Columbus State unable to catch Queens in NCAA first round
The Columbus State men’s basketball team made a furious rally in the second half, but the Cougars came up short Saturday, losing 94-84 to Queens in the first round of the NCAA Division II Southeast Regional.
After falling behind by double digits, the Cougars climbed within four points on five occasions, but Queens answered on the following possession each time to keep CSU at bay.
“Tip your hats to Queens for a great effort tonight,” CSU coach Robert Moore said in a news release. “We didn’t make enough plays in the first half and dug ourselves in a hole. I thought we made a good run at it in the second half, but Queens had an answer every time.’’
We’re going to miss our seniors, but now it’s time to go back to the drawing board and get ready for next season.
Robert Moore
Columbus State basketball coachThe loss ends CSU’s season at 21-8. The Cougars won their first Peach Belt Conference championship in 10 years.
This was also the first time the Cougars made two straight trips to the NCAA tournament in a decade.
“This doesn’t take anything away from our year though,’ Moore said. “This was a great season, and we accomplished a lot. We’re going to miss our seniors, but now it’s time to go back to the drawing board and get ready for next season.”
Brent Jackson led CSU with 25 points. He also had eight rebounds. Cam Baker had 19 points and seven assists. Also scoring in double figures were JaCori Payne (15) and Arben Camaj (12).
CSU led by as many as eight points in the first half, the final time at 17-9 with 13:28 left.
Queens (25-6) went on a 7-1 run to take a 47-36 lead before Jackson hit a 3-pointer to bring CSU within eight, 47-39, at halftime.
Down 70-60 in the second half, CSU went on a 6-0 run to climb with four for the first time in the second half. The Cougars got within four four more times over the next two minutes, but Queens answered every time.
Queens eventually got the lead back to double figures with 3:19 to play. CSU could get no closer than eight points from then.
CSU’s last NCAA tournament win came in 2006, when it beat UNC Pembroke. Since then, the Cougars are 0-3, also having lost in 2012 and last season.
QUEENS 94, CSU 84
COLUMBUS STATE (21-8)
Brent Jackson 7-15 8-9 25; Cam Baker 5-15 7-10 19; JaCori Payne 5-14 1-2 15; Arben Camaj 4-9 2-2 12; DeMarcus McVay 4-6 0-0 8; Brentine Taylor 2-3 1-2 5; Matthias Sigurdarson 0-0 0-0 0; Darren Daniel 0-3 0-0 0; Demetres Abrams 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 27-65 19-25 84.
QUEENS (25-6)
Rob Lewis 6-14 6-9 23; Marquis Rankin 7-13 6-10 21; Jared Hendryx 4-4 7-12 15; Todd Withers 5-10 1-2 13; Sean Morgan 4-5 1-1 9; Kendall Jones 1-7 4-5 7; Darryl White 3-3 0-0 6; Tate Small 0-0 0-1 0; Ben Richter 0-0 0-0 0; Jacoby Davis 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 30-57 25-40 94.
Halftime--Queens 47-39. 3-point goals--Columbus State 11-31 (JaCori Payne 4-11; Brent Jackson 3-8; Arben Camaj 2-4; Cam Baker 2-7; Darren Daniel 0-1), Queens 9-26 (Rob Lewis 5-9; Todd Withers 2-7; Kendall Jones 1-6; Marquis Rankin 1-3; Jacoby Davis 0-1). Fouled out--Columbus State-Brent Jackson; Brentine Taylor, Queens-Sean Morgan. Rebounds--Columbus State 36 (DeMarcus McVay 8; Brent Jackson 8), Queens 39 (Todd Withers 16). Assists--Columbus State 15 (Cam Baker 7), Queens 15 (Rob Lewis 7). Total fouls--Columbus State 29, Queens 23. Technical fouls--Columbus State-None, Queens-None. A-450
This story was originally published March 13, 2016 at 10:06 AM with the headline "Columbus State unable to catch Queens in NCAA first round."