Troy Falls To Jacksonville State At Home

Wednesday, November 17

Troy, AL

7:00 p.m.

Troy University

Jacksonville State University

Photo by: Kevin Glackmeyer

11/17/2010 8:38:56 PM | Basketball (W)

Donette McNair records second double-double of the season in the loss

By: Travis Jarome

Box Score | Box Score (pdf) | Post Game Notes | Photo Gallery

TROY, Ala. – The first minutes of the second half and the final five minutes of the game proved critical for the Troy University Trojans as they fell to Jacksonville State University 66-58 in non-conference action Wednesday night.

“I thought the first five minutes of the second half were critical,” head coach Michael Murphy said. “We had some opportunities down the stretch to take the lead, and we didn't because of missed shots or turnovers. I thought that was crucial to the game.

“I also thought that in the last five minutes we gave up some things because of fatigue. They had a couple of offensive rebounds and put backs that I think were a product of fatigue and us standing around a little bit. Then from the free throw line down the stretch we weren't really very good.”

Although the Trojans struggled down the stretch, Murphy was still pleased with his team's effort in several statistical categories.

“I thought the numbers were really good,” he said. “We scored 34 points in the paint, 50 rebounds – which goes to show the effort of the team on the boards. I thought our shot selection was excellent; we just didn't make enough shots. We held them to 32 percent shooting, but half of their baskets were made threes and that was the determining factor of the basketball game.”

Senior Donette McNair led the Trojans with her second double-double of the season as she recorded 19 points and 14 rebounds; while junior Tenia Manuel added 12 points and seven rebounds. Junior DeAngela Sword added nine rebounds in the loss.

Meanwhile, Brittany Wiley led Jacksonville State (2-0) with a game-high 21 points, while Destiny Lane came off the bench to add 14.

Troy (0-3) bounced back from a tough road loss to Elon with a first half in which they shot 45.2 (14-of-31) percent from the floor, and scored 16 second-chance points to go along with 22 points in the paint.

“I thought our preparation was really good and I thought our work ethic was really good,” Murphy said. “We were really excited to be playing at home and we got off to a good start, and I thought we were able to sustain that throughout the first half.”

However, it was the second half and especially the last five minutes that proved crucial to the Trojans.

Troy came back to tie the contest at 54-all after trailing 54-52 with 5:11 to play in the game, tying the game on a lay-up from McNair. Jacksonville State was able to push the lead to 55-54 with 3:32 to play, before Chelsey Johnson connected on a baseline jumper with 2:44 to play to give Troy a 56-55 lead. That was the last lead of the game for the Trojans, as Jacksonville State closed the game on an 11-2 run for the victory.

The Trojans return to action on the road for the third time this season on Sunday as they take on Atlantic Sun power, Florida Gulf Coast (1-0), in Ft. Myers. Tip is set for 2:05 pm between the two schools meeting for the first time.

Troy returns home next Tuesday to face in-state foe Birmingham-Southern College at Sartain Hall. For ticket information, contact the Troy University Athletics Ticket Office at 1-877-878-WINS (9467).

“This is tough stretch of games we have coming back,” Murphy said. “We go to Florida Gulf Coast to face a perennial top 60 RPI team, and then come home on one-day rest to face Birmingham-Southern. After that we are on the road at Xavier, a team that can challenge for the national championship; before facing WKU at home on December 1. So we have a tough stretch ahead of us, and we need to find that leadership to get us through.”

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