Troy University Athletics
Trojans Come Up Short at GW
12/16/2008 6:00:00 AM | Basketball (W)
WASHINGTON, DC - Troy came up short in their upset bid of George Washington, falling 63-61 on the road at the Charles E. Smith Arena.
Kylie Morrissy paced the Trojan effort with 20 points on 7-of-12 shooting from the floor and 6-of-8 shooting from the free throw line. Sarah McAppion came off the bench to add 12, while Alyce Shearing added 11 points and six rebounds.
Tara Booker led GW (5-3) with 18 points, while Jessica Adair added 15 off the bench and her twin sister Jazmine Adair 10 in the Colonials victory.
"I am really proud of the way we played tonight," Troy coach Michael Murphy said. "This was a terrific team that we played tonight. You look up at the banners hanging from the roof here, and you realize that they are the standard-bearer for the Atlantic-10 for years."
Troy (3-5) and GW were locked in a battle with three minutes to play in the contest, after McAppion drove to the basket with 3:16 remaining to trim the Colonials' lead to 57-55. After a GW turnover, the Trojans came right back down the court for a Morrissy 3-point attempt. The ball did everything but go through the net, as it rolled around and out with 2:45 remaining.
After the miss, a foul was called on Troy following the rebound and sent Erica Rivera to the line where she missed the front end of a one-and-one, before Morrissy came down on the other end and connected on a 12-foot baseline jumper to tie the game at 57-all. The Trojans took their first lead with 2:03 remaining when McAppion took a pass from Donette McNair, after a McNair steal, for a 59-57 lead.
GW tied the game at 59-all on a lay-up from Jessica Adair, before Morrissy connected on a pair of free throws to take a 61-59 lead with 46.7 seconds remaining. After GW's Jessica Adair tied the game at 61-all with just 36 seconds remaining, the Trojans turned the ball over with just 14.4 seconds remaining - forcing a timeout.
After the timeout, Larelle Roper fouled Rivera who connected on both free throws with 11.2 seconds remaining to give the Colonials a two-point lead at 63-61. The Trojans had a chance, but the size inside of GW paid off in the final seconds, preserving the victory for the home team.
"I am proud of our effort," Murphy said. "The freshmen and the bench stepped up to play tonight, and that really helped us."
After trailing by as many as nine in the second half, the Trojans climbed back into the contest with a chance to tie the game with 7:49 to play in regulation. McAppion scored five consecutive points for Troy to trim the deficit to just one, but a media timeout cost the Trojans as she missed the free throw after the 105 second break.
Following the miss, GW used a pair of free throws each from Stefani Munro and Kay-Kay Allums to push the lead back to five at 55-50. The Trojans had a chance to tie the game against, trailing 53-50, but a 3-pointer missed wide and GW was able to capitalize with the two Allums free throws with 6:20 remaining in regulation. The Trojans outscored GW 10-5 over the span of 6:19 to pull within a point.
Troy continued to push the tempo in the second half following each GW miss or turnover. Morrissy was the beneficiary as she fouled two consecutive times down the floor. She converted on three of the four free throws, pulling Troy to within two at 55-53 with 5:01 remaining.
The Colonials took a 57-53 lead with 4:38 on a Jessica Adair short jumper, before a missed opportunity by Troy led to a GW 30-second timeout with 3:43 remaining in the contest.
With their two leading scorers on the bench midway through the first half and trailing by 10 (15-25), the Trojans turned to a trio of underclassmen to climb back into the contest. Following a 12-foot jumper from senior Danielle Realph to trim the deficit to 25-17 with 9:12 remaining, the Trojans closed the gap to five over the next 6:17.
"We just didn't shoot the ball well in the first half," Murphy said. "To shoot what we did in the first half and be down by just six says a lot about our defense."
After GW jumped back ahead by 12, Troy used baskets from Shearing and Morrissy to close the gap to 28-21. The Colonials pushed the lead to 30-21 on a lay-up from Jessica Adair, before McAppion connected on a free throw for Troy to trim the deficit to 30-22. After calling for a substitution during defensive play, freshman Jacklyn Selfe promptly went down the floor and drained a 3-pointer with 2:36 to play in the half and trim the deficit to 32-25.
The two teams would trade baskets over the final two minutes of the first half, with GW taking a 35-29 lead at the half when Troy's Roper took a shot that rimmed off as the horn sounded.
"We just have to find a way to get it done in the final 30 seconds," Murphy said. "Tonight shows where our program is and where it is headed. Now we get to go on the road to face the two teams (Middle and WKU) that get it done in the conference, we just have to get ready to practice the next two days."
Troy returns to action Saturday at Middle Tennessee State University in the Sun Belt Conference opener for the Trojans. The game is scheduled for 7 pm at the Murphy Center on the campus of Middle Tennessee.
