Jacob Cawood poured in 23 points and the Milligan College men’s basketball team closed the game on an 8-0 run to hold off a late rally from Appalachian Athletic Conference foe Truett McConnell to pick up the 75-68 win on the road Monday night.
With the win, the Buffaloes swept the season series with the Bears and improved to 18-7 on the year and 13-6 in conference play. Truett McConnell, who has lost three of their last four contests, fell to 12-12 and 6-11 in AAC play.
BUFFS LET LEAD SLIP LATE, BUT CLOSE STRONG
Milligan, who led by four at the halftime break, started the second half on an 11-3 run to open their largest lead of the game of 12 points with 16:01 remaining. The Buffs were able to maintain the advantage and keep the Bears in check for the next 13 minutes until Truett made a late run to make things interesting down the stretch.
A 7-0 Bears run that began at the 2:41 mark gave Truett their first lead since there was 3:50 remaining in the first half. Tyler Nichols drew a foul on the ensuing Buffs possession and netted both free throws to allow Milligan to retake the lead, which they would never relinquish.
The two free throws from Nichols started an 8-0 run by Milligan that closed out the win. Aaron Levarity made two pairs of free throws and Jacob Cawood knocked in a pair of his own during the run.
BY THE NUMBERS
Cawood finished the contest 8-of-14 from the field and 5-of-8 from 3-point range. The redshirt junior also hauled in six rebounds.
Levarity followed with 17 points and eight rebounds, while Bo Pless was the only other Buff in double figures with 12 points.
Nichols added nine points and Desean Green stuffed the stat sheet by chipping in eight points, five rebounds and three assists.
Overall, Milligan shot well from the field connecting on 51 percent of their field goal attempts. The Buffs also finished the game 18-of-25 from the foul line, all of which came in the second half.
Defensively, the Buffs held Truett in check from beyond the arc holding the Bears to 6-of-21 from the 3-point line.
Three Bears registered double figures on the night led by Calvin White’s 17 points and seven rebounds.
UP NEXT
Milligan returns to action Saturday, Feb. 9, when they host fellow AAC member Bryan College for senior day. Tip-off is set for approximately 4 p.m. inside Steve Lacy Fieldhouse.
Story courtesy of Milligan Athletics | Photo courtesy of Milligan Athletics and Robert Kell
