Columbia, Mo. – This afternoon the seventh ranked Columbia College men's basketball team was back in action when they took on Peru State (Neb.) University in their final game of the 2017 Thanksgiving Classic Presented by Hampton Inn. The Cougars, who defeated Culver-Stockton last night by a final score of 92-73, were able to improve to 8-0 on the season after defeating the Bobcats 88-77.
In the first half of the game, both sides came out and exchanged points early in the contest. However, with Columbia College trailing by one they were able to use an 11-0 run to take an 18-8 lead with 12 minutes remaining in the half. The Bobcats battled back as the half progressed and cut the Cougars lead to three with just over five minutes to play in the half but another push from the Cougars put them up eleven late in the period. Peru State did their best to cut into the deficit before the end of the half but were unable to do so as Columbia took a 47-36 lead into the break.
The Bobcats came out in the second half and went on a 6-2 run to cut the Cougars lead to seven with 17 minutes remaining in the game. Following the run from Peru State, Columbia College amped up the defensive pressure and were able to force the Bobcats to take tough shots as they pushed their lead to 18 midway through the half. Peru State bounced back and were able to cut the Cougars lead to 11 with six minutes remaining in the game but they would never get closer than that as Columbia held them off down the stretch to remain unbeaten on the season.
Hank Mathews led the way for the Cougars as he finished with a game high 19 points in the contest. To go along with Mathews, Nic Reynolds dropped in 18 points, Preston Whitfield finished with 15 points, and Jackson Dubinski finished with 11 points to round out the top performers for Columbia.
Following the conclusion of the game, the 2017 Thanksgiving Classic All-Classic Team was announced. For their efforts over the last two day, Quantice Hunter from Peru State, Mike Johnson from Culver-Stockton (Mo.), Fitzgerald Hopkins and Johnny Benson from Missouri Baptist, and Jackson Dubinksi and Preston Whitfield from Columbia College were all recognized. In addition, Whitfield was named the 2017 Thanksgiving Classic Most Valuable Player.
The Cougars are back in action on Thursday, November 30th when they play host to the Lindenwood University-Belleville (Ill.) Lynx in an AMC matchup. The game is set to start at 7:30 p.m. in the Southwell Athletic Complex.
