Miles dropped its third straight decision on Saturday, a 64-57 loss to Columbus State Saturday afternoon at Knox-Windham Gymnasium. The Golden Bears led by as many as nine points early in the second half and still held a lead with less than four minutes remaining, but it was not enough to keep the team from its first three-game skid since February 2018.

A Rodney Battle bucket with 14:43 left gave Miles (6-3) a 42-33 lead, the nine-point advantage tying its largest advantage of the contest. But the Cougars scored 11 straight points to take the lead four minutes later, and led 49-44  after completing a 16-2 run with eight-and-a-half minutes remaining. The Golden Bears fought back and quickly retook the lead as Eddie Smith (11 points, seven rebounds) drained a 3-pointer to tie the game and knocked down both free throws on the ensuing possession to Miles ahead 51-49.

The teams would pass the lead back and forth over the next few minutes. When Mykayle Carter (14 points) drained his fourth 3-ball of the game with 3:29 left, Miles led 56-54 and looked ready to close out the Cougars. But the Golden Bears struggled shooting the ball in the second half and would not make another basket from the field for the remainder of the game. They shot just 21 percent over the final 20 minutes (6-of-28) while Columbus State made 5-of-7 free throws down the stretch to clinch the victory.

Nelson Haskin was 10-of-13 from the field for a game-high 23 points to lead Columbus State. Battle had a team-high 15 points and Makai Vassell added 13 points and a team-high eight rebounds to pace Miles, which hosts Benedict on Thursday. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.