Troy University Athletics
Saturday, February 11
Troy, Ala.
1:00 p.m.
Troy University
vs
Western Kentucky University
Photo by: Cass Davis
Trojans Welcome WKU to Sartain Hall
2/10/2012 9:37:00 AM | Basketball (M)
Live Video | Live Audio | Live Stats | Game Notes
TROY, Ala. – After a rare Thursday night off, the Troy men's basketball team looks to get back on the winning track on Saturday as they get set to host WKU at Sartain Hall.
The Trojans and Hilltoppers will begin at a special tip time of 1:00 p.m. as part of a basketball doubleheader with the women's game beginning at 4:00 p.m.
The Trojans (7-15, 2-9) are looking to snap a four-game losing skid in the second to last game to be played at Sartain Hall. They look to do so against a WKU team that is coming off of a Thursday night loss at Middle Tennessee.
The Toppers (8-16, 4-7) had won three of four before their loss to the Blue Raiders. WKU is 3-5 under interim head coach Ray Harper who took over on Jan. 6.
His first game at the helm of WKU came against Troy on Jan. 7 at E.A. Diddle Arena, a game that the Trojans won 67-65 thanks to a Tim Owens game-winning bucket with less than four seconds to go.
The win was the first for Troy at E.A. Diddle Arena and the Trojans will look to build on the success as they go for the season sweep over WKU on Saturday.
For a full recap and stats from Saturday's game, be sure to check back with TroyTrojans.com. Fans can also find Troy on Twitter at @TroyAthletics or become fans on Facebook.
Gameday Storylines
- Troy will look to reverse a four-game losing skid as they welcome WKU to Sartain Hall on Saturday in the second to last game in the building.
- The Trojans are coming off of an 83-78 loss to Louisiana at home on last Saturday. The Trojans trailed by 16 with less than four minutes to go, but cut the lead to as little as three with 1:09 remaining.
- The Trojans enter Saturday's game as the fourth best 3-point shooting team in the country as they average 9.3 made 3-pointers game. Florida (10.5) leads the nation while Troy has made 10+ triples in three of its last six games.
- The outside shooting creates long rebounds which allow the undersized Trojans to grab 14.8 offensive boards per game, the second best mark in the Sun Belt (South Alabama) and eighth best in the NCAA.
- Troy doesn't waste the extra possessions they create as they commit just 12.7 turnovers per game. Pair that with the 15.4 turnovers they force, and Troy's +2.68 turnover margin is the best in the Sun Belt. Troy is one of just four Sun Belt teams with more assists than turnovers this season.
- The Troy offense features a balanced attack as five different players have led the team in scoring this season. Will Weathers' 11.7 points per game average is tops on the team while Just Wright is also in double-figures (11.3).
- Weathers doesn't just score for the Trojans, he is also one of the best distributors in the nation as his 5.9 assists per game lead the Sun Belt and rank 24th in the NCAA.
Looking at WKU
- The Hilltoppers had won three of four before falling at Middle Tennessee on Thursday, 72-64. WKU is 2-4 on the road in Sun Belt play.
- WKU is 3-5 under interim head coach Ray Harper, who took over when head coach Ken McDonald was fired, just one day before the game against Troy on Jan. 7.
- The Toppers are led is scoring by freshman Derrick Gordon who averages 11.5 points per game. He is the only player averaging double figures for WKU as George Fant is second on the team at 9.2 points per game.
- WKU's 38.4 team field goal percentage is the worst in the Sun Belt as the Toppers are the only team in the league below 40.0 percent. Their 30.2 team 3-point field goal percentage is also the worst in the Sun Belt.
The Series
- Troy trails the all-time series with WKU, 6-8. However, Troy is 4-2 against the Hilltoppers at Sartain Hall. Troy has won three straight over WKU at home and hasn't lost to the Toppers in Troy since Dec. 29, 2007.
- Earlier this season, Troy picked up its first win ever at E.A. Diddle Arena in Bowling Green as they knocked off WKU, 67-65.
- Tim Owens scored with less than four seconds to go to give Troy the win in WKU interim head coach Ray Harper's debut. At the time, the 5,172 fans that saw the game was the largest crowd in E.A. Diddle Arena this season.
- Justin Wright led Troy with 17 in that game while Ray Chambers had a career-high 14 and Tim Owens posted his only double-figure game of the season with 10.
- The Trojans and Toppers have played twice in each of the last five seasons. Troy has never swept the season series.
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