Buffs battle back but fall to No. 18 Bryan

MILLIGAN COLLEGE, Tenn. (Dec. 7, 2019) – Lauren Baxter hit a pair of 3-pointers as part of a 31-point third quarter to help the Milligan College women's basketball team storm back, but in the end, No. 18 Bryan College handed the Buffaloes a 94-76 defeat Saturday in Steve Lacy Fieldhouse.

Baxter's 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions allowed Milligan to cut a once-16 point deficit to five late in the third quarter. However, Bryan used a 5-0 run to start the fourth quarter to extend the lead back out to double figures, where the Lions remained for all but three possessions the rest of the way.

Leaders

Kaely Gose led the Buffs with her third double-double of the season consisting of 20 points and 13 rebounds. Lily Griffith followed with a career high 17, and Halie Padgett scored 12. Hannah Wyrick tallied four assists, and Bailey Berry came up with two steals. Baxter finished with seven points, all in the second half.

For Bryan, Deandra Luna scored 41 points, including 24 in the second half, on 15-for-21 shooting. She went 7-for-10 from the perimeter and added six rebounds, three assists and three steals.

Milligan's third-quarter surge

Milligan's comeback, in fact, consisted of a couple of back-to-back 3-pointers. Bailey Berry hit one to open the second half, and Kaely Gose hit one 30 seconds later to cut the lead to single digits. They were part of a 6-0 run for Milligan in the first minute and a half of the third quarter. Griffith came through with an old-fashioned 3-point play midway through the period to cut it to eight, and Baxter hit her two threes back-to-back two minutes later to make it 58-53.

That was the closest Milligan would get, however, as Bryan used a few clutch threes of its own to pull back away.

Up next

Milligan heads to Point University in West Point, Georgia, next Saturday, Dec. 14, to close out the 2019 Appalachian Athletic Conference slate. After that, the Buffs will host Alice Lloyd College Monday, Dec. 30, at 2 p.m.