ST. LOUIS – [BOX SCORE] The Spartans held off a late Columbia rally to upset the No. 5 Cougars 77-74 Saturday afternoon on the road.

The win gave Missouri Baptist (15-10, 10-7) its second win over a ranked opponent this season and its first over a top-five foe in recorded history. The win also snapped the team's 12-game losing streak to Columbia, dating back to January 2010.

Missouri Baptist never trailed in the second half and built a 71-61 lead with 40 seconds left. Columbia then used a 3-point barrage to nearly pull-off a miraculous comeback. Jackson Dubinski hit three of the Cougars four total 3-pointers in the final 40 seconds to eventually bring the home team within one at 75-74 with six seconds on the clock. The four triples included a rare four-point play from Dubinski while MBU went 2-for-6 from the charity stripe.

However, the navy and white calmly hit their free-throws when it mattered most. Chris Buzzell, who led the Spartans with 16 points, went 2-for-2 from the stripe with 11 seconds left to put the Spartans up four at 75-71. Dubinksi answered with a three with six seconds left, but then Jared White also came through in the clutch, hitting both of his free throws on the ensuing Missouri Baptist possession.

White's final one put the Spartans up three with four seconds left. Dubinski had one final chance to tie, but his shot went off the mark to give Missouri Baptist the huge upset win. Head coach Matt Brock left Columbia victorious in his first trip back to the Arena of Southwell Complex to coach against his former school.

Hot-shooting helped the Spartans take control early on. Missouri Baptist shot 50 percent in the first half on 13-of-26 shooting and led by as many as 12 in the first half. A 13-0 run gave MBU that lead, which helped erase a one-point Columbia advantage with 9:33 left in the half. Buzzell hit two 3-pointers during the run and Stephen Buckner added another. 

The Cougars managed to cut the 12-point deficit in half at 32-26 with 1:52 before halftime, but Jake Terry answered with a big 3-pointer to put the lead right back to nine points. The Spartans would eventually head into the locker room leading 37-29 after holding Columbia to 36.7 percent shooting. Terry and David Gabrovsek led the way for the navy and white in the first half with seven points each.

Columbia's largest lead, five points, came with 13:23 on the clock in the first half. Nic Reynolds scored a team-high 15 points for the Cougars, while Malik Ray added 14. White and Pablo Hernandez joined Buzzell in double-figures with 15 and 10 points each.

John Caraballo finished with a team-high eight rebounds and helped Missouri Baptist win the rebounding battle 42-32. The Spartans were also helped by better ball security, turning the ball over just 14 times after coughing up the ball on 22 occassions Thursday at Park.

A final home stretch awaits Missouri Baptist as it aims to finish among the top four in the AMC. They'll play four of their final five games in R. Alton Lacey Gymnasium beginning on Tuesday against Hannibal-LaGrange. Tip is set for 7:30 pm.