Randall Moore
Reporter
Throughout the 2003-2004 basketball season, the Lady Buffaloes struggled to find their identity. The tumultuous regular season, however, came to an end Saturday evening at the Steve Lacy Fieldhouse on Senior Night as the Lady Buffaloes fell to Brevard 82-86.
“This season has not lived up to our expectations and we are hoping to take the
opportunity in the conference tournament to start fresh,” said head coach Rich
Aubrey, “We are focusing on beating (Virginia Intermont) right now and hoping to
win the tournament.”
The year started out with high hopes with the return of senior co-captain Nicky
Jessen from injury. Jessen, who scored over 1,000 in her first three seasons at
Milligan, was expected to help strengthen the strong Milligan backcourt.
Transfer sophomore Leah Seevers was expected to be a vital piece to the puzzle.
Seevers transferred from Bethel College (Ind.) where she helped her team win the
NAIA National Championship last year.
For the last game of the season the problem with the Lady Buffaloes was on the
defensive end.
“We played well on the offensive end, but a few defensive lapses led them to get
easy shots,” sophomore Kari Stout said.
Offense was not a problem as Milligan enjoyed one of their highest scoring
totals of the season and shot a blistering 50 percent from the field in the
first half and 44 percent for the game. Brevard, however, shot 51 percent and
hit nine of 19 three-pointers in the game. Despite Milligan’s defensive lapses
that allowed Brevard to shoot 53 percent in the second half, the Lady Buffs
found themselves with a chance to win the game.
Down 73-83 with two minutes left in the game, Milligan employed their full-court
pressure defense that led to a quick 9-0 run and shrunk Brevard’s lead down to
only one point.
However, they missed the shot on a crucial possession and had to foul Brevard,
who hit both free throws for an 82-85 lead. After Seevers had a three-pointer go
in and out, Milligan fouled one final time and Brevard hit one free throw for a
final score of 82-86, a small margin of victory.
The season, however, is not over for the Lady Buffs. The AAC Tournament began
Wednesday when Milligan faced off against Virginia Intermont at 9:15 p.m. at
Virginia High School in Bristol, Va. Statistics from the game were not available
in time for publication in the Stampede.