Buffs Women's Basketball Blasts KCU, Finishes Two Points Shy of Program Record

MILLIGAN, Tenn. – The Milligan University women's basketball team faced off with the Kentucky Christian University Knights inside Steve Lacy Fieldhouse, with the Lady Buffs looking for their fourth straight win overall and their seventh in a row in Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) action. A near record-breaking night, in which the Buffaloes scored 116 points, led to Milligan achieving those feats. 

The first quarter was an omen for what was yet to come, as Milligan roared out of the gate to a 36-10 lead after the conclusion of one frame. It was the Buffs' highest scoring quarter of the season. Their 14-of-21 (66.7%) clip from the field included four three-point makes and four made free throws. The Knights simply could not keep pace, making only five field goals in the quarter. 

It was much of the same for the Buffaloes in the second period. They scored 30 points in the second with a 10-of-17 shooting mark. The best period of the contest for KCU came in the second, as they scored 16 points on a 6-of-15 clip. Milligan went to the locker room with a massive 66-26 lead. 

The Buffaloes' third frame was their least productive, as they scored 20 points on a subpar 8-of-21 (38.1%) conversion rate. The Knights could not take advantage, scoring only 13 points on a poor 3-of-13 (23.1%) clip. Milligan would enter the fourth quarter 32 points away from tying the program's single-game scoring record at 118 points, leading 86-39 with 10 minutes to play. 

Milligan nearly got it done in the fourth quarter, scoring 30 points on a 9-of-19 period shooting the rock, while knocking down six three-point shots and six free throws. Meanwhile, KCU had their quietest frame, only hitting a pair of field goals on 15 tries. All told, the Buffaloes would end up with an inconceivable 69-point win, 116-47, falling just two points shy of their program record for points in a single contest. 

Jaycie Jenkins had a team-best 20 points in the bludgeoning, hitting 8-of-12 from the field and 2-of-4 from long range. Lexi Ervin had a career-high 17 points off the bench on a 4-of-7 night from the field with a trio of three-pointers and six additional points on a perfect night from the free-throw line. Lauren Longmire had 14 points on a 5-of-7 clip with three long balls, while McKenna Myers scored 12 points on four made field goals. Semaj Clark put up 11 on a 3-of-4 night, and Naomi Atchley scored 10 off the bench on a 4-of-6 performance with two threes. 

Longmire nearly achieved a double-double, passing out nine assists in the bout. Kenzie Campbell, Jenna Hare and Atchley had four dimes each, while Tessa Gibson and Caroline Krueger had three. Clark and Renna Lane doled out two each, while the remaining two came from Jenkins and Lina Lyon. 

Jenkins and Longmire tied for the team lead in rebounds, grabbing seven apiece. Ervin and Atchley reeled in six each, with Clark, Lyon, Hare and Sabrina Espelet each hauling in four. Myers and Campbell had three, and Krueger added two, with Gibson grabbing the final backboard. Every member of the squad that played had at least one rebound. 

Five steals and four blocks were tallied by Milligan in the battle, as both Jenkins and Clark had one of each. Lyon, Gibson and Espelet each grabbed a steal, and Longmire and Campbell both had single blocks. 

The AAC slate roars on Saturday, Jan. 11 in Bluefield, Va. against the Bluefield University Rams at 2 p.m., as the Lady Buffs look for their eighth conference win in a row.