Columbia (17-4) is gelling at the right time, as head coach Mark Sandstrom has his players complementing each other well on the court. 

The Eagles won the Okawville Invitational Tournament for the fourth straight year by virtue of three wins last week. 

Last Tuesday, Columbia won 68-20 over Gibault. Brody Landgraf, a 6-foot-5 junior, scored 16 points. Sam Donald, a 6-foot-8 senior, did his thing with 15 points and six assists.

On Friday, the Eagles took down Carlyle by the score of 52-37. An 18-5 run by Columbia in the third quarter put this game away. Eddie Smajic, a 6-foot-6 junior, was 7-of-10 from three-point range and scored 26 points to pace Columbia.

The tourney final took place Saturday, with the Eagles winning 72-62 over Wesclin. Landgraf scored 24 points and grabbed eight rebounds. Donald added 20 points, seven rebounds and eight assists. Another third quarter run, this one 26-10, set the Eagles in flight.

Donald is averaging 16.2 points, 6.7 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game this season. 

Smajic is averaging 14.4 points per game – including 48 percent shooting from three-point land. 

Landgraf is averaging 10.8 points and 5.5 rebounds per contest.

Columbia hosted rival Waterloo on Tuesday, seeking revenge from a Dec. 29 loss in the Freeburg Holiday Tournament final. The Eagles play Friday at Salem and host Belleville West on Saturday. 

Waterloo (16-6) won two of three contests at the Nashville Invitational Tournament this past week. 

Following a victory last Monday over Metro East Lutheran – during which 6-foot-10 senior Alex Stell contributed 23 points and 10 rebounds – the Bulldogs won 43-39 over Nashville on Friday night. 

Stell again led the way with 17 points and nine rebounds. Reid Metzger added 16 points. 

On Saturday, Waterloo lost to Marion in the tourney final, 57-53. The ‘Dogs went up 14-7 after the first quarter, but Marion outscored them 16-8 in the second quarter and 20-13 in the third quarter to take charge.

Stell is averaging 22 points, 14 rebounds and 3.1 blocks per game on the season. 

Max Oswald, a 6-foot-5 senior, is averaging 10 points and 6.5 rebounds per game.

Following Tuesday’s clash at Columbia, Waterloo plays Friday at Mascoutah, then battles Mounds Meridian in Pinckneyville at noon Saturday and hosts Red Bud this coming Tuesday.

Valmeyer (8-10) dropped a 66-58 contest at home Friday night to rival New Athens. The Pirates led 22-14 after the first quarter, but New Athens stormed back with a 28-6 run in the second quarter to flip the script. 

Landon Roy led the Pirates with 17 points, nine rebounds and six assists. Aiden Crossin added 14 points and Evan Hill scored 12 points for Valmeyer. 

New Athens was led by Isaiah Lintker’s 18 points. 

Crossin, a senior, leads the Pirates at 16.1 points and 2.8 steals per game this season. 

Roy, also a senior, is averaging 14.1 points, five rebounds, four assists and 2.4 steals per contest.

Valmeyer hosted Father McGivney on Tuesday, then hosts Maryville Christian on Thursday. The Pirates are at Marissa on Friday, then host local rival Gibault on Tuesday. 

Gibault (5-15) lost all three of its games at the Okawville tourney. 

Following last Tuesday’s defeat at the hands of Columbia, the Hawks dropped a 52-44 contest against Madison on Thursday.

Ryan Biffar, a senior, led the way with 14 points for Gibault. Jack Holston, a sophomore, added 12 points – all via three-pointers.

On Saturday, it was a 57-53 loss to Christ Our Rock Lutheran. Holston scored 17 points – including four three-pointers. Biffar poured in 15 points.

Biffar leads the Hawks in scoring this season at 10.4 points per game. Holston is averaging 10 points per game on 43.5 percent three-point shooting. 

Gibault hosted Freeburg on Tuesday and plays Saturday at Red Bud before traveling west to Valmeyer on Tuesday. 

Dupo (1-10) hopes to get back into the win column for a change as it hosted Red Bud on Tuesday and then welcomes Lebanon to town this Friday. 

Kaden Scheppelman leads the Tigers in scoring at nearly 15 points per game this season.