The College of the Ozarks Bobcats returned to action Friday in the Haskell University Classic. The Bobcats had a rough trip and couple of games in the Florida College Classic over the break and they were looking to get back in the win column.

C of O vs Northern New Mexico College – Friday, January 19
The Bobcats were set to take on the Eagles of Northern New Mexico College and seven points by Andrew Dalton gave the Cats the early lead. Cold shooting then impacted the Bobcats and the Eagles put together a run to take a 14-7 advantage. Needing to respond and stay withing striking distance, Garrett Snyder and Jay Baxter teamed up for a pair of buckets to cut into the lead. A Snyder layup trimmed the deficit to 14-13, but the Eagles answered with a bucket followed by a traditional three-point play. A Brady Reynolds three-point play on the other end made it 19-16 and the Bobcats were challenging. A pair of Snyder free throws were followed by a Caleb Faulkner layup and the deficit was cut to 21-20, with 3:15 remaining in the half. A pair of Eagle threes built a slight cushion before Garrett Snyder connected on a pair of free throws and a three to erase the advantage. A Caleb Faulkner three gave the Cats their first lead since a 5-4 advantage, and with 1:40 left to play in the half, the Bobcats led 28-27. The Eagles responded with a layup to close out the first half, and the Bobcats trailed 29-28 heading to the locker room.

The Eagles opened the scoring in the second half to extend their narrow lead then turned on the full court pressure. The Bobcats came out cold to start the half and combined with a pair of turnovers, NNMC began to increase their lead. The Bobcats first two points came off a pair of Garret Snyder free throws at the 17:05 mark and with 16:32 remaining, and still no Bobcat field goals, Coach Shepherd took a timeout to try and break the trend. With 14:25 showing on the clock, an Andrew Dalton bucket gave the Bobcats their first field goal of the half. The defense had held the Eagles in check and the deficit was 38-32. Neither team was scorching the nets and the Bobcats needed to turn the tide to inch closer on the scoreboard. The cold shooting continued however, and it was the Eagles who capitalized. A 6-0 run forced a Bobcat timeout and with 10:59 remaining, the deficit had grown to 44-32. Garrett Snyder drained a much-needed basket out of a timeout and the Bobcats were hoping that was the breakthrough they needed. NNMC turned up the pressure and another 4-0 run kept them in control. Field goals remained hard to come by, but the Bobcats used a pair of layups by Caleb Faulkner and Jay Baxter to inch closer. In need of a run and trailing 53-43 with 4:39 remaining, a pair of Baxter free throws cut the gap by two. A pair of Snyder free throws cut the gap to 53-47 before the Eagles answered with a basket. The Bobcats were battling the clock and needed stops converted to baskets. A steal by Tyler Moore turned into a layup for Caleb Faulkner and with 2:27 left to play, the Bobcats trailed 57-50. Pressure defense produced another turnover and a lead pass to Jay Baxter cut the Eagle lead to five. An Eagle turnover resulted in a Dalton basket and things were getting interesting. Trailing 57-54, a Bobcat foul sent the Eagles to the line with 1:07 to play. The Eagles would hit the two tries and Caleb Faulkner drained a three to cut the gap to 59-57 with :26 left to play. With NNMC holding a two-point lead and the ball, a quick foul would send them to the line. The Eagles sank the free throws and Andrew Dalton answered with a put back off a rebound. With the clock showing :07, the Bobcats were down 61-59 and needed a quick stop and a score. The Bobcats had forced an apparent turnover on the inbound play but did not get the call and the Eagles inbounded and called a timeout with :04 left to play. A quick foul forced two more Eagle free throws. With one of two free throws falling, a Garrett Snyder three at the buzzer would have forced overtime, but it was not to be. The Eagles took the contest, 62-59.

Garrett Snyder led the cats with 17 points, followed by Andrew Dalton and Caleb Faulkner with 14 and 13 points respectively. Jay Baxter added 12 and Brady Reynolds chipped in three.

C of O vs Wilberforce University – Saturday, January 20

Following a hard-fought loss the day before, the Bobcats were looking to get back in the win column against the Bulldogs of Wilberforce University.

Jay Baxter put the Bobcats on the board to start the scoring and Andrew Dalton and Garrett Snyder followed with baskets to give the Cats an early 6-3 lead. Dalton and Snyder continued the one-two punch and a free throw by Xavier Oduor gave the Bobcats a 17-9 lead at the midway point of the half. Both teams were relying on defense, as offense was difficult to come by. Baxter, Kyle Flavin, and Snyder continued to answer the Bulldog challenges and WU was working to find a response. A Jay Baxter dunk at the 6:12 mark extended the Bobcat lead to 27-17, but the Bulldogs refused to go away. A pair of Bulldog threes cut into the lead before a pair of Dalton free throws and a Snyder three provided the Bobcat response. A Tyler Moore free throw gave the Bobcats their largest lead, 36-23, with 2:21 left to play in the half. The Bulldogs continued to challenge but the Bobcats were able to maintain their advantage and went to the intermission holding a 40-31 lead.

A Bulldog three opened the second half scoring and things got interesting immediately. Kyle Flavin answered with a layup, Garrett Snyder scored off a tip-in, and Andrew Dalton connected on a pair of free throws to give the Cats more of a comfortable cushion. The mini run took the wind out of the Bulldog sails and all they were able to do was trade baskets. The Bobcats used buckets by Snyder, Dalton, and Flavin to answer the Bulldog challenges and with 10:00 remaining, the Bobcat lead had grown to 61-45. The Bulldogs continued to battle, and the Bobcats consistently responded. The teams traded baskets and the Bulldogs were unable to make up ground. Snyder and Dalton combined points with Jay Baxter before a Seth Soden trey splashed home at the 2:04 mark. The Bobcats were now up by 15, 77-62 and looking to run out the clock. The Bulldogs finished the game on a 6-2 run, but the Bobcat attack was too much, and the buzzer sounded with the Cats claiming the 79-68 win.

Andrew Dalton piled on 29 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Bobcats and Garrett Snyder poured in 27 points of his own. Jay Baxter finished with 10 points, Kyle Flavin added eight, Seth Soden tacked on three, and Tyler Moore and Xavier Oduor contributed one pint each.

The Bobcats will resume action on Monday, January 29, when they host Baptist Bible College in a 7 PM start.