COLUMBUS, Miss. -  For the second-consecutive game, The W men's basketball was defeated by one of  the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC) co-leaders at home, this time succumbing to Spalding University, 57-47, at Pohl Gym. With the No. 4-seed already locked up for the SLIAC tournament, the Owls' (12-13, 9-9 SLIAC) loss to the Golden Eagles (18-7, 16-2 SLIAC) was more of a barometer for the squad.
 
MUW actually led at the intermission, 23-22. The second half remained close throughout. The W trailed by just two points, 44-42, after a Trent Walker free throw. However, the Golden Eagles would outscore the Owls by a 13-5 margin the rest of the way to ice the win.
 
 Fifth-year senior Dariun Doss gave an encore performance for his final game at Pohl Gym. Doss shared game scoring-leader honors by booking 18 point. Doss was an efficient 5-of-8 from the field and 8-of-10 from the free throw stripe. He was also the leading rebounder with nine boards.
 
Josh Dukes, also playing his final game before the home faithful, added seven rebounds and seven points to the MUW coffers. Two other seniors – Cam Smith and Isaiah Ball – booked six and five points, respectively.
 
Trent Walker's six points and five from James Dukes rounded out the MUW scoring
 
The Owls held a 39-31 advantage on the glass., leading to 16 second-chance points.
 
The SLIAC pairing are scheduled for official release on Sunday. The Owls' first round game will be on the road on Wednesday (Feb. 26/7 p.m.).