Columbia, Mo. – Seniors Jemeal Goines scored 21 points and classmate Caleb Jones added 19 to lead the Columbia College men's basketball team to a 79-57 win over Westminster College (Mo.) Tuesday at the Arena of Southwell Complex.
 
Columbia improved to 2-0 with the win, while Westminster played the game as an exhibition. The Cougars are off to a 2-0 start for the third time in the last four seasons.
 
Adam Sausele chipped in with 15 points, while Max Rieger added nine off the bench. Johnny Anderson recorded a game-high 11 rebounds as Columbia limited Westminster to 38.2 percent (21-55) shooting from the field. The Cougars had 11 steals and had a 10-0 advantage in second-chance points.
 
"I thought we played really well in the second half defensively. Overall, this was a great defensive effort from our team," said head coach Tomas Brock.
 
Goines canned his second three-pointer of the game to ignite a 10-2 run as the Cougars took the 16-11 lead with 12:25 left. Westminster gained a 20-18 advantage, and then six-straight points by Goines put Columbia in front 24-23. Goines scored 12 of the first 24 points for the Cougars.
 
Jamile Johnson scored back-to-back buckets to put Westminster up 29-28, but a 15-4 run by the Cougars in the final 5:30 gave Columbia the 43-33 lead at half. Goines and Jones each had 12 points as Columbia shot 44.8 percent (13-29) from the field and hit 13-of-15 from the foul line.
 
Westminster missed 10 straight shots during one stretch, allowing Columbia to extend its lead to 50-33 with 16:50 remaining. The Cougars' run reached 13 unanswered points dating back to the first half, as the Bluejays went 7:52 without a field goal.
 
Jones had a pair of buckets as an 8-0 run by the Cougars put the game out of reach at 65-42 with 10:07 to play. Columbia outscored Westminster 36-24 in the second half and limited the Bluejays to 33.3 percent (8-24) shooting from the field.
 
Walker Gohring (14 points) and Aidan Temple (10) scored in double figures for Westminster, which had a 25-16 advantage in bench points.
 
The Cougars host Graceland University on Saturday, November 1 at 3 p.m.
 
NOTES: Columbia has won nine-straight meetings against Westminster and leads the all-time series 14-4 ... The Cougars are averaging 106.5 points per game through two contests ... Columbia committed a season-low four turnovers, the lowest total since Nov. 24, 2023 vs. Dakota Wesleyan.