Chris Strain reckons his Kilwinning side lost their nerve as Rutherglen roared back from three goals down to earn a point.
A brilliant Chris McGowan double and superb strikes from Calvin Kemp and Adam Caldwell had the Ayrshire outfit cruising at 4-1 at the break.
It was hard to see a way back for the hosts who had been totally outclassed in a one-sided opening 45 minutes at the Hamish B Allan stadium.
But Harry Mitchell's goal two minutes after the restart set the stage for a stunning comeback as Buffs completely lost their way.
Jack McIlveen reduced the deficit further with a close range header around the hour mark before Mitchell sensationally drew Glens level with a superb free-kick eight minutes from time.
For the second successive weekend, Buffs had to settle for a point after blowing a healthy advantage. They were pegged back by Glenafton last Saturday after leading 3-1.
And Strain, who kept his players in the dressing room long after the full-time whistle, reckons that may have played on minds after conceding so early in the second half.
He said: "We were poor in the second half. We lost the fight.
"I thought Rutherglen were particularly poor in the first half and I knew they wouldn't be as bad in the second half.
"As a coach you give players the warning signs. Rutherglen then go and score two minutes after the restart and that's not good enough.
"From there on in, we went into a wee shell and, probably as a result of losing a lead last week, we start feeling a wee bit uncomfortable.
"If you allow that to fester then the vulnerabilities show.
"We struggled to get any passages of play and that's because people got nervous and anxious.
"That's not what we need. We need leadership and strength.
"It's not an individual thing, it's a collective thing. It's something we need to address."
"Fair play to Rutherglen, they kept at it and kept asking us questions and we didn't have the answers."
Kilwinning built on a strong start by taking the lead with 13 minutes on the clock, McGowan getting on the end of Carlo Monti's corner kick to power home a bullet header from eight yards.
It was 2-0 seven minutes later, Calvin Kemp taking an exquisite first touch from McGowan's knockdown to manoeuvre room for a shot from 14 yards that squeezed into the bottom corner.
The visitors were well on top but Rutherglen pulled a goal back against the run of play five minutes later after a mix-up in the Buffs defence.
Keeper Jamie Barclay and centre-half David Syme seemed to leave a cross ball to each other allowing Michael Lone to nip in and prod the ball home from close range.
The action was soon back up the other end however and two goals in as many minutes put Kilwinning well and truly in the driving seat.
McGowan almost burst the net with a rasping finish from seven yards after getting on the end of Syme's knockdown in 37 minutes.
Caldwell then capped a mazy run into the Glens box from the right touchline with a cool finish from 17 yards.
Glens looked down and out and even the diehards in their support must have been fearing a real hiding.
But whatever boss Willie Harvey said to his players at half-time had the desired effect.
Mitchell headed home a corner kick in 47 minutes to give them hope.
Buffs just couldn't settle into a rhythm and the hosts pulled another one back in 67 minutes, McIlveen ghosting in at the back post to head home a cross from the left.
The comeback was then complete in 82 minutes when Mitchell found the top corner with a curling free kick from 20 yards.
The result sees Kilwinning replaced at the top of the West of Scotland Premier Division by Auchinleck Talbot who won 2-0 at Bonnyton.
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