The Basics
Final: Evangel 83, Columbia College 76 | Final Stats
Records: Evangel (3-2); Columbia College (3-3)
Site: W.E. Dowell Fieldhouse

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Josh Pritchett poured home a season-high 23 points to lead the Evangel men's basketball team to an 83-76 victory over Columbia College in the opening game of the BBC Classic at W.E. Dowell Fieldhouse Friday afternoon.

After Pritchett dominated the opening half with 15 points, Cade Coffman paced the Valor attack down the stretch, tallying 14 of his 18 points after intermission. The senior All-American scored five-straight EU points in the closing minutes after the Cougars had sliced the Valor lead to just two points.

Evangel, which shot 50-percent (16-of-32) in the second half, turned in a critical 9-0 scoring run midway through the second stanza to seize the lead for good. Jace Coffie's bucket in the paint at the 13:02 mark started the spurt, before Autry Acord registered a steal and converted a three-point play to give EU a 55-52 lead.

Coffman then buried a jump shot with 9:45 to play to cap the run and give the Valor its largest lead of the day to that point.

Columbia College would fight back, trimming the margin to two points on a Kemryn Jenkins three-pointer. But Stephen Salvi responded with a trey to extend the lead to five points once again.

That trend would continue, with the Cougars clawing back to within a single basket on four additional instances over the ensuing six minutes. After a Pritchett triple at the 5:55 mark gave EU a 69-62 cushion, Jenkins single-handedly brought Columbia College back to within two by knocking down a pair of jumpers.

Buckets by Martinborough and Caleb Gordon answered Cougar field goals, before Coffman drained perhaps the biggest shot down the stretch with a back-breaking three-pointer from the left wing that gave EU a 76-71 lead with 2:23 to play. He followed that with a pair of free throws with just under a minute to play, matching the Valor's biggest lead of the game.

The Cougars would get no closer than five points the rest of the way, with Coffman, Pritchett and Salvi combining to knock down 7-of-9 free-throw attempts over the final 59 seconds.

Martinborough and Pritchett possessed the hot hands for the Valor in the opening half, as the duo combined to go 8-of-16 from the floor for 25 of EU's 37 points in the period. Led by eight-point halves from Tony Burks and Cole Gerken, the Cougars led by as many as six points before a trio of late EU three-pointers triggered a 13-5 spurt to close the half.

Evangel finished the game 28-of-61 (0.459) from the floor and forced 16 Cougar turnovers. The Valor cashed in on those miscues, posting a 27-13 advantage in points off of turnovers.

Five players logged double-digit scoring performances for Columbia College, led by Burks' 16 points. The junior guard also pulled down a game-high 12 rebounds and finished just two assists shy of a triple-double.

Martinborough chipped in 14 points, four steals and three assists on the afternoon, while Salvi added 13 points and six rebounds for the Valor.

UP NEXT
Evangel concludes play in the BBC Classic against Arkansas Baptist Saturday (Nov. 13) at 4:30 p.m.

For the latest information on Evangel Athletics, visit Facebook at Facebook.com/EvangelValor, Twitter (@EvangelValor), or EvangelAthletics.com. Fans can also receive updates on their favorite EU teams by downloading the Evangel Athletics Gameday App through the App Store or Google Play.  

—#OneValor—