Defense Shines in Milligan Men's Basketball's Victory in Opener at Florida College

TEMPLE TERRACE, Fla. – The Milligan University men's basketball team began their 2024-25 campaign in the Sunshine State against the Florida College Falcons on Friday night. In a gritty, defensive performance, the Buffs started their season in the win column with a 61-55 victory on the road. 

The opening half of the season was one that the Buffs would like to forget offensively, as they managed to score just 27 points on 12-of-34 (35.3%) shooting. They also failed to hit a three-point shot on 12 attempts. However, their defense helped keep them in the battle, holding the Falcons to less than 40% from the field and just 31 points.  

Milligan jumped out to a 19-14 lead with 8:53 left to play in the half, Then, a 12-0 run by Florida College over a span of more than five minutes put the home squad ahead 26-19 with 3:36 to play before halftime. The Buffs were able to cut into the seven-point deficit slightly, heading into the break down 31-27. 

It was a slow second half, as well. In fact, both squads shot less than 40% in the half, yet again. Milligan was stronger than the Falcons this time, hitting 13-of-35 from the field. Florida College was held to a paltry 10-of-33 in the period. 

Over the first four minutes of the half, the Buffs scored six points, while Florida College was held off the scoreboard. Then the Falcons would pick up two points to tie the score at 33-33. From that point, the two squads went back and forth, ultimately getting to a 45-44 FC lead with 10:40 to play. No Milligan points would be scored until the 6:59 mark, while the Falcons had only scored three points in that span. The Buffaloes' offense finally began to get into a groove near the end of the tilt, finishing the game on a 17-10 scoring advantage to come out with a 61-55 triumph. 

Offensively, though the team's shooting clips did not look pretty (36.2 FG%, 9.1 3PT%) the load was carried by a pair of Milligan players. Sophomore McCaskill Rivers finished the night with an efficient 11-of-18 shooting line, totaling 24 points. Handje Tamba had a stellar first game as a Buff, as well, tallying 14 points on 6-of-10 from the field and a perfect 2-of-2 at the free-throw line. The Buffaloes' two made three-point shots came from the hand of Grant Hensley, who added a spark in seven second-half minutes off the bench. 

Tamba had 12 rebounds in the victory, earning himself a double-double with 14 points and a dozen boards. He brought intensity on both ends on the glass, grabbing half of his boards on the offensive end, and the other half defensively. Sam Gold supplied eight rebounds and Elijah Bredwood added seven. Rivers (5), Lincoln Thomae (4), Peay (2), Griffin Andricks (1) and Finn McClure (1) added boards, as well. 

The defensive effort by the Buffaloes, which included six blocks, eight steals and 16 forced turnovers. Tamba put up four blocks in the effort, while Jayme Peay added the other two. Peay also accounted for half of the squad's steals on the night, grabbing four in the win. Rivers, Tamba, Thomae and Luke Lentz took away the other four from the Falcons. 

The Milligan squad (1-0) will be back on the hardwood tomorrow against Webber International (Fla.) on the campus of Florida College at 1 p.m., looking to start their season with a perfect record after their first road trip.