Eagles Pick Up Second AAC Win in a Row Against Milligan

Elizabethton, TN - Eagles held on in the final seconds to pick up another much-needed AAC win in Wednesday night's game versus Milligan. The Eagles swept the series with Milligan winning the first one at home 72-66 and tonight winning on the road 83-79.

The Eagles secured the win on a steal by Greg Hobbs with just six seconds left and quickly passed the ball to Jalin Wimberly who had already worked his way upcourt. Wimberly's two-handed slam put the Eagles up by three points with just three seconds left. After a timeout by Milligan, the Eagles picked up the Buffalo players at midcourt to immediately foul placing Milligan at the line. It was a great move by Coach Newton because it prevented Milligan from getting up a potential game tieing score. After missing the free throws, Antonio Spencer got the final rebound and was quickly fouled. Spencer made the second of two shots putting the Eagles up by four and getting the game out of reach.

The game was close throughout, however, the Eagles were able to get a ten-point lead about halfway through the first half. Spencer's layup at the eight-minute mark gave the Eagles their largest lead of the game. The Buffalos would battle their way back into the game after this getting to within just two points of the Eagles in the final seconds of the first half. Brandon Barron's three-pointer at the buzzer to end the first half would give the Eagles a little cushion with a 36-31 lead.

The Eagles would hold onto their slim lead for the first five minutes of the second half, but Milligan was able to catch them and take a two-point lead with just fourteen minutes left in the game. The game would stay extremely tight the rest of the way, however, the Eagles would trail until they were able to take the lead again with just six minutes remaining. Nate Louis hit a three-pointer followed by a quick jump shot by Barron to get them back in front 70 to 67. 

After trading leads and several ties, the Eagles finally took the final lead of the game with just two minutes left on a Wimberly layup. The Eagles continued to make free throws and shots in the final minute to secure the win.

The Eagles had four players with double-digit scoring led by Tafari Thomas with 20 points. Thomas also had a strong game on the boards pulling down 9 rebounds.  Jalin Wimberly had another good game scoring putting in 15 points and Nate Louis added 18 points. Brandon Barron was a spark off the bench scoring 10 points and Antonio Spencer had a solid game with 9 points and 8 rebounds.

The win gets the AAC record to 8-6, but they are still sitting in 7th position. They will need to keep the wins coming the rest of the way through to move up the standings and secure a good spot for the AAC Tournament. They have ten remaining games all with conference opponents so a successful finish will surely move them up the AAC ladder. 

Their next game is this Saturday on the road at Kentucky Christian. The next home game will be Tuesday, January 17th with a matchup with Bryan College.