Milligan College, Tenn. (Jan. 12, 2013) --- The Milligan College men's basketball team was unable to complete a late rally as they fell 82-79 to Appalachian Athletic Conference foe Tennessee Wesleyan on Saturday afternoon inside Steve Lacy Fieldhouse.
 
   After Tennessee Wesleyan opened the scoring, the Buffaloes responded quickly as Tyler DeVault (Kingsport, Tenn.) scored four straight points to start a 17-2 Milligan run that last just over five minutes. The teams traded shots as Torian Sitton (Hendersonville, N.C.) and Chris Ellis (Bristol, Tenn.) added points for Milligan, and the Buffaloes maintained a 27-17 lead midway through the half with a Scott Blake (Greeneville, Tenn.) 3-pointer.
 
   Tennessee Wesleyan slowly cut into the Milligan lead as they went on a 18-6 run to tie the game at 33-33 with 7:31 on the scoreboard. After the Bulldogs regained a three point lead, the Buffaloes responded as Sitton started a 10-0 run to put the Buffaloes up seven points. In the closing minutes of the first half, the teams traded shots as Milligan took a 45-45 lead into the half after three straight points from Cartree Pettis (Oviedo, Fla.)
 
   DeVault and Pettis led the way in the first half with 11 and 10 points, respectively. As a team, the Buffaloes were 17-of-31 (55%) from the floor and 2-of-9 (22%) from the 3-point line. Tennessee Wesleyan finished the half 20-of-40 (50%) from the field and 4-of-12 (33%) from behind the arc.
 
   In the second half, DeVault and Sitton scored two points apiece to help the Buffaloes open the half on a 4-2 run. The two teams traded shots until the Bulldogs hit back-to-back 3-pointers to take a 57-54 lead five minutes into the half. Milligan quickly tied the game at 57 on a Blake jumper, but Tennessee Wesleyan ran out to a five point lead midway through the half.
 
   The Buffaloes closed the gap to two points from DeVault and a 3-point play from Sitton. After the Bulldogs extend their lead to six points, Milligan closed the gap as Sitton scored seven straight points for Milligan to tie the game at 73-73 with 5:20 left in the game. The Bulldogs kept the Buffaloes off the board for the next three minutes, but they could only extend their lead by three points.
 
   In the final minute, Milligan pulled with two with a free throw from Mickey Woods (Port Arthur, Tex.) and a bucket from Ellis with 35 seconds remaining. The Buffaloes were unable to convert a pair of last second possessions, and missed a last second shot to send the game into overtime.
 
   Sitton led the way with 18 points as Milligan had five different players reach double-digit point totals. DeVault finished with 16 points, while Blake tallied 13 points. Pettis and Woods had 10 points apiece.
 
   As a team, the Buffaloes were 27-of-58 (47%) from the field and 5-of-16 (31%) from behind the arc. Tennessee Wesleyan finished the game 31-of-65 (48%) from the floor and 8-of-21 (38%) from behind the 3-point.
 
   With the loss, Milligan falls to 5-2 in conference play and 12-7 overall, while the Bulldogs improve to 5-1 in AAC action and 11-7 overall.
 
   The Buffaloes return to action on Saturday, Jan. 19, as they host AAC foe Point University. Game time inside Steve Lacy Fieldhouse is set for 4 p.m.