St. Louis, Mo. – This evening the Columbia College men's basketball team traveled to St. Louis, Missouri to take on the eighth ranked Missouri Baptist University Spartans in the AMC Quarterfinals. Columbia put up a tough fight, but fell 52-51 and finished 15-16 to end their 2018-2019 campaign.
Prior to the game the 2018-19 AMC Academic All-Conference members were announced. For their efforts in the classroom the following Cougars were recognized, Jaxon Althaus, Thibault Benabid, Cade Combs, Desmond Funches, Landon Harrison, Jaylen Johnson, and Braden Wendel. Darrick Ellis was recognized as Columbia's Champion of Character.
The lid was finally broken after two minutes of play by the Spartans who scored first. Almost five minutes in, it was just 5-5. Not much separation was created over the first ten minutes as the Spartans were up 15-10. The Spartans went up 20-12, but the Cougars were still hanging around, cutting it back to six. Columbia was not letting the Spartans get away easy as they trailed by eight with under two minutes before the half, and Missouri Baptist would call a timeout. The game had been scoreless since the 3:46 mark, until the Cougars hit a three with under a minute to cut the lead 28-21. At the break, Columbia was only down 28-23. They were shooting 40 percent in the half.
Columbia went on a 4-0 run to cut the game to one, 28-27, to start the second half. The intensity was high as each team was finding the basket, with Missouri Baptist up two. Eight minutes into the half, the Spartans were up five. The Cougars had switched things up on defense, and were upsetting the Spartans rhythm a bit. However the Spartans would take their largest lead of the half, 44-38, with under 10 minutes to play. While the Cougars cut it back to four points, Missouri Baptist called timeout. Staying right on the Spartans back, Columbia trailed 47-44 with six minutes to go. Missouri Baptist would again call timeout as the Cougars cut the lead to one point. With three minutes left and Columbia playing to stay alive, they still trailed by one. With 2:08 remaining, the Spartans held the two point advantage and a timeout was called. Adam Mennemeyer tied the game at 50 at the free throw line with a minute and a half to play. Another free throw, this time from Braden Wendel, made it 52-51 Spartans, and the Cougars called a timeout to draw up one final play. After a hard fought battle, Columbia fell just short 52-51.
Adam Mennemeyer had 12 points, going 2-3 from three, and five boards, while Jaylen Johnson had seven points and five rebounds. Justin Shaw had six points, three boards, and three assists. Jalen Olds, Steven Holloway, and Braden Wendel each had six points. To wrap things up, Thibault Benabid had four points and four rebounds. Columbia finished shooting 44 percent from the field, 43 from three, and 67 from the line.
Coach Bob Burchard has ended his legendary career, leaving behind a legacy that will never be forgotten. The Cougar community would once again like to extend a congratulations and thank you to Coach Burchard for the lasting impact he has left on Columbia College. The men's basketball team has concluded their 2018-2019 season and will return next year with Tomas Brock at the helm.
