Box Score St. Louis, Mo. - The 7^th-ranked Columbia men's basketball team picked up an 80-59 win vs. conference foe Missouri Baptist on Saturday night at Maryville University's Moloney Arena. With the win, the Cougars improve to 18-2 overall and 9-1 in the American Midwest Conference (AMC).

The two teams battled back and forth to a 13-13 tie through the first ten minutes of the opening period as Jeremy Nolen scored seven early points for Columbia. From there, the Cougars reeled of a 10-0 run to grab the lead for good over the remainder of the first half and took a 30-22 advantage into the halftime break after shooting 44 percent from the field in the period. Columbia hit just one of six attempts from behind the three-point line in the frame, but dominated inside with a 16-6 edge in points in the paint.

The Cougars would extend their lead out to 16 to start the second half, with Devin Griffin knocking down back-to-back three-pointers to put them up 44-28 at the 16:53 mark. Columbia controlled the game from that point on and led by as many as 26 on their way to the victory. Griffin scored 22 of his game-high 25 points during the final period, while also handing out a game-high five assists. Gerardo Isla added a season-high 17 points and seven rebounds off the bench and Patric Massey rounded out the Cougar players in double figures with 12.

The Cougars will return home to host AMC opponent William Woods University on Thursday, January 30^th. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at the Arena of Southwell Complex and will follow the Columbia-William Woods women's contest.