COLUMBIA, S.C. -- The ebbs and flows of a basketball game makes it difficult to score the first points of a contest and never relinquish your advantage.

Yet, that is exactly what happened for Miles against Benedict at HRC Arena. Alvin Miles opened the game with a 3-pointer and the Tigers never got closer than two points the rest of the way as the Golden Bears earned a 57-46 victory on Saturday. It was the first win in Columbia for Miles (7-2, 4-0 SIAC West) in more than five years and came thanks to a stingy defensive effort that saw Benedict (1-7, 1-3 SIAC East) shoot less than 33 percent from the field for the game, a number that dropped to 29 percent in the second half.

Despite never trailing, Miles fought to keep Benedict at bay. The biggest lead in the first half was just seven points, achieved twice. A Todd Burt bucket capped a 9-2 start to the game and a Rylen Walker 3-pointer with 5:46 left in the first half gave the Golden Bears a 20-13 lead with 5:46 remaining before the break. Miles had its own troubles scoring the ball in the first half, shooting just 31 percent from the field and making just 4-of-15 from downtown. A Jordan Butler 3-pointer with less than two minutes left cut the Tigers deficit to 25-23, which is where it remained at halftime.

It was still a two-point game six minutes into the second half when Miles finally created some breathing room. Over the next seven minutes, Benedict missed five shots and turned the ball over three times. Meanwhile, the Golden Bears started to find their range. Corey Trotter nailed a short jumper in the lane before stepping out and knocking down a 3-pointer. Chase Ballard (six points, three rebounds, three assists, two steals) closed a 9-1 run with his own money ball from beyond the arc that pushed Miles lead into double figures for the first time - 39-29 - with 10 minutes remaining. The Tigers continued to fight, as Miles never saw its advantage get larger than 12 points, but they never got closer than seven points the rest of the way.

Butler had 16 points and Tariq Shepherd added 12 to lead Benedict. Alvin Miles (game-high 19 points, six rebounds, three steals, two assists), Trotter (12 points, eight rebounds, two assists, one block) and Travarus Carroll (eight points, three rebounds) had strong efforts for the Golden Bears, who play next at Allen on Monday. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.