Jada Richardson (11) attempts a free throw during the second half of the Knights’ home loss to Milligan on Monday.
Andrew Smolar | The Laurinburg Exchange
Jaylin McDuffie (12) plays defense in transition against Finn McClure (10). McDuffie had 13 points in the loss.
Andrew Smolar | The Laurinburg Exchange
Christopher Coleman (0) goes up for a contested layup during the first half.
Andrew Smolar | The Laurinburg Exchange
This was the last game for both teams before the New Year. They will both head to Tennessee for a conference battle with Bryan on Saturday, Jan. 4.
Andrew Smolar | The Laurinburg Exchange
LAURINBURG —The St. Andrews Knights women’s basketball team saw their two-game winning streak come to an end on Monday afternoon in a 75-55 home loss to conference rival Milligan at Harris Court. St. Andrews falls to 5-8 (2-5 against conference opponents) on the season with the loss while the Buffaloes improve to 7-5 (6-2 in AAC play) with the victory.
The Knights started the game on a mission, going up 10-0 within the first 3:40 of game action and not allowing Milligan to score any points until four minutes had passed. However, the Buffaloes scored seven in a row at one point in the quarter and had the deficit trimmed down to 19-14 after 10 minutes.
Milligan then carried over that momentum and dominated the second quarter, scoring 29 points to just 10 for the Knights. After trailing 23-20, the Buffaloes scored nine points in a row and held St. Andrews without any points for over three minutes. Things didn’t get any easier for the Knights after that as Milligan outscored the Knights 14-4 over the last 4:32 of the half and took a 43-29 advantage into the locker room.
St. Andrews scored first to start the second half on a layup from Alexandria Barrino but then immediately saw the deficit balloon all the way up to 19 (50-31) at the midway point of the quarter. The Knights did play a little better in the third quarter, only allowing 15 points while scoring 12 but still trailed 58-41 after 30 minutes.
The fourth quarter was pretty much the same story. St. Andrews scored the first four points almost immediately, this time on a jump shot by Madison Larrimore and layup from Londaisha Smith to have the margin down to 58-45 within the first minute. However, the Buffaloes answered back with a 9-1 run over the next two minutes to bring the lead up to 21 (67-46) with 6:53 remaining and would cruise to the finish line from there and win the game comfortably.
The only notable statistic the Knights had an advantage in was points in the paint (16-14). Otherwise, Milligan had the edge in field goal percentage (40.9%-39%), three-point percentage (22.7%-11.1%), free throw percentage (84.2%-80%), rebounds (39-29), assists (16-11), turnovers committed (11-17), points off turnovers (16-5), second chance points (11-9) and bench points (27-16).
Smith led St. Andrews in scoring with 16 points on an efficient 7-13 shooting effort from the floor while also adding three rebounds, two assists and two steals in the loss. Jamicia Davis paced the team in rebounds with seven, assists with four and added 10 points.
The Knights will have nearly three weeks until their next game, which will be on Saturday, Jan. 4 at Bryan. Tipoff is scheduled for noon in Tennessee that day.
Men’s team falls to Milligan
The Knights hosted conference rival Milligan on Monday afternoon at Harris Court, falling in a 79-62 final. St. Andrews falls to 1-8 (0-6 against conference opponents) on the season with the loss while the Buffaloes climb over .500 and improve to 8-7 (4-4 in conference play) with the win.
The first half was very competitive, with the Buffaloes scoring first but never leading by more than three (9-6 and 11-8) before the Knights took their first lead thanks to a 5-0 run that put them up 13-11. St. Andrews then scored six in a row shortly after that put them up by seven (19-12) nearly eight minutes into the game.
Milligan then responded in a big way, going on a lengthy 24-6 surge that flipped the game and put them up 36-25 with just 4:33 left until halftime. However, as if according to script, St. Andrews immediately scored seven in a row as part of a 15-3 run from that point to be up 40-38 at the break.
A Braylon Barfield jump shot 35 seconds into the second half extended St. Andrews’ lead to four (42-38). Unfortunately for the Knights, that would be the high point as Milligan then scored 14 unanswered points over the next four minutes and never trailed again. They controlled the game from that point on, leading by as many as 22 in the process of coasting to victory.
The Knights had the advantage in turnovers committed with 10 compared to 20 for Milligan and in points off turnovers (22-19) but otherwise didn’t hold an edge in any key area. The Buffaloes had better numbers in field goal percentage (50.8%-39.7%), free throw percentage (68.8%-46.2%), rebounds (46-19), assists (16-9), second chance points (7-2), points in the paint (32-20) and bench points (37-10).
Mateu Escamilla led St. Andrews in scoring with 21 points, in rebounds with eight and in steals with three. Ma’Nas Drummond and Jaylin McDuffie had 14 and 13 points, respectively.
The Knights will have an exhibition contest on Tuesday night at Liberty University and another on Dec. 31 at NC Central University. The next game that will count toward their record will be on Jan. 4 at Bryan. Tipoff will be at 4 p.m. that day in Tennessee.