Troy University Athletics
Saturday, March 7
Mobile, Ala.
2 p.m.
Troy University
20-9, 15-5SBC
86
at
79
South Alabama
5-24, 2-18SBC
1
2
F
Troy
40
46
86
South Alabama
44
35
79
Team Stats
TROY
USA
FG%
.411
.423
3FG%
.429
.259
FT%
.769
.750
RB
41
47
TO
21
28
STL
14
9
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
20
FGM
7
3FGM
1
FTM
5
Pts
18
FGM
5
3FGM
3
FTM
5
Pts
17
FGM
6
3FGM
1
FTM
4
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Players Mentioned
G
/ Basketball (W)G
/ Basketball (W)F
/ Basketball (W)G
/ Basketball (W)
F
/ Basketball (W)
Photo by: Chris Davis
Trojans Run Win Streak to Eight Games, Grab 20th Win
3/7/2015 5:34:00 PM | Basketball (W)
MOBILE, Alabama – The Troy women's basketball team moved its winning streak to eight games and won its 20th game of the season with an 86-79 win over rival South Alabama on Saturday afternoon at the Mitchell Center.
Troy (20-9, 15-5) picked up just the fourth 20-win season in the program's 40-year history and did so by running its current winning streak to eight games, the longest in the program's Division I history.
The Trojans finish the regular season in third place in the Sun Belt standings and will open the Sun Belt Championships on Wednesday. Troy will take on UL Lafayette in the quarterfinals of the tournament at 7:30 p.m. at Lakefront Arena in New Orleans.
On Saturday against South Alabama (5-24, 2-18), Troy withstood a hot start from the Jaguars and pressured South Alabama into 20 second-half turnovers to take control late.
Ashley Beverly-Kelley scored 13 of her 20 points in the second half and led a group of five starters that all finished in double figures for Troy. Ronita Garrett posted her sixth straight double-double with 13 points and 16 rebounds, moving her Sun Belt leading total to 21 double-doubles this season.
Kourtney Coleman posted 18 points and was instrumental in the early stages as she hit her first three 3-pointers to withstand a hot start from South Alabama. The Jaguars hit their first four 3-pointers and led by as many as seven in the first half before taking a 44-40 lead into the locker room.
Troy, however, stuck with a pressure defense that South Alabama solved in the first half and saw the Jaguars turn it over 20 times in the second half.
"We weren't getting much off of our pressure in the first half," Troy head coach Chanda Rigby said. "But we kept with it, hoping they would wear down a little bit and their legs would get a little tired in the second half. It looked like it worked and we picked up some steals."
The second 20 minutes were back-and-forth early before Aissata Maiga put the Trojans ahead for good. The senior scored six points in an 8-0 run that gave Troy a 62-59 lead with 11:06 to go, after trailing by five less than two minutes prior. The Trojans extended the run to 14-5 and led by seven, 68-61, with 8:25 to go.
Maiga finished with 17 points on 6-of-8 shooting from the floor, including a 3-pointer. Caitlyn Ramirez was the fifth starter in double figures with 10 points.
South Alabama never got closer than four points, and didn't do that until 1:24 to go in the game. The Trojans then went 7-of-10 from the free throw line after that, and grabbed an offensive rebound on all three misses to ice away the game.
In all, Troy forced South Alabama into 28 turnovers and scored 25 points off of them. The Trojans shot 41 percent (30-of-73) on the night, including 6-of-14 from long range, but all six makes came in the first half.
South Alabama shot 42 percent (30-of-71) and 7-of-27 from deep, but hit just 1-of-11 from long range in the second half. Troy hit 20-of-26 free throws and South Alabama hit 12-of-16, that after the two sides combined for just three free throws in the first half.
Freshman point guard Marquita Daniels led South Alabama with 33 points and five assists, but also committed nine turnovers. Chyna Ellis had a double-double with 10 points and 16 rebounds for South Alabama, who outrebounded Troy, 47-41.
The win was Troy's fifth straight over South Alabama and gave the Trojans a season sweep over a Sun Belt opponent for the sixth time this season.
The Trojans now turn their attention to next week's Sun Belt Championships where they will be the tournament's No. 3 seed, the highest seed ever for the Trojans in that tournament.
Troy swept UL Lafayette this season, winning two low scoring games by five points each. The Cajuns are coming off of an 87-65 loss at Arkansas State on Saturday.
For more information on Troy Athletics, visit TroyTrojans.com. Fans can also find Troy on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube by searching for Troy Athletics.
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Monday, April 28
Underdogs Untold: Title Ticket Punched
Friday, April 04
Chanda Rigby WNIT Championship Press Conference
Friday, April 04
Chanda Rigby Postgame Press Conference - Illinois State
Thursday, April 03