COLUMBIA - Winning in February and March is the key to success in men's college basketball, and CIU continues to do just that as they downed Milligan (Tenn.) on Saturday 76-71. Even with the win, the Rams still sit two games back of second-place Pikeville (Ky.) in the league, which they will meet next weekend in a game with postseason implications. CIU's win over the Buffs gives them the season sweep over their Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) opponent and moves the Rams to 16-9 overall and 15-6 in the AAC. 

Milligan opened the game with some physical play on the defensive end of the floor, but despite this, the Rams would grow an early first-half advantage of 17- 9 on a Bryce Causey triple (14:36). The Buffs scrambled back to take the advantage however, and the Rams wouldn't regain the lead until the 6:43 mark on a Brandon Hunt pair of free throws (26-25). The Rams trailed by as much as seven before a Johnny Whysong layin put CIU down just 36-33 heading into the intermission. 

The Rams would not see a lead again until the 3:42 mark in the second-half as a Jalen Brinson layup put CIU in front 66-65. From there, a Hunt steal and finish would grow the advantage, and the Rams locked in on the defensive end as CIU closed out the game with free throws to secure the five-point win. 

Christian Howard led the Rams in scoring with 17 points on 7-of-11 shooting. DiAnthony Heathcock continues to dominate, recording a monster stat line of 16 points and 15 rebounds. The veteran guard combo of Brinson and Darrian Oates chipped in a combined 22 points, with each scoring 11. 

On the defensive side of the ball, the Rams held AAC leading scorer Follie Bogan to 0-of-5 shooting from beyond the arc, as the Buffs shot just 23% from deep as a team. 

Hear from Christian Howard postgame:

Up Next: The Rams face a showdown of AAC top teams as they travel to Pikeville, Ky. on Wednesday, Feb. 14, for a matchup with the UPike Bears at 7:30 p.m. EST.