Columbia, Mo. – Tonight the third ranked Columbia College men's basketball team was back in action when they hosted Central Baptist (Ark.) College in an AMC matchup. This was a rematch from an earlier game this season that saw the Cougars defeat the Mustangs by a final score of 86-75 to open up conference play. In tonight's game, Columbia College was able to improve to 5-0 all-time against Central Baptist as they defeated the Mustangs by a final score of 86-68 to extend their winning streak to 13 straight games.

The Cougars got off to a great start in the game going on an 8-4 run in the opening minutes thanks to two straight three pointers and an assist from the reigning AMC Player of the Week, Jackson Dubinski. Despite Columbia College turning the ball over five times in the first seven minutes of the game, the Mustangs were unable to take advantage of the miscues and found themselves trailing by 12 midway through the half.

Central Baptist came roaring back as the half progressed and were able to go on a 15-3 run midway through the period to tie the game at 29. However, the Cougars responded quickly to the run and answered with an 8-2 run of their own to the take a six point lead late in the half. They continued to push the tempo down the final stretch of the period and knocked down their shots as they took a 46-35 lead into the halftime break. Columbia College was led by Hank Mathews who had 12 points in the half.

The Cougars came out with a sense of urgency in the second half and worked the ball down low to Malik Ray who was having his way with the Mustangs soft defense. He scored the first six points for Columbia in the half including two monstrous dunks to get the Cougars offense rolling. They continued to push the tempo on the Mustangs and were able to grow their lead to 16 points midway through the period. Central Baptist did their best to get back into the game but Columbia College was too much for the Mustangs to handle down the final stretch as the Cougars were able to close out the contest and remain undefeated in the AMC.

Columbia College had six players finish in double figures including Malik Ray who finished with a game high 19 points in the contest. In addition to Ray, Jackson Dubinski had 13 points and matched his season high with eight assists, Hank Mathews finished with 12 points, Nathan Biggs had 11 points, and Preston Whitfield ended with 10 points.

This was a special game for Nic Reynolds who came into the contest just five points short of 1,000 for his career. Reynolds, a junior guard out of Peoria, Illinois, finished the game with 11 points and became just the 25^th player in Columbia College history to hit the mark. During his time in Columbia, Reynolds has appeared in 88 games for the Cougars and currently leads the team in points averaging 13.53 on the season while ranking 21^st in the NAIA with 44 three pointers on the year.

The Cougars are back in action on Saturday, January 21^st when they host Lyon (Ark.) College in an AMC contest. Columbia College defeated Lyon by a final score of 58-46 earlier this season in Batesville, Arkansas, and will look to extend their winning streak to five straight games against the Scots. Tip-off is set for 3 p.m. in the Southwell Athletic Complex.