points to make it an 11-point game, but once again the Rangers had an answer this time on a pair of free throws by Newman and a driving layup from Crump to push the lead back to 15 with 6:17 showing.
 
The Cardinals were unable to get closer than 13 until a put-back from Ntiamoah made it 82-70 with 1:26 left.
 
Catholic put Crump on the foul line with 1:01 left, where he went 1-for-2, and the Cardinals missed a pair of 3-pointers on the ensuing possession. Crump hauled in the rebound before Kline sunk a pair at the stripe, setting the final score with 37 seconds to go.
 
The Cardinals misfired on their final shot and Kline rebounded with 23 ticks showing. The Rangers then ran out the rest of the clock before fans flooded the court in celebration.

Drew shot 56.0% from the field, 42.9% (12-for-28) from 3-point range, and 81.% (17-for-21) at the foul line. The Rangers held Catholic to 2-for-19 shooting from beyond the arc.