FULTON, Mo. - The William Woods University men's basketball team couldn't overcome a cold shooting night, as the team was outscored 43-17 in the final frame against No. 20 ranked Columbia College and ended up falling 72-38 on Thursday night.
 
The Owls (6-12, 3-7 AMC) came out strong and put the Cougars on their heels, as the team controlled most of the first half. DJ Johnson scored the first five points for WWU and after a Nate Bitner pull up jump shot at the 15:34 mark, the senior would give the Owls a 7-3 lead.
 
Then after two free throws from PJ Lewis with 8:46 left to play, WWU would extend their lead to nine (21-12), which was the largest lead of the half. However, the Cougars offense would settle in and go on a 9-0 run to tie the game up at 21-21.
 
Shortly after, Columbia College would go on to close the first half on a 8-0 run pushing the score to 29-21, giving the Cougars their first lead of the game and the advantage going into the locker room.
 
Neither team shot well in the first 20:00 minutes of play, a half that saw the Owls shot 36 percent from the field and CC making just 9-of-26 of their shots.
 
In the second half, it was all Cougar offense, as the Owls seemed to have had a lid over the basket while the team couldn't buy a bucket. Columbia College's Zach Rockers started CC right where they left off, with a two-pointer in the paint, making the score 31-21 in favor of the Cougars.
 
Johnson, would score the first field goal of the second half for the Owls at the 19:31 mark, cutting the Cougars lead down to eight.  Although, that would be the closest the Owls would get for the rest of the match-up.
 
Columbia College offense would then find the momentum after another two-point field goal from Rockers, which started a 14-3 run for the Cougars. The Owls just couldn't get the spark going offensively and the Cougars had too many offensive threats, as CC would extend its lead to 30 under 3:00 minutes to play and go on to secure the 72-38 victory over the Owls.
 
William Woods would end the night shooting 34 percent from the field, were 0-of-10 from behind the arc and only reached the free throw line nine times, converting on five.
 
Johnson led the way for the Owls, netting nine points on shooting 50 percent from the field, while adding three rebounds. Freshman Darrien Dickey chipped in six points with four rebounds on the night.
 
The Cougars ended the night shooting 42 percent from the field and 31 percent from the three point line, while Rockers led all scorers with 16 points, going 7-of-11 from the field and also collecting eight boards.
 
The Owls return to action on Saturday afternoon, as the team hosts Missouri Baptist University to complete the first round of AMC play. Tip-off is set for 4:00 p.m.
 
Fans check back on wwuowls.com for a full preview of this match-up.

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