Troy University Athletics
Trojans Defeat ULM, End Streak
1/28/2010 3:00:00 AM | Basketball (W)
TROY, Ala. - Donette McNair recorded her sixth double-double of the season, and the 11th of her career, as the Trojans were able to end a three-game losing streak with a hard fought 65-52 victory over ULM in Sun Belt Conference action Wednesday night.
"I was really pleased with the effort," Troy head coach Michael Murphy said. "We battled back through adversity in the second half. In this series, 13 points is a blowout because if you go back and look over the past games they have been one or two point games."
McNair paced Troy (11-8, 3-6 Sun Belt) with 15 points and 12 rebounds, while senior Brittnie Davis scored 25 - the third consecutive game that she has scored 20 or more points for the Trojans. She finished the night shooting 7-of-12 from the floor and 4-of-7 from beyond the arc. Davis also connected on 70 (7-of-10) percent from the free throw line.
"Me being a senior I knew it was time to step it up," Davis said. "I knew I had to step it up in scoring, rebounding and defense; no matter what it takes to win I knew I had to do it because I hate losing."
The Trojans shot 42 (21-of-50) percent from the floor and 52.9 (9-of-17) percent from beyond the arc.
ULM (8-13, 2-9 Sun Belt) was led by Jesse Carrier with 16 points, while Sannisha Williams with 12 rebounds.
The Warhawks shot 25.8 (16-of-62) percent from the floor and 26.7 (4-of-15) from beyond the arc. They also shot 84.2 (16-of-19) percent from the charity stripe, while outrebounding Troy 50-36 for the contest.
A game of two halves put the Trojans on the ropes; as they watched a 15-point lead evaporate at the end of the first half and midway through the first half when ULM pulled to within a point at 42-41. Davis responded for the Trojans with 9:35 left as she weaved her way through two defenders to push the lead to 44-41; however, ULM's Marie Zollicoffer pulled the Warhawks to within a single digit at 44-43 with just under nine minutes to play.
Davis answered the bell again, like she has done for the last week, as she kept the Warhawks at bay with a jumper just inside the three-point line to give Troy a 46-43 lead; however, ULM would not go away as they scored on their next possession and the battle for supremacy began over the next 7:33 of the contest.
The Warhawks, who did not lead or tie the game in the first half, had three chances in 60 seconds to tie the contest but were unable to do so. They were finally able to tie the game when Jesse Carrier took an inbounds pass and knocked down a 10-footer with 6:22 to play to tie the game at 47-all.
"Anytime you blow a big lead you can't panic," Murphy said. "You don't want the team to see you panic, because the opponent will feed off that panic. We did a good job to maintain our composure and keep it together the stretch."
That was short-lived as McNair missed the front end of a one-and-one, but was able to chase down the loose ball rebound in the corner. She skipped the ball across the court to Kirsten Smith who found a wide open Sarah McAppion for a 3-pointer to push the Trojans out front 50-47 with 5:51 to play in the contest.
The lead continued to grow as Davis caught fire, by first hitting a 3-pointer from the corner with five minutes to play and then by hitting a pair of free throws to push the lead to 55-47 with 4:37 to play in the contest.
From that point the Trojans were able to hold off the Warhawks, due in much part to their first half performance.
Troy jumped to an early 7-0 lead before ULM was able to connect on their first field goal with 16:23 remaining in the opening half of play. From there, the Trojans let ULM within four points at 9-5, before going on a 13-0 run to take a 22-5 lead with 8:42 to play in the opening half.
After ULM pulled to within four on a free throw by Larrie Williams, Troy's Tenia Manuel knocked down a pair of free throws to start the Trojan run with 11:46 to play in the opening half. The run really got going when Davis connected on a 3-pointer for a 14-5 lead, followed by another Trojan 3-pointer by Smith to push the lead to 17-5 with 10:19 to play in the opening half.
The run came to an end when Davis hit another three with 9:33 to play in the half, followed by a lay-up from McNair to push the lead 22-5. The run ended when ULM used a lay-up Sannisha Williams to pull to within 22-7 with 8:03 to play in the half.
The Trojans allowed ULM to pull as close as 11 points before the half, as the Warhawks used a 12-3 run over a span of five minutes. However, Manuel hit a big 3-pointer from the corner with less than seven seconds remaining in the half to push the lead back to 35-21 for the Trojans. That lead would hold as Elizabeth Torres' desperation half-court heave would be well off for the Warhawks.
The Trojans, however, used 11 ULM turnovers to score 15 points off those turnovers for the halftime advantage. The Trojans also their defensive pressure to hold ULM to just 20 (6-of-30) percent from the floor shooting, and no 3-pointers (six attempts) in the opening half.
The Trojans return to action on Saturday in the first game of a doubleheader with the men's team, taking on in-state rival South Alabama. The game will tip at 5:15 pm inside the walls of Trojan Arena, with the pregame show beginning at 5 pm on WTBF-94.7 FM.
Tickets are on sale for the Sun Belt Conference Tournament, which takes place the first week of March, at the Troy University Ticket Office. Call 1-877-878-WINS (9467) and follow the Trojans to Hot Springs, Arkansas. Make sure to purchase your tickets through Troy and sit behind the team bench at Summit Arena.
