Men’s Basketball Drops Close Game to Missouri Baptist

Columbia, Mo. – The Columbia College men’s basketball team came up short against Missouri Baptist University, 72-62, inside the Arena of Southwell Complex on Saturday afternoon.
 
The loss moves the Cougar record to 8-10 overall and 2-2 in the American Midwest Conference (AMC). The win improves the Spartan record to 12-4 and an AMC-best 4-0.
 
Neither team could pull away from the other, as Missouri Baptist held a 16-12 lead, the largest of the first 10 minutes of play. An old-fashioned three-point play with 4:58 remaining in the first half gave MBU the largest lead of the half at 30-19. The Cougars quickly closed the gap to two points after a 9-0 run, but MBU led 34-28 at the break.
 
The two teams continued to battle each other, but a Collin Parker layup tied the game at 44-44 with 13:28 left. The Spartans responded with a 15-5 run to push the lead out to double digits (59-49) at the 7:55 mark. MBU’s lead grew to a game-high 13 (65-53) with just over five minutes left. The Cougars closed the gap to five points (65-60) after a layup from Tony Burks, but that was as close as they would get.
 
Key Moment:
After the Cougars climbed to within five points (65-60), the Spartans closed the game out on a 7-2 run and escaped with a win.
 
By the Numbers:
14 – Missouri Baptist had 14 points off the bench.
12.5 – Columbia held the Spartans to 1-8 (12.5-percent) shooting from distance in the second half.
23 – Tony Burks led all scorers with 23 points.
 
Columbia Leaders:
Scoring Leader – Tony Burks (23)
Rebounding Leader – Chima Oduocha (8)
Assist Leader – Trendon Tisdale / Dogukan Kara (2)
Steals Leader – Cameron Vanleer (3) – season-high
 
Missouri Baptist Leaders:
Scoring Leader – RJ Pair (22)
Rebounding Leader – John Yaeger (9)
Assist Leader – Jadis White (3)
Steals Leader – Jadis White / Brendon Hardy / RJ Pair (2)
 
Up Next:
The Cougars return to action on Thursday, Jan. 13, when they host Hannibal-LaGrange (Mo.) at 7:30 PM.