ST. LOUIS— It may not have been as glamorous as some of the other home victories this season but No. 1 seeded Missouri Baptist Men's Basketball found a different way on Thursday night at the Petty SRC. The Spartans edged the eight seed Columbia College 52-51 in the first round of the American Midwest Conference Postseason Tournament.
Defense ruled the night from the opening tipoff. It took nearly three minutes before either team recorded a field goal. MBU held a slim 15-12 advantage at the midway point of the first half.
The Spartans led by as many as eight on three different occasions in the opening 20 minutes but failed to find any more separation from a gritty Columbia squad.
Jahmouri Robinson's three-point attempt viciously rimmed out as the buzzer sounded on the opening period and MBU went into the locker room with a 28-23 lead.
The back and forth continued throughout the second half as well. The Cougars would not let the Spartans out of their sight. CC finally tied the game at 50 after a pair of free throws with 1:29 left.
On the ensuing possession,
Pablo Hernandez first attempt in the paint wouldn't go but
Torrance Littles powered his way through to grab the offensive rebound and the put-back. Columbia then made one of two free throws to set up a wild finish.
With the Spartans leading by one,
Jahmouri Robinson's three attempt wouldn't go and the Cougars grabbed the board with 24 seconds left before calling a timeout. CC drew up a play call for the win but the MBU defense was masterclass on the final possession. The visitors never managed a quality shot and time expired on a one-point win for Missouri Baptist.
Pablo Hernandez and
John Yaeger each finished with 11 points to lead the Spartans. Hernandez also led the way with eight rebounds. Adam Mennemeyer paced Columbia with 12 points.
Missouri Baptist (28-3, 19-3 AMC) now advances to Saturday's semifinals where they will host the five-seed Central Baptist College (20-10, 12-10 AMC). Tipoff at the Carl and Deloris Petty SRC is set for 3 pm.
*Notes: this was the final game for Columbia Head Coach Bob Burchard. The NAIA Hall of Famer announced his retirement after 31 seasons. Burchard rides off with a coaching record of 788-269.
