HAMILTON – Jordan Burns scored 21 points to lead six Raiders in double figures and Colgate cruised to an 89-71 victory over Columbia on Sunday at Cotterell Court.
Colgate with the win has its most nonleague victories in program history since the Patriot League expanded to 18-regular season games. The Raiders have won eight of their last nine games heading into the holiday break.
Burns' 21 points came on 8-of-14 shooting from the field and 4-of-9 from beyond the arc. He dished out a season-high 10 assists for his third career points-assists double-double. Will Rayman racked up his third double-double of the season with 13 points and 10 rebounds.
Keegan Records scored a career-high 13 points, Nelly Cummings added 12, and Rapolas Ivanauskas and Tucker Richardson both finished with 11.
Colgate (9-4) got off to a hot 5-of-5 start from the field, including 2-of-2 from beyond the arc after Cummings connected on a long, left-handed two-pointer and Ivanauskas drained a wing trey to give the Raiders a 13-11 lead at the first media timeout.
Columbia (3-9) started strong as well, using a 5-of-7 showing to tie things up at 14-14 on a layup by Jack Forrest. But a 3-pointer from Cummings put the Raiders back in front for good and sparked a 12-0 run. Rayman had five consecutive points with a nice turnaround jumper stemming a 26-14 Colgate advantage at the 12-minute mark.
The Raiders defense kept Columbia scoreless for over eight minutes during the swing. Mike Smith – who led the Lions with 23 points in the game – ended the visitors' drought with a step-back jumper and then Columbia scored five straight points to trim the deficit to 34-25 with 4:21 left in the half.
Burns tallied the next five points with a two-point basket and a trey pushing Colgate's lead back to double digits.
David Maynard swished back-to-back triples, with the latter just beating the buzzer, to give the Raiders a 48-32 advantage at the break.
The Raiders maintained a 16-point advantage 66-50 eight minutes into the second half on another trey from Burns from the top of the key. Columbia climbed back to close within 70-61 with 8:20 left, but a pair of treys from Burns started a 12-2 burst that extended the Raiders' lead to 82-63 with just over four minutes left.
A steal by Burns led to a fastbreak two-handed slam for Records on the other end and grew Colgate's lead to a game-high 22 points at 87-65 with just over two minutes left. The Raiders cruised the rest of the way on their way to the 89-71 triumph.
BOTTOM LINE
Colgate 89, Columbia 71
QUOTES
Head Coach Matt Langel
On closing nonleague play with a win:
"For the team, it was really a hard week. We had such a good win at Cincinnati and everyone was deservingly so excited, but then we went into final exams. Our guys had a lot of academic responsibilities and we did not have a regular week of practice so it was a little scattered throughout the week."
"We did talk about this opportunity and making a statement not only to others but most importantly to ourselves and how much better we have gotten since September. I was proud of our focus, determination and togetherness in today's game to get the job done."
On battling through foul trouble (Cummings and Ivanauskas with four fouls each):
"The bench gave us some good minutes today.
David Maynard hit a couple big 3-point baskets late in the first half and we were able to extend the tide.
Keegan Records continues to get better; he had a really good game as well. A lot of good signs here heading into this break."
On a third straight season unbeaten at home against non-conference opponents:
"Programs that compete for championships play well at home. Programs that are in the hunt in any conference in any sport, if you take care of business at home, you give yourself a really good chance. Over the last few years, especially, this has become a huge advantage for us."
On the start of Patriot League action coming up next:
"It will be good for these guys to get home to their families and get some time to recharge their batteries. Our league has proven that it is going to be challenging. The first few games we don't get a lot of days off so we just have to keep our head down and keep getting better."
GAME NOTES
- Colgate reached nine nonleague wins for the first time in school history since the Patriot League format expanded to 18 regular-season games.
- The Raiders won nine nonconference contests in 2001-02, but played just 14 league games that season.
- Colgate once again completes nonconference play unbeaten at home for the third consecutive season.
- The Raiders have won 12 straight at Cotterell Court dating back to last season.
- Colgate closes out the 2019 portion of the schedule as winners in eight of its last nine.
- The Raiders with the win have won six straight over the Ivy League – all against Cornell and Columbia over the past three seasons.
- Six Raiders finished in double digits for the first time this season.
- Burns registered his third career point-assist double-double and matched his season highs in steals (3) and rebounds (6).
UP NEXT
Colgate takes a break for the holidays and will open its Patriot League slate at home on Thursday, Jan. 2, against American. Tip-off from Cotterell Court is set for 7 p.m., with the Patriot League Network carrying the livestream.
