(RV) Lady Buffs Basketball Wins First AAC Tournament Title over TWU

KINGSPORT, Tenn. – Milligan University's (RV) women's basketball team appeared in the Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) title game on Saturday for the first time since the 2021-22 campaign. This time around, through adversity, the Buffaloes took home the win in overtime against the No. 7 seed Tennessee Wesleyan University Bulldogs. They notched the program's first AAC Tournament Championship victory since the AAC was formed in 2000.

The Bulldogs came out of the gate with aggression, making eight of their 10 shots in the opening quarter to take a 20-11 lead over the Buffaloes. Milligan's 5-of-13 mark was not enough to keep pace with the torrid start from TWU.

Things evened out in the second quarter, with the Bulldogs shooting at 8-of-20 and the Buffs managing a 10-of-19 clip. The second was the highest scoring quarter for Milligan in the contest, as they provided 26 points to reach 37 for the opening half. The TWU output of 21 points kept them in the lead by a slim margin at 41-37 with half of the game left to be played.

A dismal third period followed for both offenses, as TWU shot just 5-of-16 and Milligan could only manage a 4-of-16 conversion rate. The slow offensive frame led to a low-scoring 13-10 period in favor of the Bulldogs, putting MU down by seven points with 10 minutes remaining at 54-47.

Milligan would do just enough in the fourth quarter to regain the lead momentarily at 66-63, but a game-tying three-point shot by Tennessee Wesleyan made it a 66-66 tie heading to overtime. Neither side shot the ball with efficiency in the period, but MU took more shots, going 7-of-19 from the field. The Bulldogs had only 13 shot attempts and made just five.

The overtime period started with the Buffaloes falling behind 72-68, but they would fight back with a 9-0 run over the next 2:23 to take a commanding 77-72 lead with 14 seconds left on the clock. Tennessee Wesleyan would knock down a three to make it 77-75, but Milligan then sunk two free throws with 10 seconds left to make it a two-possession game and seal the championship for the Buffs, 79-75.

Jaycie Jenkins' 23 points were tops on the team, with Lauren Longmire providing 19 points on a 6-of-10 day from the field. Semaj Clark also put up 18 points of her own, boasting the same 8-of-17 mark that Jenkins had.

Clark and Lina Lyon passed out five assists apiece, while Jenkins, McKenna Myers and Jenna Hare distributed two each. Longmire and Kenzie Campbell combined for the other two dimes handed out.

Jenkins had an outstanding 15 rebounds in the victory to lead the team by seven. Clark's eight backboards came next, with Myers and Hare snatching five each. Longmire nabbed four, and Lyon, Tessa Gibson and Naomi Atchley hauled in one apiece.

Defensively, Milligan had eight steals and six blocks, as Longmire was credited with four rejections in the contest. Jenkins had three steals and a block, while Clark and Lyon both had two steals. Campbell had one of each in the Buffaloes' championship title win.

Milligan will now look forward to Thursday, Mar. 6 at 7 p.m. ET for the NAIA Women's Basketball National Championship Selection Show, where they will learn the location that they will head to for their First and Second Round tilts on Mar. 14-15.