Troy University Athletics
Take The Stairs: MBB Preview
10/30/2019 2:09:00 PM | Basketball (M)
It's a new era of Trojans basketball, as newly appointed Troy men's basketball head coach Scott Cross beings his first season as the man in charge of the Trojans program.
No stranger to the Sun Belt Conference, Cross arrives at Troy after spending last season as an assistant coach for Jamie Dixon at TCU. Prior to his season at TCU, Cross spent 18 seasons at UT Arlington, serving as the Mavericks head coach for the final 12 years of his tenure where he was named the 2017 Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year and averaged 19 wins per season.
Armed with seven newcomers and a roster that returns key players such as Darian Adams and Zay Williams, Cross has high expectations for the 2019-20 Trojans.
"I'm really excited for the season ahead," Cross said. "Our guys are working extremely hard and it seems like we have good cohesiveness. I think we're a long athletic basketball team that can be really good defensively when we're all on the same page. We'll be able to play quick on offense which should make us an exciting team to watch. When we looked to change the roster, we looked for guys that were quick, athletic and could shoot the ball. I think each of the new guys will help us in those areas."
After a successful offseason of practices, the Trojans officially began the 2019-20 season on Sept. 23 with a week-long military style 'Bootcamp' which featured various events that did not require the use of a basketball.
"Boot camp toughened our guys up and got them physically and mentally prepared for the season," Cross said.
All of the hard work will hopefully pay off for the Trojans as the season unfolds. The exciting 31-game schedule includes a pair of road matchups at Indiana (Nov. 16) and Texas A&M (Nov. 20), seven matchups with in-state rivals including a primetime home matchup against South Alabama (Feb. 7) and the first ever 20-game Sun Belt Conference slate.
"Everyone is buying into what the coaches have been saying," Adams said. "Our coaches aren't going to tell us the wrong things for us to focus on, so the players feel like we can trust the coaches and the feedback we're getting. I think we have a different strategy on defense this year, picking up way more aggressively which should help us. And then we have a bit of better chemistry as well. What's so nice about this team is that on any given night anyone can step up for us. We have so many more options this year which will make us even tougher to guard."
No stranger to the Sun Belt Conference, Cross arrives at Troy after spending last season as an assistant coach for Jamie Dixon at TCU. Prior to his season at TCU, Cross spent 18 seasons at UT Arlington, serving as the Mavericks head coach for the final 12 years of his tenure where he was named the 2017 Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year and averaged 19 wins per season.
Armed with seven newcomers and a roster that returns key players such as Darian Adams and Zay Williams, Cross has high expectations for the 2019-20 Trojans.
"I'm really excited for the season ahead," Cross said. "Our guys are working extremely hard and it seems like we have good cohesiveness. I think we're a long athletic basketball team that can be really good defensively when we're all on the same page. We'll be able to play quick on offense which should make us an exciting team to watch. When we looked to change the roster, we looked for guys that were quick, athletic and could shoot the ball. I think each of the new guys will help us in those areas."
After a successful offseason of practices, the Trojans officially began the 2019-20 season on Sept. 23 with a week-long military style 'Bootcamp' which featured various events that did not require the use of a basketball.
"Boot camp toughened our guys up and got them physically and mentally prepared for the season," Cross said.
All of the hard work will hopefully pay off for the Trojans as the season unfolds. The exciting 31-game schedule includes a pair of road matchups at Indiana (Nov. 16) and Texas A&M (Nov. 20), seven matchups with in-state rivals including a primetime home matchup against South Alabama (Feb. 7) and the first ever 20-game Sun Belt Conference slate.
"Everyone is buying into what the coaches have been saying," Adams said. "Our coaches aren't going to tell us the wrong things for us to focus on, so the players feel like we can trust the coaches and the feedback we're getting. I think we have a different strategy on defense this year, picking up way more aggressively which should help us. And then we have a bit of better chemistry as well. What's so nice about this team is that on any given night anyone can step up for us. We have so many more options this year which will make us even tougher to guard."
Players Mentioned
G
/ Basketball (M)
F
/ Basketball (M)Gerad Parker Postgame - ULM
Saturday, October 18
Eric Newell Postgame Press Conference - Faulkner
Saturday, October 18
𝗕𝗘𝗛𝗜𝗡𝗗 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗪𝗔𝗟𝗟 - 𝗦𝟭𝟬, 𝗘𝟲
Wednesday, October 15
Football Press Conference (Players) - ULM Game
Monday, October 13