NORTH MANCHESTER, Ind. - Manchester University brought home their sixth straight win in men's basketball action as the Spartans defeated the Mount St. Joseph Lions 69-50. 

The Spartans and Lions went back-and-forth in the opening half of Saturday's game, tying the game up at 17 with 8:38 on the clock. A good jump shot by Logan Willoughby (Greenwood, Ind., Whiteland Community) would regain the lead for Manchester, and help lead the Black and Gold to a 35-29 lead at halftime. 

Manchester's strong defensive performance would hold the Lions to just 4 points in the first 6 minutes of the second half of Saturday's contest. The Black and Gold would extend their lead to 23 points, their biggest lead of the afternoon, with 5:07 left to play in the second half. MU would hang on to win Saturday's game 69-50 after outscoring the Lions 34-21 in the final half of play. 

Quentez Columbus (South Bend, Ind., Adams) led the Spartans with 14 points, shooting 4-5 from three point range. Bryant Smith (West Lafayette, Ind., Harrison) and Mike Elliott (Indianapolis, Ind., North Central) added 11 points apiece for Manchester, while Logan Willoughby finished the afternoon with 10 points, 6 assists, and 3 steals. Coy Hampton (Park Forest, Ill., Crete Monee) also added 9 points and a team-high 7 rebounds for the Black and Gold. As a team, MU shot 43.6% from the field, 41.2% from three-point range, and 87.5% from the free throw line. Manchester improved to 13-8, 11-3 HCAC following Saturday's win. 

Leading the way for the Lions was Dayne Gardner with 10 points and 7 rebounds. Jack Kolar also added 9 points and 7 rebounds for MSJ. As a team, Mount St. Joseph shot 40.0% from the field and 54.5% from the free throw line. With the loss, the Lions fall to 7-14 overall and 6-8 in conference play. 

Up next, Manchester men's basketball will host Rose-Hulman on Wednesday, February 8 in Stauffer-Wolfe Arena. The Spartans and Fightin' Engineers will tip-off at 7:30 p.m.