The Columbia Eagles will square off against the Rochester Rockets at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday. The two teams are strolling into their matchups after big wins in their previous games.
On Thursday, Columbia blew past Meridian, posting an 84-51 victory. The Eagles have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won 14 contests by 23 points or more this season.
Eddie Smajic
| 02/20/25 vs Meridian | 19 |
| 02/17/25 vs Freeburg | 22 |
| 02/14/25 vs Roxana | 15 |
Columbia's success was spearheaded by the efforts of Brody Landgraf, who posted 21 points, and Eddie Smajic, who scored 19 points. The game was Smajic's third in a row with at least 15 points. The team also got some help courtesy of Sam Donald, who earned 11 points.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Rochester). They put the hurt on Maroa-Forsyth with a sharp 79-54 win on Wednesday. With the Rockets ahead 49-25 at the half, the match was all but over already.
Columbia better keep an eye on Jack Melton. He was instrumental in Rochester's win, going 6-for-8 from beyond the arc on his way to 22 points. What's more, Melton also posted a 78% field goal percentage, which is the highest he's achieved since back in February of 2024. Khordell Gregory was another key player, putting up ten points and five steals.
Rochester smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 13 offensive rebounds. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their offensive rebound total in four consecutive contests.
Columbia has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won 13 of their last 15 games. That's provided a nice bump to their 24-6 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 65.9 points over those games. Rochester's victory bumped their record up to 18-10.
Columbia strolled past Rochester in their previous meeting back in February of 2024 by a score of 59-45. Will Columbia repeat their success, or does Rochester have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
