No. 12 Bulldogs survive Milligan rally, now 12-0 in AAC

MILLIGAN, Tenn. - Nearly a calendar year removed from its last Appalachian Athletic Conference loss, the Union men's basketball team knows it will get every opponent's best shot.

And while the 12th-ranked Bulldogs were able to stretch their AAC win streak to 25 with a 95-92 win at Milligan, few teams have offered more resistance than the Buffs did in the final six minutes of Monday's game.

After falling behind by as many as eight points in the first half, the Bulldogs seemed to have the game under control, using an 8-0 run to take a 39-34 lead at halftime. That lead got as high as 15 in the second half, thanks to a Markelle Turner 3-pointer and dunk on consecutive possessions that made it 77-62 with 4:55 to go.

But to say the Buffs didn't go away quietly would be an understatement. After a timeout, Piripi Korent connected on a layup that kick-started an absurd stretch where Milligan was able to score on 13 consecutive possessions.

The Bulldog lead was still 88-79 with 32 seconds left, but was quickly slashed when Jackson Gabriel and Dylan Bartley hit 3s on consecutive possessions.

The Bulldogs did their part at the foul line late and needed every make. After a Milligan technical free throw cut the lead to 91-89, Markelle Turner hit two free throws. The Buffs then gave themselves a chance to win on another Bartley triple to make it 93-92, before Deonte Douglas hit two free throws to push the lead back to three with five seconds to play.

Mercifully, the Buffs' astounding offensive run ran out of steam, as a Drew Green 3-point try at the buzzer was no good.

Though it hurt them defensively, the 3-point shot saved the Bulldog offense, as they hit 13-of-22 tries, with the surge led by a surprise source.

Though he's averaged 23.5 points in his first four games as a Bulldog, Markelo Sullivan had done most of his damage at the rim, going just 2-for-10 from 3-point range in his first three games. But the long range shots were falling with ease on Monday, as Sullivan hit 6-of-9 3-point tries en route to scoring a game-high 23 points.

He got plenty of help, as all five Union starters had at least 12 points. Turner and Douglas had 22 and 20 respectively with Terrin Hamilton and Israel Farrington recording 15 and 12. Turner and Douglas did damage in the passing game as well, finishing with six and five assists respectively.

The game made up after a Dec. 3 postponement.

Union improves to 13-1 overall and 11-0 in the AAC. The Bulldogs hope for a smoother go of things Wednesday, when they open a three-game home stand against Johnson at 7:30 p.m.