Trojans Return Home for Friday Night Whiteout Matchup Against South Alabama

GAME NOTES | LIVE STATS | AUDIO | WATCH

TROY, Ala. -- The Troy Trojans men's basketball program returns home to Trojan Arena Friday night for a primetime nationally televised (ESPN2) contest against in-state rival South Alabama. All Troy fans are encouraged to wear white, and the first 2,000 fans will receive a free white Troy basketball tee-shirt sponsored by Premier (Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Ram) Alfa Insurance, Troy Bank and Trust, Publix, Horn Beverage, and Touchstone Energy.

The matchup, which will be the first of three consecutive games at Trojan Arena, is set to tip-off at 8 p.m. on Friday night.

Troy returns to action on Thursday night when ULM visits Trojan Arena for a 6 p.m. contest.

LAST TIME OUT- (Troy- 9-15, 5-8 Sun Belt)
The Troy Trojans enter the homestretch of the Sun Belt slate looking to improve on their 10^th place standing heading into the weekend. Troy snapped a three-game losing streak last Saturday afternoon defeating Georgia State 84-78 to earn the season sweep over the Panthers. In that game, junior Ty Gordon scored a career-best 24 points on 9-of-18 shooting while freshman Desmond Williams also added a career-high 23 points and five 3-pointers. Both Gordon and Williams dished out four assists. Four Trojans reached double-figures as Davion Thomas added 13 points and five rebounds, while KJ Simon scored 14 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for his second career double-double. In that game, the Trojans erased a 72-65 deficit with 5:10 remaining, outscoring Georgia State 19-6 over the final five minutes. In that stretch, Gordon and Thomas combined for a mini 10-2 run to give Troy a 77-74 advantage with 53 seconds remaining. The big blow in that span was Thomas' corner 3-pointer that gave the Trojans the lead for good. After GSU cut the Troy advantage to one-point multiple times, the Trojans used a defensive stop and five points by Williams to hold on for an 83-78 victory.

LAST TIME OUT- (South Alabama, 13-11, 6-7 Sun Belt)
The South Alabama Jaguars head into Friday's matchup against the Trojans sitting in eighth place in the crowded Sun Belt Conference standings. The preseason favorites in the SBC, South is just one game behind fifth-place Arkansas State (7-6) and a half game behind sixth place App State in the crowded standings. Last Saturday, the Jaguars completed the season sweep over Georgia Southern earning a 79-69 victory at Hanner Fieldhouse. In that game, five different Jaguars scored in double-figures led by Trhae Mitchell (23 points, 8-of-11 FG) and Andrew Fox (14 points, 8 rebounds). After heading into the locker room tied at 41, South outscored the Eagles 38-28 in the second half. With the score tied at 60 with 7:35 left, the Jaguars used a 10-0 run to take a 70-60 lead with five minutes remaining. Georgia Southern cut the USA lead to just five but could get no closer. So far this season, Josh Ajayi leads the Jaguars in points (15.7), rebounds (7.8) and field goal percentage (.581). Chad Lott, Fox and Mitchell round out the quartet of Jaguars averaging at least 10.3 points. Since starting the Sun Belt season 1-3, the Jaguars have gone 5-4 in their last nine contests.

Trojan Storylines:
• Troy is done playing the top-five teams in the Sun Belt. In its nine matchups against those teams, Troy went 4-5. The Trojans are the only team in the Sun Belt to record three victories over Little Rock and Georgia State, the top two teams in the SBC
• Troy earned the season sweep over Georgia State Saturday afternoon in Atlanta. It's Troy's first series sweep of the Panthers since 2017-18, and Troy's first SBC sweep of the season.
• Troy held Georgia State to just 29 points in the second half on Saturday. The Panthers were held to just 11-of-40 from the floor and 2-of-18 in the second period.
• Since being reinserted into the starting lineup back on Jan. 6 at Texas State (9 games), junior Nick Stampley is averaging 7.8 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.3 blocks. Stampley is shooting a blistering 28-of-46 (.609) from the field in that span and has grabbed 18 offensive rebounds.
• Ty Gordon is averaging 14.9 points and 4.0 assists in 2020. Gordon recorded at least 10 points in nine of Troy's 10 January games. Gordon has scored at least 14 points in five consecutive contests and scored a career-high 24 points on Saturday afternoon at GSU.
• Friday night's matchup with South Alabama will be the first meeting between the Trojans and Jaguars. Troy will make the return trip to Mobile on Feb. 29. The Trojans are 3-1 this season against USA in Troy. Troy soccer defeated the Jaguars 2-0 back on Oct. 4, while the Trojans football team defeated South 37-13 back on Oct. 16. Troy women's basketball earned an 85-68 victory over the in-state rival last Saturday.
• Troy has won six of its last seven games where they have hit at least 10 3-pointers. The lone setback for Troy in that stretch was Dec. 21st against App State. The Trojans are just 3-11 when they don't hit at least 10 3-pointers.
• The Trojans have hit 76 3-pointers over the last eight games. Troy hit a season-best 15 3-pointers in the victory over Little Rock back on Jan. 9. The 15 3-pointers were the most a Troy has hit since 2017. Last Saturday Troy hit 10 3-pointers in the first half and 14 total 3-pointers.
• Troy has drawn 63 total charges this season through 24 games (2.6-per- game). The Trojans have drawn at least one charge 21 of 24 games.
• The Trojans are 7-1 this season when holding teams to 65 points or fewer. Troy's lone loss when holding a team below that mark was at Texas A&M (56-52, loss). Conversely, the Trojans are 2-14 when allowing more than 70 points. The Trojans are also 8-1 this season when holding an opponent to less than 40 percent shooting.

Promotions:
• Giveaways: 2,000 FREE Troy basketball tee-shirts (sponsored by Premier (Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Ram) Alfa Insurance, Troy Bank and Trust, Publix, Horn Beverage, and Touchstone Energy)
• Students: Free Preston wings (while supplies last) in the student lounge. Two free buddy passes (must show valid Troy student ID; must be claimed by 4 p.m. Friday at the Tine Davis Field House box office).
• Pre-game football social: Fresh off the best recruiting in school history, Troy football head coach Chip Lindsey will break down the entire class from 6-7 p.m. Friday night in the Trojan Arena Suite Lobby. Troy MBB head coach Scott Cross will be addressing the crowd as well, and there will be free refreshments (fans must have a South Alabama game ticket to enter).
• Tickets: All general admission and reserved tickets are just $5.
• Youth Night: All children 12 and under receive free admission with the purchase of an adult ticket.
• Pre-game inflatables: All children 12 and under can head to the practice gym from 6-8 p.m. to visit the inflatables (must have a game ticket to enter).
• Happy Hour: All drinks are 1/2 priced at the concession stand from 6-8 p.m.
• Beer Garden: Troy Athletics will have a beer garden set up from 6 p.m. to halftime.
• