Troy University Athletics
Saturday, November 30
Troy, Ala.
2 p.m.
Troy University
2-6,0-0Sun Belt
104
vs
53
Shorter
2-6,0-1Gulf Sou
1
2
F
Shorter
22
31
53
TROY
44
60
104
Photo by: Chris Davis
Leftridge, Desmond Williams Push Trojans to Big Win over Shorter
11/30/2019 5:45:00 PM | Basketball (M)
TROY, Ala. -- Freshmen Jakevan Leftridge and Desmond Williams made their much-anticipated Troy debuts on Saturday afternoon, leading the Trojans to a 104-53 victory over Shorter College at Trojan Arena.
The freshmen duo each scored 10 points, while forward Davion Thomas contributed a career-best 19 points and eight rebounds in just 20 minutes of work.
Six different Trojans reached double-figures for the first time since Dec. 22, 2016 (92-84 victory over Cornell), while the Trojans scored over 100 points for the first time since Nov. 16, 2017 against Brewton-Parker (106-71).
After trailing 6-3 at the first media timeout of the ballgame, the Trojans (2-6) seized control of the ballgame, using a 21-3 run to take a 24-9 lead with 8:53 remaining in the half.
Troy continued to increase the advantage down the final moments of the half, using another 8-0 run to open up a 20-point lead with three minutes and 52 seconds remaining in the half.
Shorter (2-6) would respond, cutting the Troy lead to just 15 points (35-20) with three minutes to go. Down the final moments of the half, the Trojans responded, using a 9-2 advantage to close the half up 44-22.
Following the halftime break, the Trojans exploded for 60 points, shooting a blistering 65.8 percent from the field (25-38) in the second period, led by Thomas and KJ Simon (11 points, six rebounds and five assists) who each scored nine points in the half. Troy enjoyed its largest lead of the game (52 points) after Jalen Tuck hit his second 3-pointer of the night, with 1:03 left in the game.
For the game, Troy shot 40-71 (56 percent) from the field and hit a season-best 13 3-pointers. Every Trojan on the roster saw action Saturday, with 13 different Troy players scoring at least two points.
Troy returns to action on Wednesday night against North Alabama. Tip-off from Trojan Arena is scheduled for 7:15 p.m.
HEAD COACH SCOTT CROSS:
"We made an extremely difficult decision today to play Jakevan and Des [Williams]. Both of those guys came to me and said they were ready to play, and we knew that they were two of our most energetic guys and they were weapons on the defensive end of the floor, which is what we felt like we were missing. We needed a little bit of extra defense and energy and they provided that today. Both are extremely quick and can cover a lot of ground. And then they're intelligent basketball players as well. I thought they did a great job. They were really flying around tonight and really made Shorter take difficult shots. We implemented a 2-2-1 press into a matchup zone for the first time as well, which I thought gave Shorter some problems. It was one of our crucial defenses at my previous school so it's important for us to master it, which I think we did."
On the energy on the bench:
"We definitely need everyone pulling in the same direction. It makes it tougher on us to balance the minutes now that we added two guys to the fold. Sometimes a guy can be more productive in 15 good minutes versus 35 hurried minutes. Hopefully we can continue to build on the effort and intensity on the defensive end, then I need to figure out the rotation and distribution of minutes."
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:
• Troy's bench outscored Shorter's bench 76-19
• The Trojans scored 29 points off Shorter's 21 team turnovers.
• Tuck hit a pair of three's Saturday for his first points of the season. His six points were also a new career best.
• Every Trojan recorded a positive plus-minus led by Darian Adams and Thomas who were both +33 on the afternoon.
• Adams failed to start for the first time since Mar. 9, 2018 (37 consecutive starts).
• He did record 12 points and four assists today. It was his sixth game this season with at least 10 points.
• The Trojans used their seventh different starting lineup today.
• Thomas' 19 points were a new career best. His previous career high was 14 points against Carver College (11/18).
• Troy scored 60 points in the second half for the first time since Nov. 16, 2017 against Brewton-Parker (106-71).
• For the third consecutive game, Troy shot at least 70 percent from the line. The Trojans were 11-15 from the charity-stripe tonight.
