The Charger men's basketball team dropped their contest against Columbia College 81-72 Saturday afternoon.
 
"Tough game tonight…Columbia is a very good team and thought they did a good job of taking advantage of a couple of our mistakes," said Head Coach Mark Svagera. "The guys fought and battled all night to give ourselves a couple chances late in the game. We can learn a lot from this one as we move forward."
 
With the game tied halfway through the contest, Columbia went on a 9-1 run capped by a Trever Moore three to take a 29-21 lead. Columbia took a 39-29 lead heading into half after a pair of free throws from Isaiah Holden.
 
The Cliff looked to make up ground in the second, trailing by five after a Jayden Huygens' three and a free throw from Matthew Stilwill. Columbia was able to take a 79-70 lead late in the quarter following a layup from Brock Davis. With 1:50 left, Tyrus Eischeid knocked down a triple to bring the Chargers within six. Columbia was able to ice the game at the free throw line to take the 81-72 victory.
 
Stilwill led the Cliff with 25 points and collected five rebounds in the contest. Eischeid scored a career high 23 points and grabbed six boards. He went a perfect eight-for-eight at the charity stripe. Blake Sindelar chipped in 12 points and knocked down two threes.
 
The Chargers fall to 8-1 overall (2-0 GPAC). They will return to Sioux City, and take on cross-town rival Morningside on Wednesday November 29. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:45 p.m.