By Matt Goehner and Matt Haren
Get your brackets ready, Milligan. The Lady Buffaloes are headed to the NAIA Division II Women’s Basketball Tournament. The regular season Appalachian Athletic Conference champions will depart for Sioux City, Iowa, on Monday, and will take on Missouri-based College of the Ozarks Thursday, March 7, at 3:30 p.m. CST.
Sporting a 23-9 overall record (16-2 conference) the Lady Buffaloes drew a seventh seed in the tournament. The women enter the tournament having won 11 of their last 13 games.
The Lady Buffaloes are led by a trio of talented seniors in Dorian Freeman, Johneshia Good, and Jamie Hill. When asked about his seniors’ leadership, Coach Rich Aubrey said, “I have never had a class as passionate about basketball as our three seniors.”
Those three lead the balanced Milligan scoring attack that has four players averaging more than nine points per game. The Lady Buffs have used their exceptional speed and team basketball to their advantage and will look to get out and attack their opponent over the full length of the floor.
Their opponent, second seed College of the Ozarks, boasts a 29-4 record and is the regular season and tournament champion of the Midlands Collegiate Athletic Conference. The Lady Bobcats are led by senior center Morgan Smith who is the third highest scorer in the country averaging 24 points per game. College of the Ozarks leads the country in rebounds per game, out-rebounding their opponents by an average of nearly 12 rebounds per contest. They also are in the top three in assists per game with 19.
milliganstampede
