Troy University Athletics
Trojans Run Streak To Four
12/22/2009 11:00:00 PM | Basketball (W)
BROOKLYN HEIGHTS, New York - After battling the elements and seeing the sights that New York City had to offer, the Troy University women's basketball team returned to the court Tuesday after two days off at the Pope Physical Education Complex.
Sophie Kleeman led a trio of Trojans in double figures as they were able to hold off St. Francis down the stretch for the 54-41 non-conference victory on the road.
The freshman poured in 12 points, while Sarah McAppion and Brittnie Davis each added 11 in the victory. McAppion recorded her first career double-double with 10 rebounds, while Davis added eight rebounds and a career-high six steals.
Troy (7-2, 1-0 Sun Belt) led big in the first half before St. Francis went on a run to start the second half, trimming the lead to 32-23 with 15 minutes to play in the contest. The Terriers scored six of the first nine points of the second half before Brittnie Davis took a pass from Tenia Manuel, and was able to put home the left-handed lay-up for a 34-23 lead with 14 minutes to play in the contest.
The lead stayed in double figures for most of the second half until the Terriers recorded a steal and Shannon Gantt was able to connect on a lay-up with just under 12 minutes to play in the contest - as the lead was trimmed to 36-27. The home team continued to trim into the deficit, trimming the lead to 36-29 with just under 11 minutes to play in the contest.
That run was halted when Alyce Shearing connected on a short jumper with 9:46 to play, pushing the lead back to nine at 38-29. After a St. Francis turnover, Sophie Kleeman drained a 3-pointer from the right wing to push the lead to 41-29 before the Terriers connected on another shot to trade baskets with the Trojans.
The game was not decided at that point as the Terriers knocked down a 3-pointer with just over seven minutes remaining to trim the lead to 41-34. The mini-run was pushed to 5-0 when Amber Lau knocked down a jumper from the right wing with 6:26 remaining to trim the lead to 41-36.
The run was ended when Donette McNair knocked down a free throw, followed by Sarah McAppion draining two more with 5:50 remaining in the contest to push the lead back to eight at 44-36.
St. Francis would just not go away from there, as Amber Lau knocked down another 3-pointer with 4:17 to play to bring the home team within three at 44-41. After a missed opportunity by the Trojans on the other end and a turnover on the next possession, the Trojans used their defense to keep St. Francis off the scoreboard on two consecutive possessions.
The defense stymied St. Francis on their next two possession, forcing a jump ball and then a steal by Sophie Kleeman. The steal led to a lay-up on the fastbreak by Davis for a 46-41 lead with 1:57 to play in the contest. From there, the Trojans took control as McAppion rebounded a missed 3-pointer from Kleeman and connected on a putback with 1:17 to play to extend the lead to 48-41.
From that point, the Trojans were able to hold off St. Francis for the victory with defense and key free throw shooting over the final 77 seconds.
After trailing for the first five minutes of the contest, the Trojans went on a 10-0 run over a three-minute span to take a 14-8 lead early in the first half. Trailing by four with 14:54 to play in the first half, Brittnie Davis drove to the lane for an uncontested lay-up, before Tenia Manuel drained a long 3-pointer from the right wing to trim the deficit to a single digit at 8-7.
After an Alyce Shearing free throw tied the game at 8-8 with 13:50 remaining in the first half, the Trojans took their first lead of the contest on a Davis 3-pointer with 13:16 to play. The lead was extended to six when Sophie Kleeman knocked down a 3-pointer from the left wing with 12:48 to play in the opening half.
The run continued in the first half for the Trojans after a pair of free throws by St. Francis, as Troy went on an 11-4 run to push the lead to 25-14. The run ended when the Terriers' Autumn Lau drained a 3-pointer from the top of key to trim Troy's lead to 25-17 with just under two minutes to play in the opening half.
The lead stayed that way until a pair of baskets by Troy closed the first half, giving Troy an insurmountable 29-17 advantage through the first 20 minutes.
St. Francis (1-8, 0-1 NEC) played without two of their top players on Tuesday evening. Kendra Williams (9.9 points per game and 7.9 rebounds per game) and Jacinda Williams (9.1 points per game) were both suspended for the game due to a violation of team rules.
The Terriers were led by Lau with 13 points and Gantt with 11 in the loss.
The Trojans shot 28.8 (17-of-59) percent from the floor and 23.8 (5-of-21) percent from beyond the arc. They also shot 57.7 (15-of-26) percent from the free throw line. Meanwhile, St. Francis shot 33.3 (17-of-51) percent from the floor and 26.7 (4-of-15) percent from beyond the arc. The Trojans won the rebounding battle 46-37, and forced 23 turnovers by St. Francis.
