MONTREAT, N.C.— In a rematch from last season's Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) semifinal round, the Montreat men's basketball team hosted the Columbia International University Rams Saturday afternoon to open a 3-game homestand inside McAlister Gymnasium. Behind a valiant defensive effort that featured a season-high 13 steals, the Cavaliers were able to flip the script from last year's postseason result as they claimed a 76-66 victory and improved to 8-9 (6-8 AAC).
 
Playing a tightly-contested first half in which neither side led by more than five points, it was the Cavs who struck first. Dyllan Barnwell poured in the opening four points of the contest, and Jarden Maze knocked down a jumper to put the home team on top, 6-3, just 1:24 into the matchup.
 
Columbia International (10-7, 9-4 AAC) answered with efficient shooting to erase its slim deficit and take its first lead of the afternoon. Montreat hauled in four offensive rebounds in the first five minutes, but a 4-for-14 showing from the floor (28.6 percent) stunted the Cavaliers' scoring. Meanwhile, the Rams hit five of their initial eight shot attempts, and they ultimately grabbed an 18-14 lead midway through the frame.
 
Two putback baskets from Barnwell sparked a 9-2 run over 1:47 that saw Montreat retake the lead at 23-20. CIU managed to level the score at 25 with 5:34 left in the half, but a strong finish to the period allowed the hosts to enter the intermission with a 5-point lead. Michael Erbeck, Maze, Tyler Murray and Jamiel Wright each tallied buckets during the final four minutes of the frame, and the Cavaliers ended the half by making six of their final seven looks from the floor. As a result, Montreat maintained a 40-35 edge over the visiting Rams after 20 minutes of action.
 
Columbia International had the better shooting half (15-31 FG, 48.4 percent), but 11 offensive rebounds allowed the home side to take 13 more field goals. The Cavs shot 40.9 percent (18-44 FG) thanks to their strong close to the first frame, and they capitalized on their extra possessions for an 11-0 advantage in second-chance points. Wright led Montreat with 10 points, while Murray and Barnwell each contributed eight points. Barnwell also paced all participants with five first-half boards, four of which came off the offensive glass.
 
Gabriel Rivera powered the Montreat offense early in the second half as the Orlando, Fla. native registered seven of the squad's initial 11 points in the frame to establish the Cavaliers' largest lead through 28 minutes (51-43).
 
Refusing to go away, CIU drilled four of its ensuing five shots to trail by just two points (56-54) with 8:03 remaining in regulation; however, the Rams had no answer for Rivera and Erbeck. The sophomore pair scored 18 of the hosts' last 22 points, with the other four coming from CamRon Sias. Montreat led by at least two possessions across the final six minutes of play, and Rivera capped off his 16-point second half performance with four late free throws that claimed the Cavs' biggest advantage of the day and the 10-point victory, 76-66.
 
"I'm really proud of our guys," said head coach Anthony Barringer. "I felt like we guarded at a high level. Any time you're able to hold a team below their average in scoring, you give yourself a good chance to win. We told our guys that the game was going to be won on the defensive side of the ball, and that proved to be true. That's our identity, and we did a great job of being us today."
 
While the Rams had a slightly better overall shooting percentage (27-62 FG; 43.5 percent) compared to the home team (28-67 FG; 41.8 percent), the Cavaliers shot fractionally better from deep at 30.0 percent (6-20 3-PT FG) versus their counterparts' 6-for-22 showing (27.3 percent). Montreat also made four more free throws than CIU attempted (14-10), grabbed nine more rebounds (42-33), scored nine more points off turnovers (16-7) and notched 13 more second-chance points (15-2).
 
Rivera led all scorers with 18 points, and he tallied a career-high six steals with his impactful effort on both ends. Erbeck (13 points), Wright (10 points) and Murray (10 points) each recorded double-digit scoring outputs, and Barnwell totaled nine points and nine boards in the triumph.
 
The Montreat men's basketball team continues its homestand next Saturday with an AAC clash versus Kentucky Christian University. Tipoff is slated for 4 p.m. inside McAlister Gymnasium.