Troy University Athletics
Troy University
Southern Utah University
Trojans Rally In Second Half to Beat Southern Utah
11/26/2011 10:24:00 PM | Basketball (M)
Cedar City, Utah - Down by eight to Southern Utah with 13:23 left in the second half, the Troy men's basketball team refused to lose and ended a 12-game losing streak to non-conference opponents on the road, knocking off the Thunderbirds, 80-76.
Troy (2-3) had four double-figure scorers on the night, but none bigger than junior guard Will Weathers, who scored 20 points in the second half to lead the Trojans with 22 points in the four-point victory over Southern Utah.
R.J. Scott added 17 points, Alan Jones chipped in 14 points off the bench, and Emil Jones knotched a career-high 13 points in 26 minutes.
"It's tough when you start off with four D-I games on the road, four of the first five on the road, this a big victory for our team, this is their first taste of winning," head coach Don Maestri.
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TROY 80, SOUTHERN UTAH 76
Early in the first half, Troy went to the three-point shot, hitting 6-of-16 for 38 percent. Sophomore guard R.J. Scott led Troy from behind the arc with four trey's. The Thunderbirds of Southern Utah went to the paint early, as 22 of their 42 points came inside in the first half.
Junior Alan Jones and Scott would hit three straight baskets from behind the three-point line to give Troy a 19-14 lead, forcing a SUU timeout.
Emil Jones added 13 points in the first half, a career-high for the junior in just his second career start as a Trojan.
Scott and Alan Jones would hit back-to-back jumpers to give the Trojans a 13-point lead, their biggest of the half, with 5:11 to play in the first half.
Troy's hot shooting would cool off as the end of the half neared. Southern Utah's 14-2 run over the last 2:54 of the first half, combined with the Trojans' not hitting a basket for the final 2:35 of the first half, gave the Thunderbirds a two-point lead heading into the half.
The Thunderbirds would make five-of-six shots to close the half, as Southern Utah would make 16-of-29 shots from the field.
For the third straight game, Troy was out rebounded in the first half, as Southern Utah would grab 17 rebounds to Troy's 13.
However, the Trojans would take advantage of second-chance points, as Troy would get 12 second-chance points in the first half.
Down eight with 13:23 left in the second half, Will Weathers would take charge hitting back-to-back three's to cut the Southern Utah lead down to two points with 12 minutes to play.
Weathers scored 20 of his 22 points in the second half, while adding seven assists, four rebounds, and two steals in the victory.
With less than eight minutes to play, junior forward Ray Chambers hit four-straight free throws to tie the game at 65-65.
Chambers then got a tip in off a missed shot from Scott to give Troy a 67-66 lead with 6:35 left. The tip in gave Troy's its first lead of the second half.
"We were really good a the free-throw line, Chambers was big, so was Weathers," Maestri said.
Off the bench, Chambers provided a spark for the Trojans inside the paint, as he tallied eight points and led the Trojans with six rebounds.
With the game tied at 69-69 and down two players as Emil Jones and R.J. Scott were on the bench with five fouls, Weathers took charge, once again, scoring the last 11 points for the Trojans in the final four minutes of play.
With Troy down 70-69, Weather's gave the Trojans lead, after making a lay up through two defenders and then picking up the foul. Weathers capped the three point play by hitting the free throw to give Troy a 72-70 advantage.
Weathers hit two more jumpers to give the Trojans a 76-72 lead, with less than 45 seconds to play.
Despite shooting 14-of-19 from the free throw line, misses by Weathers and senior Tim Owens gave the Thunderbirds a shot down the stretch to tie the game with under a minute to play in regulation, but it was the junior Weathers who hit four free throws to seal the 80-76 victory for Troy.
Southern Utah's hot shooting cooled down in the second half, as the Thunderbirds shot just 31 percent from the field, while the Trojans were 12-of-24 from the field in the second half.
The Trojans were out rebounded 40-28 by the Thunderbirds, but Troy would take advantage of 15 Southern Utah turnovers and score 14 points off turnovers.
Troy returns home to take on the East Tennessee State Buccaneers on November 29. The Trojans fell 81-71 to the Buccaneers on the road on November 19.
