Milligan College, Tenn. (Dec. 8, 2012) --- The Milligan College men's basketball team used a 14-0 run late and kept Asbury University scoreless on their final two possessions to take a 64-62 nonconference victory over the Eagles inside Steve Lacy Fieldhouse on Saturday afternoon. 
 
   Ignas Palaima (Lithunia) and Torian Sitton (Hendersonville, N.C.) scored baskets in the game's opening minutes to help Milligan take an early 5-2 lead. The Buffaloes got points from Tyler DeVault (Kingsport, Tenn.) and Sitton, but Asbury held an 18-14 lead midway through the first half.
 
   Morgan McLeod (Hickory, N.C.) hit a jumper to cut the deficit in the half, and Sitton capalitilzed on a 3-point play to push Milligan ahead by a point just past the halfway point. McLeod added two more baskets to extend the Buffaloes lead to five points with five minutes left. Scott Blake (Greeneville, Tenn.) hit a jumper and Palaima scored five straight points in the closing minutes of the first half to help Milligan take a 34-25 lead at the break.
 
   Sitton led the way in the first half with 11 points. As a team, Milligan was 13-of-28 (46%) from the floor and 0-of-5 from behind the 3-point line. Asbury ended the half 9-of-28 (32%) from the field and 1-of-13 (32%) from behind the arc.
 
   Asbury opened the half on a 15-2 run to take a 40-36 lead five minutes into the period. Mickey Woods (Port Arthur, Tex.) and DeVault both hit a pair of free throws, and Sitton capitalized on his second 3-point play of the game to pull Milligan within two points. However, the Eagles used a 6-0 run to extend their lead to 51-43 midway through the half.
 
   After the Eagles went on a 4-0 run, Blake drained a pair of 3-pointers to help Milligan go on 14-0 run that was capped by a Cartree Pettis (Oviedo, Fla.) layup off a steal to put Milligan up 60-55 with just under four minutes to play. After Asbury trimmed the lead to two points, DeVault scored a jumper and a free throw to extend the Milligan lead to five points.
 
   The Eagles drained a jumper with two minutes left to cut their gap to 63-60, and then used an Adam Delph basket to pull within one point with 38 seconds left. The Milligan defense forced a turnover with 6.8 seconds left, and Sitton added a free throw on the other end to increase the Milligan lead to two points. The Buffaloes defense forced an shot as time expired to take the victory.
 
   Sitton led the way with 18 points and six rebounds, while Blake ended the game with 12 points. DeVault and McLeod finished with nine and eight points, respectively. Palaima tallied seven points. Delph led Asbury with 22 points.
 
   As a team, Milligan was 20-of-50 (40%) from the floor and 3-of-10 (30%) from the 3-point line. Asbury finished the game 25-of-58 (43%) from the field and 2-of-18 (11%) from behind the arc.
 
   With the win, Milligan improves to 7-4 overall and 6-0 inside Steve Lacy Fieldhouse this season.
 
   The Buffaloes return to action on Saturday, Dec. 15, as they travel to NCAA Division II Carson-Newman College. Game time in Jefferson City, Tenn., is slated for 2 p.m.