Men’s Basketball Cruises into AMC Finals

Columbia, Mo. – The Columbia College men’s basketball team secured a spot in the American Midwest Conference (AMC) Men’s Basketball Tournament championship game after surpassing No. 3 seed William Woods (Mo.), 77-52, at Southwell Complex.
 
The Cougars move to 21-11 overall and 13-3 in the AMC. William Woods ends their season with a final record of 18-14 (11-5).
 
In the opening minutes of play, Columbia went on a 7-0 run highlighted by three offensive Cougar rebounds, resulting in a three-pointer, 8-4. William Woods went ahead two points with 11:57 remaining in the half, which ended as their last lead of the contest, 16-14. Shortly after, the Cougars produced nine consecutive points obtaining a 23-16 favor. William Woods got within three, but Columbia took a 41-28 advantage into the half.
 
The Cougars continued to prove themselves in the second half, taking their largest lead of 26 with 12:24 left in the game, 62-36. After nearly a three-minute scoring drought, the Owls produced a 7-0 run, 64-46. However, Columbia had no trouble maintaining their lead the rest of the way resulting in a 77-52 victory over William Woods.

Postgame interview with head coach Tomas Brock
 

 
Key Moment:
A three-pointer from Kemryn Jenkins would put Columbia up the rest of the contest, with 11:57 remaining in the first half.
 
By the Numbers:
54-32 – The Cougars pulled down 54 rebounds compared to 32 by the Owls
26 – Columbia led by as many as 26 points in the second half
4 – The Cougars held Mackenzie Fessler (15.1 ppg), the Owls leading scorer coming into the game, to just four points. 
 
Columbia College Leaders:
Scoring Leader – Tony Burks – 19
Rebounding Leader – Cameron Vanleer – 11
Assist Leader – Five players with two assists each
Steals Leader – Cameron Vanleer – 2
 
William Woods Leaders:
Scoring Leader – Spencer Yoggerst – 12
Rebounding Leader – Andrew Nett – 6
Assist Leader – Nathan Schwartze – 4
Steals Leader – Darius Yohe / Mike Robinson – 2
 
Up Next:
The Cougars will play in the AMC championship game on Tuesday, March 1 at 7:00 p.m. against top-seeded Missouri Baptist in St. Louis, Mo.