Day’s Electric Offense Paces Trojans Over 100 in Victory Against Milligan

XENIA, Ohio – Izaiah Day led an electric offensive outing for Taylor in a 102-91 victory over Milligan (3-9, 2-6 AAC) at the John Wooden Family Fieldhouse on Tuesday afternoon.

Playing less than an hour away from his hometown, Day scored a career-high 34 points as Taylor went over the century mark for the second time this season. The junior guard was 11-12 from the field connecting on an incredible seven threes and converting five free throws in a dynamic display. Day added five rebounds, two steals, and an assist throughout the contest.

Nate Paarlberg and Anthony McGhee were the only other Trojans to hit more than one three pointer, with both pouring in 13 points for TU.

Taylor had its offense rolling early, racing out to a 22-5 lead under five minutes into the action, with Day hitting a trio of triples and dishing out seven assists on the first eight baskets led by three from starting point guard Carson Gould.

The Trojans were on fire from downtown to begin the game, making ten of their first 12 attempts pushing the lead out to 21 points at 41-20 after a layup by Day.

Turnovers plagued the Taylor offense, losing the ball ten times in the first half as the Buffalos cut the lead down to eight before seven quick points restored the double-digit advantage and Taylor went into the locker room with a 51-40 lead.

Milligan cut the lead to six early in the second half, but an and-one by Pete Combs capped a 9-1 run to regain a double-digit advantage before a foul fest broke out in the second half. Combs scored 14 and dished out five assists as the defense doubled him.

The teams combined for 29 fouls and 39 attempts from the charity stripe in the second half, as Taylor had a comfortable lead but was never able to pull away from the Buffalos.

Day scored 19 of his points in the second, hitting all six shots from the field including three from beyond the arc and knocking down four free throws.

Elijah Bredwood was unstoppable for Milligan in the second half, scoring 35 of his game-high 45 points in the final 20 minutes including seven threes, which kept the Buffalos close until the end.

Leading 88-80, the momentum was against the Trojans until Day drained a pair of free throws after a technical foul and splashing home his final three to seal the victory.

TU shot over 50 percent from the field and beyond the arc while providing an assist on 22 of 33 made field goals. Gould led the team with nine helpers as the freshman point guard orchestrated the offense brilliantly.

Taylor (9-3, 3-1 CL) wraps up play in the Christmas at the Wooden event on Wednesday December 17, against St. Thomas (7-6, 0-3 SUN) in the red bracket championship at Wooden Family Fieldhouse in Xenia, Ohio, with tip scheduled for 2:45 pm.