Lady Buffs coach Aubrey notches 200th career victory

By Matt Hill
STAR STAFF
mhill@starhq.com

   According to Milligan women's head basketball coach Rich Aubrey, the number 12 was bigger than the number 200 on Saturday night.
   Milligan improved to 12-7 in Appalachian Athletic Conference play yesterday with a 67-59 victory over Union College at Steve Lacy Fieldhouse.
   The win also marked the 200th for Aubrey in an outstanding career that has included four trips to the national tournament.
   Aubrey is only in his 10th season, meaning he is averaging over 20 wins a year.
   But according to Aubrey, what happened on the court Saturday night was more important than the ceremony that took place at halftime of the men's contest.
   "Tonight, number 12 is a whole lot more important than 200," Aubrey said. "It means so much to our team to get our 12th conference win. We've put ourselves in position to have a really strong finish, and be on a roll going into the tournament, and that's a whole lot more important to me right now than 200."
   In Aubrey's 10 years at Milligan College, he has tried to seek out the best local talent, particularly in Carter County.
   That made it even more appropriate that the second half rally which helped Aubrey get No. 200 was keyed by former Hampton Lady Bulldog Ginny White.
   The point guard has been showing more of a scorer's mentality in college, and Saturday night was no exception.
   Union led 48-43 with 12 minutes left, but two consecutive threes by White, including one that was banked, put the Buffs on top 44-43.
   It gave Milligan the spark it needed to win the basketball game.
   "I really wanted to win," White said, who scored all 14 of her points in the second half. "That's the mentality I came in with. Even in the first half, I got a couple of shots off that didn't go in. But one thing I have gotten in college this year that I never really had in high school is confidence. I have an extreme amount of confidence in myself. My teammates and my coaches have helped me with that more than anything. I know now that even if I do miss, if I'm open I still have to shoot. They're eventually going to fall for me, and tonight they did."
   Union still had a chance to win late, as it was only down 61-59 with 1:05 left. But White, who had missed from the foul line just seconds earlier, mailed two key free-throws to make it a 63-59 Lady Buffalo lead.
   The game was iced after Union missed a one-and-one attempt by another former Hampton standout. This time it was Amanda Greene that put in a big basket inside with 21.5 seconds left to seal the deal.
   Greene didn't want White's second half effort to go to waste.
   "She's done really well this year," Greene said, who finished with 10 points. "She stepping it up this year. She saw the floor real well tonight, too. She was more calm, and she got into the flow of things."
   Aubrey was very proud of White for her floor game, and the way she hit big baskets.
   Aubrey thought her biggest bucket might have been late when she hit a three to make the score 60-56.
   "I thought Ginny had a very, very solid floor game, and just played tough," he said. "She's developed the ability to make big shots. Obviously, the three to get it out to four, that was a huge basket. And she did a great job defensively. When we played at Union, they took advantage of her size, and they were able to score some points over her. Tonight, she was determined to see fit to not let that happen. I thought she did a great job on both ends of the floor."
   It was more than just White who shined on this night, as Kristin Kerkvliet and Lacy York had 11 and eight rebounds, respectively.
   Amanda Vance topped Union with 14 points.
   The Lady Buffs will be back in action Tuesday night against a Carter County dominated King squad.