LAURINGBURG, N.C. (Jan. 19, 2019) â€" Aaron Levarity surpassed 1,000 career points and the Milligan College men's basketball team used a big second half to blow past fellow Appalachian Athletic Conference member St. Andrews 91-62 to extend their win streak to eight games Saturday afternoon inside Harris Court.
 
The Buffaloes improved to 14-5 overall and 9-4 in AAC play as they handed St. Andrews only their third home loss of the season. The Knights fell to 6-13 and 5-8 in conference play as they have now lost 12 of 14 all-time against Milligan.
 
It was a back-and-forth contest in the early going, but the Buffs got rolling from deep late and started to pull away at the tail end of the first half. After a two pointer from the Knights' Warren Vinson cut the Buffs lead to 33-31, Tyler Faulkenberry would drain a 3-pointer to start an 8-0 run.
 
Levarity followed Faulkenberry with a layup and Desean Green netted a deep ball to give Milligan their largest lead of the game at the time of 10 points with 2:11 remaining in the half. St. Andrews tried to cut into the deficit, trimming the lead to seven, but Green responded with another 3-pointer and Levarity followed with back-to-back buckets to increase the lead to 14.
 
Vinson would knock down a three in the final seconds of the half to cut the Buffs lead to 48-37 going into the break.
 
After the break, Milligan turned up the defensive pressure and used runs of 7-0, 5-0 and 11-0 to dominate the Knights. Over the course of the second half, Milligan held St. Andrews without a made field goal for 5:11 and four minutes, with the latter coming during the 11-0 run.
 
BY THE NUMBERS
Levarity registered his 14th double-double of the season with 26 points and 13 rebounds. The senior also added four assists and two blocks as he continues to make a case for AAC player of the year.
 
At the 6:07 mark of the first half, Levarity caught the ball just outside the arc and drove to his right for a layup. That layup marked Levarity's 1,000th career point as a Buff.
 
Four other Buffs joined Levarity in double figures on the afternoon as Green, Tyler Nichols, Faulkenberry and Mike Featherston poured in 14, 13, 12 and 10 respectively. Green also chipped in seven rebounds, two assists, one block and one steal.
 
For Featherston, the 10 points were a season high and the junior also produced four rebounds and four assists.
 
Jacob Cawood netted six points, and Nicholas Chambers and Bo Pless finished with five each to round out the scoring for Milligan.
 
The Buffs continued to show why they are one of the best defenses in the nation as they held the Knights to 34.8 percent shooting and 28.1 percent from deep. Milligan entered the contest second in the nation in 3-point defense and No. 8 in field goal defense.
 
On the offensive side, it was a hot shooting afternoon as the Buffs shot 53.1 percent from the field and 44 percent from downtown. Milligan also outrebounded the Knights 42-35 and took care of the basketball finishing with only nine turnovers.
 
St. Andrews was led by Vinson with 15 points and Jamaan Bailey was the only other Knight in double figures with 12.
 
AAC STANDINGS
Milligan currently sits in third place of the conference and trails No. 9 Union by a game and a half for the top spot in the league. Montreat resides in second place and are a game up on the Buffs. Milligan still has road contests against Union Wednesday, Jan. 23, and Montreat Thursday, Jan. 31.
 
UP NEXT
Milligan will remain on the road for their next two contests starting with a trip to Athens, Tennessee, for a matchup against Tennessee Wesleyan Monday, Jan. 21, at 4 p.m. The Buffs will conclude their three game road trip with a visit to Barbourville, Kentucky, for a massive AAC tilt against Union Wednesday, Jan. 23, at 7:30 p.m. The next home game for Milligan will be Saturday, Jan. 26, against Reinhardt at approximately 4 p.m.