Basketball Recap: Columbus Wins High-Profile Match Against Ridgeland

On Monday, Columbus faced Ridgeland in a battle between two of the state's top teams. The Columbus Falcons walked away with a 70-62 win over the Ridgeland Titans. This was payback for the Falcons, who suffered a 62-58 defeat the last time these two teams met.

When it comes to explaining why Ridgeland lost, don't look at Phil Nelson. Despite the final result, he went 9 of 19 on his way to 29 points. The game was Nelson's fourth in a row with at least ten points. The team also got some help courtesy of Ashton Manuel, who went 6 for 12 on his way to 15 points.

Columbus has been performing well recently as they've won five of their last six matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 13-3 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 67.3 points per game. As for Ridgeland, their loss ended a 15-game streak of wins at home dating back to last season and dropped them to 15-3.

Columbus will square off against Vicksburg at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. As for Ridgeland, they will challenge Neshoba Central at 7:30 p.m. on Friday.