• The Trojans recorded 18 offensive rebounds on Saturday, the most since Troy recorded 18 at Austin Peay (11/29) last season.
• Troy's 56.3 percent shooting is the best since Troy shot 59.3 percent against Carver College (12/12/18).
The freshmen duo each scored 10 points, while forward Davion Thomas contributed a career-best 19 points and eight rebounds in just 20 minutes of work.
Six different Trojans reached double-figures for the first time since Dec. 22, 2016 (92-84 victory over Cornell), while the Trojans scored over 100 points for the first time since Nov. 16, 2017 against Brewton-Parker (106-71).
After trailing 6-3 at the first media timeout of the ballgame, the Trojans (2-6) seized control of the ballgame, using a 21-3 run to take a 24-9 lead with 8:53 remaining in the half.
Troy continued to increase the advantage down the final moments of the half, using another 8-0 run to open up a 20-point lead with three minutes and 52 seconds remaining in the half.
Shorter (2-6) would respond, cutting the Troy lead to just 15 points (35-20) with three minutes to go. Down the final moments of the half, the Trojans responded, using a 9-2 advantage to close the half up 44-22.
Following the halftime break, the Trojans exploded for 60 points, shooting a blistering 65.8 percent from the field (25-38) in the second period, led by Thomas and KJ Simon (11 points, six rebounds and five assists) who each scored nine points in the half. Troy enjoyed its largest lead of the game (52 points) after Jalen Tuck hit his second 3-pointer of the night, with 1:03 left in the game.
For the game, Troy shot 40-71 (56 percent) from the field and hit a season-best 13 3-pointers. Every Trojan on the roster saw action Saturday, with 13 different Troy players scoring at least two points.
Troy returns to action on Wednesday night against North Alabama. Tip-off from Trojan Arena is scheduled for 7:15 p.m.
HEAD COACH SCOTT CROSS:
"We made an extremely difficult decision today to play Jakevan and Des [Williams]. Both of those guys came to me and said they were ready to play, and we knew that they were two of our most energetic guys and they were weapons on the defensive end of the floor, which is what we felt like we were missing. We needed a little bit of extra defense and energy and they provided that today. Both are extremely quick and can cover a lot of ground. And then they're intelligent basketball players as well. I thought they did a great job. They were really flying around tonight and really made Shorter take difficult shots. We implemented a 2-2-1 press into a matchup zone for the first time as well, which I thought gave Shorter some problems. It was one of our crucial defenses at my previous school so it's important for us to master it, which I think we did."
On the energy on the bench:
"We definitely need everyone pulling in the same direction. It makes it tougher on us to balance the minutes now that we added two guys to the fold. Sometimes a guy can be more productive in 15 good minutes versus 35 hurried minutes. Hopefully we can continue to build on the effort and intensity on the defensive end, then I need to figure out the rotation and distribution of minutes."
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:
• Troy's bench outscored Shorter's bench 76-19
• The Trojans scored 29 points off Shorter's 21 team turnovers.
• Tuck hit a pair of three's Saturday for his first points of the season. His six points were also a new career best.
• Every Trojan recorded a positive plus-minus led by Darian Adams and Thomas who were both +33 on the afternoon.
• Adams failed to start for the first time since Mar. 9, 2018 (37 consecutive starts).
• He did record 12 points and four assists today. It was his sixth game this season with at least 10 points.
• The Trojans used their seventh different starting lineup today.
• Thomas' 19 points were a new career best. His previous career high was 14 points against Carver College (11/18).
• Troy scored 60 points in the second half for the first time since Nov. 16, 2017 against Brewton-Parker (106-71).
• For the third consecutive game, Troy shot at least 70 percent from the line. The Trojans were 11-15 from the charity-stripe tonight.
• The Trojans recorded 18 offensive rebounds on Saturday, the most since Troy recorded 18 at Austin Peay (11/29) last season.
• Troy's 56.3 percent shooting is the best since Troy shot 59.3 percent against Carver College (12/12/18).
Team Stats
SHORT
TROY
FG%
.304
.563
3FG%
.258
.448
FT%
.579
.733
RB
26
50
TO
21
16
STL
7
10
Game Leaders
Pts
19
FGM
7
3FGM
2
FTM
3
Pts
12
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
4
Players Mentioned
G
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