Wildcats advance with win over Huskies

COLUMBUS JUNCTION — Columbus and Highland have done battle on the hardwood three times now.

In their previous two meetings, the Wildcats were winners in both and on Friday they cam out on top once again, 62-51.

The third meeting between the two squads was to see who would move on in the Class 1A Region 4 bracket.

Much like the past matchups, the Wildcats and Huskies played it close with just one quarter making up the difference.

After one quarter of action, Columbus held a slim one point lead, 11-10, over Highland.

In the second, it was more of the same.

Highland gained the edge in the second period, but by just one point, 12-11, knotting the game at 22 heading into the half.

The third quarter made all the difference.

Columbus put together its highest scoring quarter of the night, while Highland scored its least.

The Wildcats scored a game-high 21 points, while the Huskies were held to a game-low of nine.

Following the third, Columbus held a 43-31 lead.

Highland was able to bounce back to take the fourth, but the Huskies couldn’t make up the difference.

The Huskies outscored the Wildcats 20-19 in the final eight minutes.

Leading Columbus on the night was Grant Watson with 30 points and 10 rebounds. Timothy Hills and Daniel Martinez both finished with eight points. Hill pulled down 10 rebounds as well.

Highland ends its season at 1-20.

Columbus, now 4-18, will take on WACO (20-1) on Monday.