Troy Falls Short Against UNT

Thursday, January 14

TROY

7:00 PM

Troy University

North Texas

1/15/2010 3:00:00 AM | Basketball (M)

TROY – A lackluster first half where Troy started slow doomed the team as it fell 75-72 to North Texas in Sun Belt basketball action on Thursday night.

The Trojans looked sluggish in the early goings and struggled in the opening half, shooting just 35 percent as a team. The struggles were something the team couldn't explain.

“We came out kind of flat for some reason,” guard Michael Vogler said. “I'm not really sure why. We played a really good second half, but they did too. They just made a few more plays at the end than we did.”

Free throws told the night's story as UNT knocked down 18 of its 21 attempts, while Troy (9-8, 4-2) was able to sink just three of a mere seven shots from the foul line.

In an attempt to overcome a lackluster first half that included his team trailing 33-26 at the break, Troy coach Don Maestri changed up his lineup after halftime.

“We have done that over the years,” Maestri said. “I think you do need a spark at sometimes. It has to come from the players. It doesn't necessarily have to come from the coach or a 'Knute Rockne' halftime speech. Sometimes when you are not playing real well in the first half, not starting makes you really focus on the game.”

Maestri joined guards Vernon Taylor and Levan Patsatsia and center Bernard Toombs with starters Richard Delk and Vogler to open the second half.

“We were sitting down and he called my name,” Taylor said. “That was something I had been waiting to hear for a long time. I know why he called [my name] was because we didn't have that much energy in the first half with the starters. I know I'm a spark plug for the team and he wanted energy. That's always what I try to do.”

With the new faces providing a spark, Troy opened with a 7-2 run in which Taylor scored all seven points. That burst closed the gap to just two points. See-saw play ensued with both squads swapping runs ultimately tying the game at 41 with 15:10 remaining.

18 seconds later Vogler picked up his third foul, but the big blow would come soon there after at the 13:05 mark when he garnered his fourth personal, forcing the senior floor leader to the bench. The game would then go the way of the Mean Green until a 3-pointer by Antywan Jones halted a UNT run.

North Texas offset the trey with a 6-0 run over the next 1:45 widening their lead to nine points, 67-58 with 3:52 remaining. But still Troy refused to go away putting together a 6-0 run of its own to close to within three points with 1:50 left.

Next, North Texas took over at the foul line sinking 8-of-10 attempts in the final minute, but still Troy had hope.

The Trojans' Taylor missed two free throw attempts with eight seconds on the clock, but a scramble for a loose ball resulted in a Troy possession with 3.7 seconds remaining.

Troy managed to get the ball to its best shooter off the inbounds play, but Brandon Hazzard's long 3-point attempt with two men in his face rimmed out giving the Mean Green the victory.

Troy established an early 15-9 lead with 10:13 on the first half clock on the back of consecutive scores by Yamene Coleman and Taylor. The Mean Green countered with an 8-2 run over the next 1:53 to knot the game at 17 with 7:37 on the clock in the first half.

North Texas (11-6, 4-3) took its first lead since 3-0 with a lay-up by Jacob Holmen, but the Trojans countered with a Jones put-back to retake the lead, 22-21. A 3-pointer by Josh White gave UNT a four-point advantage with 2:14 left.

Tristan Thompson sank three free throws with 1.6 seconds left in the opening half after being fouled by Delk on a trey attempt to extend the North Texas lead to seven points at halftime, 33-26.

Both teams shot below 40 percent in the first half, but Troy finished the game shooting 45.7 percent, including 52.6 percent in the second stanza, overcoming the sluggish early play.

“It was disappointing to start the game off without a tremendous amount of energy, especially when you are at home and had a good crowd out there,” Maestri said.

“The other thing was that I thought North Texas, especially in the second half, maintained its composure when we got some momentum going. They did a very good job of not panicking. For us to make a run at the end, we also did a good job of not losing our composure. They held on at the end and for that I have to give them a lot of credit.”

Five Trojans scored in double-figures with Coleman leading the way with 14 points. He also added a team-high six rebounds. Thompson paced the Mean Green with 21 points on 10-of-11 shooting from the charity stripe.

Troy is in action next on Saturday when it makes the short trip down I-65 to face in-state conference rival South Alabama. Tip-off is set for 7:05 pm at the Mitchell Center.