January 10, 2008

 

     Johnson City, TN—Coming off a successful 2-1 trip to Florida over the break, the Lions were confident in their abilities and felt as though they were finally beginning to play winning basketball. The Lions were banged up, with 5 players suffering from nagging injuries, as they headed to Milligan College on Wednesday evening to take on the Buffaloes. Milligan has had an outstanding year, and is currently ranked 20^th in the NAIA’s Division II National Poll.

     The Buffaloes, riding a 4 game winning streak, had been averaging an astounding 57% shooting on the season, en route to a 13-2 record and the top spot in the AAC Standings.  The Lions entered the contest at 7-8, however they have played much better basketball than their record shows. The Lions have played some close games as of late, and this contest would be no different.

     This game was a story of runs, with Milligan jumping out to an early 19-9 lead and the Lions going on 29-9 run of their own to claw back into the lead. Milligan would make one more 8-0 run, but as the teams headed to the locker room, the Lions held the lead 39-37. Lamarr Shorts paced the Lions in the early going, scoring 10 of his team high 19 in the first half, while Mike Lytle grabbed 5 big rebounds to help the Lions in the first frame.

     Milligan pressured the ball all night long, however Demond Craig was able to handle the pressure and control the tempo of the game for the Lions. Craig finished with 17 points, but it was his ability to take care of the ball under pressure which proved to be his biggest contribution. The teams battled back and forth throughout the second half; however after shooting 63% in the first half, the Lions shot just 45% from the floor in the second half allowing Milligan to make a final push.

     Bryan held Milligan to right around 45% shooting on the night, putting themselves in great position to head home with a victory, but the inside presence of Milligan’s Jeff Barnes proved too much for the Lions to overcome. Barnes, a 6’7 post player was able to draw the Lions into foul trouble and managed to score a game high 23 points, 13 of which came in the decisive second half.

     The Lions will return to the court on Saturday afternoon at 6 PM when they’ll take on Tennessee Wesleyan College in another tough AAC Matchup.