The Trojans return to action December 30 in Sun Belt Conference play, traveling to Fant-Ewing Coliseum to take on ULM. The game can be heard on WTBF-94.7 FM, with the pre-game show starting at 6:45 and tip set for 7 pm in Monroe, Louisiana.
Sophie Kleeman led a trio of Trojans in double figures as they were able to hold off St. Francis down the stretch for the 54-41 non-conference victory on the road.
The freshman poured in 12 points, while Sarah McAppion and Brittnie Davis each added 11 in the victory. McAppion recorded her first career double-double with 10 rebounds, while Davis added eight rebounds and a career-high six steals.
Troy (7-2, 1-0 Sun Belt) led big in the first half before St. Francis went on a run to start the second half, trimming the lead to 32-23 with 15 minutes to play in the contest. The Terriers scored six of the first nine points of the second half before Brittnie Davis took a pass from Tenia Manuel, and was able to put home the left-handed lay-up for a 34-23 lead with 14 minutes to play in the contest.
The lead stayed in double figures for most of the second half until the Terriers recorded a steal and Shannon Gantt was able to connect on a lay-up with just under 12 minutes to play in the contest - as the lead was trimmed to 36-27. The home team continued to trim into the deficit, trimming the lead to 36-29 with just under 11 minutes to play in the contest.
That run was halted when Alyce Shearing connected on a short jumper with 9:46 to play, pushing the lead back to nine at 38-29. After a St. Francis turnover, Sophie Kleeman drained a 3-pointer from the right wing to push the lead to 41-29 before the Terriers connected on another shot to trade baskets with the Trojans.
The game was not decided at that point as the Terriers knocked down a 3-pointer with just over seven minutes remaining to trim the lead to 41-34. The mini-run was pushed to 5-0 when Amber Lau knocked down a jumper from the right wing with 6:26 remaining to trim the lead to 41-36.
The run was ended when Donette McNair knocked down a free throw, followed by Sarah McAppion draining two more with 5:50 remaining in the contest to push the lead back to eight at 44-36.
St. Francis would just not go away from there, as Amber Lau knocked down another 3-pointer with 4:17 to play to bring the home team within three at 44-41. After a missed opportunity by the Trojans on the other end and a turnover on the next possession, the Trojans used their defense to keep St. Francis off the scoreboard on two consecutive possessions.
The defense stymied St. Francis on their next two possession, forcing a jump ball and then a steal by Sophie Kleeman. The steal led to a lay-up on the fastbreak by Davis for a 46-41 lead with 1:57 to play in the contest. From there, the Trojans took control as McAppion rebounded a missed 3-pointer from Kleeman and connected on a putback with 1:17 to play to extend the lead to 48-41.
From that point, the Trojans were able to hold off St. Francis for the victory with defense and key free throw shooting over the final 77 seconds.
After trailing for the first five minutes of the contest, the Trojans went on a 10-0 run over a three-minute span to take a 14-8 lead early in the first half. Trailing by four with 14:54 to play in the first half, Brittnie Davis drove to the lane for an uncontested lay-up, before Tenia Manuel drained a long 3-pointer from the right wing to trim the deficit to a single digit at 8-7.
After an Alyce Shearing free throw tied the game at 8-8 with 13:50 remaining in the first half, the Trojans took their first lead of the contest on a Davis 3-pointer with 13:16 to play. The lead was extended to six when Sophie Kleeman knocked down a 3-pointer from the left wing with 12:48 to play in the opening half.
The run continued in the first half for the Trojans after a pair of free throws by St. Francis, as Troy went on an 11-4 run to push the lead to 25-14. The run ended when the Terriers' Autumn Lau drained a 3-pointer from the top of key to trim Troy's lead to 25-17 with just under two minutes to play in the opening half.
The lead stayed that way until a pair of baskets by Troy closed the first half, giving Troy an insurmountable 29-17 advantage through the first 20 minutes.
St. Francis (1-8, 0-1 NEC) played without two of their top players on Tuesday evening. Kendra Williams (9.9 points per game and 7.9 rebounds per game) and Jacinda Williams (9.1 points per game) were both suspended for the game due to a violation of team rules.
The Terriers were led by Lau with 13 points and Gantt with 11 in the loss.
The Trojans shot 28.8 (17-of-59) percent from the floor and 23.8 (5-of-21) percent from beyond the arc. They also shot 57.7 (15-of-26) percent from the free throw line. Meanwhile, St. Francis shot 33.3 (17-of-51) percent from the floor and 26.7 (4-of-15) percent from beyond the arc. The Trojans won the rebounding battle 46-37, and forced 23 turnovers by St. Francis.
The Trojans return to action December 30 in Sun Belt Conference play, traveling to Fant-Ewing Coliseum to take on ULM. The game can be heard on WTBF-94.7 FM, with the pre-game show starting at 6:45 and tip set for 7 pm in Monroe, Louisiana.
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