Box Score Parkville, Mo. – Tonight the third ranked Columbia College men's basketball team was back in action when they traveled to Parkville, Missouri, to take on Park (Mo.) University in an important AMC matchup. The Cougars were able to defeat the Pirates by a final score of 88-78 and improved to 26-3 on the season and 19-3 in conference play. With the win tonight, Columbia College has clinched the AMC regular season title and have earned an automatic bid to the NAIA National Championships held March 15^th-21^st in Kansas City, Missouri. This is the seventh straight season the Cougars will participate in the NAIA National Tournament and the 21^st time under head coach Bob Burchard.

Columbia College came out in the first half and had a tough time finding the basket. They were held to just four field goals in the first nine minutes of the game and found themselves trailing 23-12 midway through the period. The Pirates did a good job of getting the Cougars out of a rhythm on the offensive end and were able to take a 45-37 lead into the halftime break. Columbia College was led by Preston Whitfield who finished with nine points in the half.

The second half was much different as the Cougars came out in the opening minutes and took it to the Pirates. They started the half on a 10-2 run to tie the game at 47 and finally took the lead after Jackson Dubinski knocked down a three pointer with 17 minutes left in the contest. The Cougars continued to push the tempo as the half progressed and were able to grow their lead to as much as nine points late in the game. The Pirates did their best to get back into the contest but ultimately the Cougars were able to close out the game and solidify their spot in the national tournament.

Columbia College was led by Preston Whitfield who finished with a team high 18 points in the game. In addition to Whitfield, Nic Reynolds added 17 points, Jackson Dubinski finished with 15 points, and Nathan Biggs dropped in 12 points to round out the top performers for the Cougars

Columbia College is back in action on Saturday, February 25^th when they host William Woods (Mo.) University in their final game of the regular season. Prior to tip-off, we will be honoring the seniors on the team for their hard work and dedication to the basketball program during their time at Columbia College. The game is set to start at 3 p.m. in the Southwell Athletic Complex.