Waleska, Ga. (Jan. 5, 2012) --- The Milligan College men's basketball team was unable to hold off a late Reinhardt charge in the second half as they fell 68-58 to Reinhardt University in a clash of AAC favorites on Thursday evening in Waleska, Ga.
 
   Milligan opened the game with four points from Kyle Grisby (Charlotte, N.C.) and a basket from Tyler DeVault (Kingsport, Tenn.) to take a 6-2 lead in the opening minutes. Reinhardt narrowed the gap to 14-12 with 10 minutes remaining in the half, but the Buffaloes continued to maintain their advantage.
 
   Marshall Hardy (Kingsport, Tenn.) extended the Milligan lead to 22-18 with five minutes remaining, and the teams traded shots down the stretch. After the Eagles took the lead with 29 seconds left in the half, freshman Chris Ellis (Bristol, Tenn.) drained a jumper with an assist from Grisby to put Milligan back up 28-27 at the break.
 
   The Buffaloes started the second half on a 6-0 run that was capped off by a Hardy jump shot. However, Reinhardt quickly cut away at the Milligan lead, but the Buffaloes maintained a 36-34 lead five minutes into the half. The Buffaloes responded with a 5-0 run of their own to gain some separation from the Eagles, but the Eagles returned the favor as they went on a run of their own to take a 43-42 lead at the midpoint of the period.
 
   The next eight minutes saw Reinhardt slowly add to their lead as they held a 59-51 lead with just over three minutes left. However, the Buffaloes kept fighting as freshman Mickey Woods (Port Arthur, Tex.) hit back-to-back baskets to pull within six points with 1:30 remaining. However, that was as close as the Buffaloes could get as Reinhardt held off the Milligan charge in the closing minutes.
 
   Grisby led the way with 10 points and four assists, while Woods tossed in nine points. DeVault and Hardy recorded eight points apiece with DeVault grabbing a team high 12 rebounds.
 
   As a team, the Buffaloes were 22-of-41 (54%) from the floor and 2-of-8 (25%) from behind the arc. Reinhardt was 21-of-69 (30%) from the field and 5-of-22 (23%) from the 3-point line.
 
   With the loss, Milligan falls to 2-1 in AAC play and 4-7 overall, while Reinhardt moves to 3-1 in conference play and 8-7 overall.
 
   The Buffaloes return to action when they travel to Dayton, Tenn., for a conference clash with Bryan College. Game time is set for 4 p.m.