Buffs knock off no. 16 Bluefield
Bluefield, Va. (Dec. 8, 2007) --- The Milligan College men's basketball team (9-2, 3-1) downed the 16 th ranked Rams of Bluefield College Saturday afternoon during AAC play. The Buffs picked up the road win by a 2-point margin, 85-83.
With the Buffs up 46-39 at half, the No. 16 Rams rallied in the second half. The Buffs pushed their lead to as much as 11 points, but the Rams swung the momentum and at the 18:00 mark, the Rams were up four points on the Buffs. Throughout the duration of the game, the two teams battled back and forth.
Under a minute left, the Rams had a one point lead over the Buffs. Junior Tyler Estepp (Limestone, Tenn.) made two of his career high 19 points to put the Buffs up one. With just 16 ticks remaining on the clock, the Rams threw the ball into the backcourt giving the Buffs the turnover. Estepp was fouled as soon as the ball was in bounded, where he drained the first of two free throws putting the Buffs up two.
The Rams had a chance to win as Bluefield 's J.R. Montgomery shot a contested 3-point shot, but his attempt bounced off the front iron into the hands of junior Jeff Barnes (Franklin, Tenn.) as time expired.
The Buffs held the Rams to 28% (11-40) beyond the arc, and 39% (31-79) from the field. Milligan shot 57% (28-49) from the field and 66% (2-3) from beyond the arc. Defense and the free throw line were the keys to the Buffs victory. The Buffs went 27 out of 40 from the charity stripe which played vital down the stretch.
Sophomore Danny McKeehan (Morrow, Ohio) led all scorers with his career high 29 points, while also pulling down seven rebounds and dishing out four assists. Barnes contributed 21 points, six rebounds, and three assists.
“I am especially proud of how the guys bounced back after a tough loss (Tuesday),” said Milligan College Head Coach Tony Wallingford. “The guys really came out and showed a lot of grit. They played really well under pressure and we are fortunate to get the road win.”
The Buffs take on Tennessee Temple University Saturday, Dec. 15. The game is set to start at 7 p.m. |
