Columbia late surge in OT leads to 'War Eagles Classic' win over Tri Cities

Columbia's Deasia Kelly #3 looks to penetrate against the Tri Cities defense

After two weeks off, the Columbia Eagles returned to action as they took on the Tri Cities Bulldogs on the opening night of the Woodward Academy 'War Eagles Classic' hosted by the Woodward Academy War Eagles boys and girls basketball teams.

Despite the time off, the Eagles opened the game outscoring Tri Cities 10-8 in the first quarter, however the Bulldogs would own the second period of play, outscoring Columbia 12-7 to take a 20-17 lead into the locker room at halftime.

An even exchange in the third quarter allow Tri Cities to maintain their lead heading into the fourth quarter, but the Eagles would win the fourth quarter 8-5, which would send the game into overtime. After the extra period began with a couple of basket exchanges by each team to keep the game tied 35-35, Columbia would go on a 5-0 run to take a 42-37 lead and would go on to win 46-44.

"We were kind of rusty but we gutted it out, showed a lot of fortitude, especially late in the game," Columbia head coach, Eric Bell, said following the Eagles' win as he praised his players for their efforts on Thursday. "We're young, so we made a lot of young mistakes so we just have to continue to play winning basketball and hopefully the ball will continue to bounce our way," Bell said.

The Eagles will take on Oxford (Mississippi) on Saturday, the final day of the 'War Eagles Classic".