COLUMBUS – Energy was high in the Frank G. Lumpkin Jr. Center on Friday morning as the Columbus State men's basketball program welcomed local elementary students to campus for the non-conference matchup against Young Harris (Ga.).
 
The Cougars (9-1) continue their unbeaten streak with a win over the Mountain Lions (9-4), leaning on a strong first half to secure an 87-78 win on Herbert Greene court.
 
First Half
 
The first half opened with some early exchanges between CSU and YHC which fell in favor of the visitors with a 12-7 lead in the first five minutes. Treys from Jehloni James and Wisdom Uboh reclaimed control of the lead for the Cougars before the ensuing back-and-forth action that resulted in another tied ball game.
 
The Cougars answered right below the seven-minute mark with a dunk from James and a layup from Jarrett Adderton to pull out of the 21-21 with a four-point lead. Columbus State charged towards the halftime intermission with a 16-8 run to close the half. Adderton led the run with six points followed by three points from both James and Uboh.
 
Columbus State closed out the half with a 41-29 advantage, shooting for 48.3% (14-of-29) from the field, 41.7% (5-of-12) from three, and 100% (8-of-8) from the foul line. CSU controlled the score for more than 60% of the first half.
 
Second Half
 
Columbus State and Young Harris battled out of the break with the Cougars edging out the first seven minutes with a 21-15 scoring advantage for a 62-44 lead with 13 minutes remaining. Kordell Brown, Rakeim Gary, and Roman Son led the run with five points apiece.
 
The Mountain Lions flipped the script and surged back into the contest with a 31-16 stretch of scoring, scoring seven buckets from beyond-the-arc in the process. Despite the strong run, CSU remained ahead by a 78-75 edge and finished with a 9-3 run to seals the game shut. A huge three-pointer from Adderton at the 1:43 mark was essentially the dagger that ended the near comeback from YHC as CSU finished with the 87-78 win.
 
Inside the Numbers

• Columbus State finished shooting for a season-best 57.7% (30-of-52) from the field while also shooting for 44.4% (8-of-18) from three, and 67.9% (19-of-28) from the foul line.
• Adderton led with 27 points followed by James' 19 and Uboh's 11.
• Brown led off the glass with six boards out of CSU's 23.
• James notched three steals with Adderton leading with two blocks.
• YHC gave up 12 turnovers and the Cougars scored 20 points of the visitor's miscues.
• Columbus State is riding a seven-game winning streak.

Next Up

• Columbus State will take a break for the holidays before returning for a non-conference matchup against Middle Georgia on Jan. 2 at 7 p.m. ET in the Lumpkin Center.