Box Score Columbia, Mo. - The Cougar men's basketball team won their third consecutive game on Thursday night, defeating American Midwest Conference (AMC) opponent William Woods University by a score of 81-59. Columbia, ranked No. 6 in Tuesday's latest release of the NAIA Top 25 Poll, moves to 19-2 overall and 10-1 in league play with the victory. With the win, the Cougars also improve to 13-1 all-time against the Owls.

Columbia opened the game on a 12-2 run with the help of two three-pointers by Jeremy Nolen and led 19-9 midway through the half. Derrick Dilworth, appearing in his first game since suffering a wrist injury vs. Avila on December 28^th, would connect on back-to-back three-pointers to extend the Cougar lead out to 25-9 with 8:30 to play in the opening period. Columbia led by as many as 23 during the final minutes of the period and took a 41-20 advantage into the halftime break. The Cougars shot 46 percent from the field in the half, while limiting William Woods to a 25 percent shooting clip.

Columbia continued to dominate on into the second half and maintained a 20-point lead over the final 15:27 of regulation. The Cougars shot just under 63 percent in the final period to finish at 52 percent on the night, led by Devin Griffin with a game-high 24 points. Nolen added 17 points on 3 of 5 shooting from behind the arc and Patric Massey posted a double-double of 10 points and 11 rebounds, helping Columbia finish with a 45-39 edge on the boards. Dontre Jenkins had 13 points to lead the Owls, who were held to 36 percent from the floor on the night.

The Cougars will look for their fourth straight win on Saturday, February 1^st when they host conference opponent Harris-Stowe State University. Game time is scheduled for 4:00 pm at the Arena of Southwell Complex.