Big Promotions Welcome Troy Home

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It has been almost a month since the Trojans have played in front of their home crowd, but Troy returns home for a pair of Sun Belt Conference games beginning on Thursday with Western Kentucky.

Fans in attendance will have a chance to a 32-inch flat screen television at halftime courtesy of The Grove. You must be present to win. A $25 dollar gas card and a $25 dollar Walmart gift card along with a pair of Visa Gift Cards will also be given away throughout the game.

The Trojans (2-13, 0-3) are happy to be home and are anxious to play in front of their home crowd.

“It's big coming back home,” reigning Sun Belt Player of the Week Will Weathers said. “I've forgotten how it feels to even have fans rooting for us. I think it will be a big deal. They are going to give us a lot of energy. All these road games took a lot out of us emotionally, especially with the tough losses, but I think with our home crowd behind us it will give us a big boost.”

Weathers averaged 29.5 ppg in Troy's pair of narrow losses last week, including a 32-point outburst against Louisiana-Lafayette. The sophomore leads the Sun Belt and ranks ninth nationally with 6.5 assists per game.

He also leads the league in steals (26) and minutes per game (35.2).

Weathers isn't the only team member glad to be back in Sartain Hall. Senior guard Vernon Taylor thinks a trip back to Troy's home floor is exactly what the team needs to snap a four-game losing skid.

“I really think that is what we need,” Taylor said. “We need our home crowd to get us going so that we can have a lot of energy going towards this game. We are going to need it come Thursday.”

Despite holding a 1-3 record at home this season, Troy has shot the ball better on its home floor. The Trojans are shooting 42 percent at home, compared to 38 percent on the road.

Shawntez Patterson has taken full advantage of his familiarity in Sartain Hall. The junior forward has hit 10-of-18 3-point attempts at home (55.6 percent), the top mark on the team.

Taylor leads the Trojans in scoring at 14.8 ppg, while Bernard Toombs is leading the team in rebounding (9.0 rpg). Toombs needs three blocks to tie former Trojan Jarvis Acker with 72 blocked shots for 6th in the program's Division I era.

WKU is in a very unfamiliar place currently. Traditionally the class of the Sun Belt, the Toppers currently stand at 5-9 on the season and 0-2 in league play.

Western Kentucky is led by a trio of senior forwards. Oklahoma transfer Juan Pattillo ranks in the top five in the Sun Belt in scoring (15.1 ppg) and rebounding (9.7 rpg). He is joined in double-figures by preseason Sun Belt Player of the Year Sergio Kerusch (13.8 ppg, 6.9 rpg) and former Kentucky Mr. Basketball Steffphon Pettigrew (12.5 ppg).

Troy is 4-6 all-time against the Hilltoppers, but won 2-of-3 last season and have won the last two match-ups in Sartain Hall.

Tip-off is set for 7 pm. Barry McKnight and Jerry Miller will bring you all the action from courtside on the Troy Sports Network by IMG College beginning at 6:30 pm with the State Farm Pregame Show.

Thursday's game will be televised via the HSSN on Fox College Sports and DirecTV channel 623.

The Trojans close out the two-game home stand by hosting North Texas on Saturday at 7 pm. That game will be televised on CSS and ESPN3.com as the Sun Belt Network Game of the Week.

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