Eagles Drop AMC Championship Game

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (3/2/26) – The Williams Baptist University men's basketball team fell in the American Midwest Conference Tournament championship game against Columbia by the final score of 83-71 on Monday night inside W.E. Dowell Fieldhouse.

Deion Wesson and Rico Quinton tied for the team-lead in scoring with 18 points each.  Amarion Wilson added on 13, and Jesse Washington finished with 10.  Quinton tied with Benjamin Noonan for the team-lead in rebounds with seven on the night.

Williams went 25-of-60 (41.7 percent) from the field as a team, while Columbia matched with a 26-of-60 (43.3 percent) mark from the floor.  The game was one in three point range, as the Cougars knocked down 12-of-30 (40.0 percent) of attempts from three, while the Eagles only managed a 5-of-20 (25.0 percent) clip from downtown. 

The Eagles started the game with a 7-0 run capped off by a Rico Quinton triple.  After trading baskets, CC used a 10-0 swing to take a 36-25 lead with three and a half minutes to go in the period.  The Eagles struggled from the field in the first, going 11-of-28 from the field while the Cougars knocked down eight three pointers to take a 42-29 lead at the break.

Columbia stayed hot in the second half, going up by as much as 20 with 16:50 left to play.  The Eagles continued to battle back, but the Cougars kept finding the timely basket.  CC never led by less than 10 the rest of the game.

A Washington dunk brought WBU within 11 with under two minutes to play, but that would be as close as the Eagles got to a last-minute rally.

The loss drops WBU to 22-6 overall on the season, a new program record for wins in a single-season.  

The Eagles will await word on a possible at-large bid to the NAIA Tournament.  The NAIA Men's Basketball Selection Show is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Thursday, March 5.