CLEVELAND, Ga. (Jan. 28, 2017) â€" The Milligan College men's basketball team traveled to Cleveland, Georgia, on Saturday to take on the Truett-McConnell Bears. The Buffs struggled beyond the arc throughout the game and fell behind early. Despite a late second half push, Milligan could not overcome the 22 point deficit and fell 83-74.
 
Poor shooting in the first half put Milligan (11-12, 7-8 AAC) in a hole early. The Buffs shot 25% in the first half and only struck once from three-point land. On the other side of the ball, the Bears shot lights out, making 56.25% of their shots and hit six of 12 from downtown. Truett-McConnell led 42-20 at the break.
 
 The Buffs struggled to cut into the Bears' lead at the onset of the second half. Leading by as many as 24, Truett-McConnell kept Milligan at bay for the early part of the second half.
 
With 10 minutes left in the game, the Buffs started to chip away at the deficit. Three straight field goals from Jacob Cawood cut the lead down to 16 with 6:51 to go. With four minutes left, Will Buckner created a three point play opportunity that cut the lead to 13, the smallest Bear lead of the half. Aaron Levarity erased the double-double digit lead with a three-point opportunity of his own and the Buffs trailed 67-75 with just over two minutes left in the game.
 
However, the Bears made some clutch free throws in the final minute and iced the game.
 
Cawood continued his high level of play and led the Buffs with 19 points and added six rebounds. Levarity set a new career for points and recorded his second double-double of the season, tallying 13 points and 11 rebounds. Tyer Nichols and David Casaday both reached double figures for the Buffs, scoring 12 and 10 respectively.
 
Milligan returns to action on Wednesday on the road at Bluefield College for another AAC showdown. The Buffs' next home game is next Saturday when they host conference leader and No.2 nationally ranked Union College.