Troy University Athletics
Troy Falls In Home Finale
2/21/2010 1:00:00 AM | Basketball (W)
TROY, Ala. - On a day when the Troy University women's basketball team honored their seniors, it was an upperclassman from Florida Atlantic University that stole the show - leading the Owls to a 78-67 victory.
"I am obviously disappointed in the loss," Troy head coach Michael Murphy said. "You can't turn the ball over 29 times and expect to win the basketball game, and some of that is a product to our starting point guard being out.
Sophie Kleeman does a good job for us at the point, and it hurts not having her on the court. We had some people tonight that had the responsibility of handling the basketball and they struggled. We have to find a way to fix that pretty quick."
The loss was the 10th in 11 games for the Trojans and their seventh consecutive loss.
"I think anytime you are in a rut that players have to step up and own to the responsibility of correcting the things they are doing wrong," Murphy said. "We talk all the time about motivation and playing with passion. As soon as they own up to the things they are doing wrong and correcting them, and start to transfer that from the practice floor to the game floor things will start to turn around."
Florida Atlantic (14-12, 10-6 Sun Belt) senior Brittany Bowe led the Owls with 24 points (connecting on 12-of-18 from the free throw line), as they swept the season series from Troy (11-15, 4-12 Sun Belt).
In their final home game in a Trojan uniform, seniors Brittnie Davis and Alyce Shearing combined for 25 points - with Davis scoring 14 and Shearing 11. Junior forward Donette McNair led the Trojans with her 10th double-double of the season (15th career), as she scored 20 points and grabbed 11 rebounds. Sophomore Sarah McAppion added 10 points for the Trojans.
"At this point in the season there are no secrets," Murphy said. "You are who you are. For us, it is about making a few extra plays and play a little above what you can do. It is playing just above what you are capable of doing, and that is what good teams do and good players do."
Troy shot 48.9 (22-for-45) percent from the floor and 33.3 (4-for-12) percent from the beyond the arc in the loss. They also shot 79.2 (19-of-24) percent from the free throw line, while grabbing 29 rebounds.
Lyrell Barfield chipped in with 13 points, while Carla Stubbs added 12 points for Florida Atlantic. Breana Kone scored 10 in the victory.
The Owls shot 47.9 (23-of-48) percent from the floor and 53.8 (7-of-13) percent from beyond the arc. They also shot 73.5 (25-of-34) percent from the free throw line, while forcing 29 Troy turnovers.
The game Saturday night featured three times in which the game was tied and three more in which the lead changed hands. The two teams battled for much of the contest, with each holding a double-digit lead at some point during the contest - FAU holding a 13 points advantage late and the Trojans holding a 10-point led in the first half.
The Trojans started off strong, scoring nine of the game's first 10 points before FAU trimmed the deficit to five at 15-12 with 12:20 to play in the first half. From there, the Trojans pushed ahead with a 10-3 run over a span of three minutes to grab a double-digit lead.
Troy started the run on a Tenia Manuel free throw with 12:10 to play in the half, then stretched it even further when Davis scored on a lay-up with 11:15 to play. McNair pushed the lead to 20-13 with 10:53 remaining in the half, before a three-pointer by Davis and a basket by McAppion ended the run with 8:56 to play in the first half.
The Trojans were able to hold the lead until FAU tied the game at 31-all with 49 seconds left on a Barfield three-pointer. They grabbed their first lead of the contest with five seconds remaining when Bowe pulled up for a jumper, and forged ahead by four at the half when Barfield stole the inbounds pass and hit a lay-up as the buzzer sounded.
Florida Atlantic held the lead for the first eight minutes of the second half until Davis hit a lay-up that keyed a 12-5 run for five minutes of the last half of play. The Trojans grabbed a 48-46 lead when McNair connected on a lay-up, but Florida Atlantic jumped ahead for good when Stamps connected on a three-pointer with 10:47 to play to give the Owls a 49-48 lead.
The Trojans were able to pull within one late, before Florida Atlantic sealed the game at the free throw line.
The Trojans return to action on Wednesday, in the first of two consecutive trips in back-to-back weeks to the state of Arkansas, against the Trojans of UALR. The game will tip at 7 pm at Jack Stephens Center, with the pregame show beginning at 6:45 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.
