Acorn

The Drew Rangers entered the week in fifth place in the Freedom Conference and had their backs up against the wall to get big wins against Lycoming University and Delaware Valley in order to stay in the hunt for a Conference Tournament berth. The week got off to a great start as the Rangers led Lycoming 26-25 at half time in front of nearly 600 fans.

Unfortunately for the Rangers, Lycoming came out of the gates strong to start the second half and went on an 11-0 run, and gave them a lead that they would not relinquish the rest of the night as they went on to win it 62-51.

Leading the charge for the Rangers was sophomore guard Chris Lopez as he contributed 12 points. Also helping Drew?s cause was sophomore center Dave Pepperman as he netted a season-high 10 points.

Drew came into Wednesday night?s contest versus Del Val in desperate need for a win, and that is just what the Rangers delivered. Drew came out firing on all cylinders as they shot 52.8 percent in the first half on their way to grabbing a 41-26 lead at the break. Junior guard Pat Hickey provided a huge spark for the Rangers picking up 3 rebounds and making a perfect ally-oop pass that found Lopez on the receiving end as he layed it in for 2.

Delaware Valley came out of the locker room at halftime and was prepared to make a game of it in the 2nd half, even cutting the lead down to 3 with less than 4 minutes remaining. While down 3 with under three and a half minutes to play, a Del Val player was driving to the hole looking to score and easy bucket when Sophomore center Sam Taub stepped in and rejected the shot while also keep the ball in bounds giving the Rangers a chance to extend their lead and also more importantly keep the clock ticking preserving the Rangers win 70-66 and moving them to 4-7 in Conference play and 9-13 overall.

While Taub played a great game inside, 16 points and 7 rebounds, the night belonged to Lopez. Lopez put the team on his back and stepped up when it mattered the most and knocked down several crucial free throws down the stretch. Lopez finished the game with 26 points (10-13 from the free throw line) and also brought down 9 rebounds and came away with 4 steals. When asked how he felt after hitting his clutch free throws, Lopez responded, ?I felt great all game long and am glad we came away with a big win tonight. Hopefully we can take care of our own games for the rest of the season and get some breaks from other teams and get a chance to make the Conference Playoffs.? For the season, Lopez lead the Rangers with 12.9 points per game while also leading the team in rebounds with 5.3 per game. He has also been rewarded with the Conference Player of the Week earlier this season.

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