MONTREAT, N.C.— Hosting its final home game of the calendar year, the Montreat men's basketball team battled one of its biggest Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) rivals, the Milligan University Buffaloes, inside McAlister Gymnasium Tuesday evening. While the Cavaliers erased their 8-point halftime deficit without much trouble, they couldn't finish off the visitors who claimed an 88-84 victory and dropped the hosts to 4-7 (3-6 AAC) on the season.
Jamiel Wright poured in six early points on 3-of-3 shooting to get the Cavs started off on the right foot. Montreat scored on its initial three possessions, and it snatched an 8-3 lead over the visitors merely 2:39 into the half.
Milligan (6-6, 6-4 AAC) didn't wait long to answer as three consecutive 3-pointers erased the Cavaliers' edge. The Buffaloes ultimately grew their run to 13-1 over a 2:35 stretch, which resulted in a 16-9 advantage. Wright did his best to combat MU's streak, scoring 12 of Montreat's first 19 points to pull the home side within a basket (21-19); however, another flurry of Buffs' buckets coupled with six trips to the free-throw line aided Milligan in seizing a 34-25 lead with 7:31 remaining in the half.
Dyllan Barnwell, who had a career night on Tuesday, eventually brought the Cavs within 38-34 thanks to a sequence of six points, three rebounds and a block. Despite the freshman center's effort, MU outscored Montreat during the final 3:33, doubling their lead out to 49-41 entering halftime.
Both teams shot efficiently from the field, with Milligan holding a slight edge (16-31 FG; 51.6 percent) over the Cavaliers (17-33 FG; 51.5 percent). Three-point shooting favored the road team, though, as the Buffs buried 6-of-13 (46.2 percent) looks from behind the arc compared to Montreat's 2-for-10 effort. The home side's 20-12 rebounding advantage translated into a 14-4 edge in second chance points, but MU made up for that disparity with points off turnovers (14-6) and six additional made free throws (11-5).
Wright (16 points) paced all players in scoring prior to the intermission, and Barnwell nearly notched a first-half double-double behind 12 points and eight rebounds.
Milligan captured its first double-digit lead of the night, 59-48, less than four minutes into the second half, but the Cavs made a strong surge and eliminated their deficit moments later.
Gabriel Rivera registered a trio of layups,
Jack Keller added five points of his own and
Collin Mills tallied a layup and a triple to flip the score in Montreat's favor, 64-63. Rivera's fourth basket in the paint capped off an 18-4 run over 5:51 as the hosts held a 3-point edge (66-63) midway through the frame.
The rest of the contest proved to be tightly-contested as each team wrestled for momentum. A trio of lead changes paired with two ties saw the contest knotted at 73 with roughly five minutes to go.
Milligan utilized a bucket and a 3-point play to grab a 78-73 lead late in the ballgame, and the visitors clung to their lead until the final buzzer sounded. Four Rivera free throws, a Keller triple and a free throw from Barnwell trimmed the Cavaliers' gap to 82-81 with 2:06 left, but back-to-back makes restored the Buffaloes 2-possession lead at 86-81. Montreat had the basketball with a chance to tie or take the lead in the closing seconds, but a turnover sealed the home team's fate as Milligan left McAlister Gymnasium with an 88-84 win.
The Buffs maintained their efficiency from the floor in the second half to finish the night at 50.8 percent (32-63 FG). MU also went 7-for-20 (35.0 percent) from 3-point range. Meanwhile, Montreat converted 30 of its 64 shot attempts into points (46.9 percent) and eight of its 24 tries from beyond the arc (33.3 percent). A significant 41-30 rebounding advantage and 20-10 edge in second chance points helped the Cavs keep the game close, but Milligan capitalized on points off turnovers (24-12) and fast break points (13-4) to earn the triumph.
Wright scored a career-high 25 points for Montreat, while Barnwell also totaled career-best marks in points (13), rebounds (16) and blocks (3) for his first double-double. Mills (14), Keller (13) and Rivera (13) also turned in double-digit efforts in scoring. Rivera dished out a team-high three assists.
While the Montreat men's basketball team doesn't play again at home until Jan. 6, 2024, the Cavaliers are back in action this Saturday at Faulkner University. Tipoff is scheduled for 3 p.m. EST in Montgomery, Ala.
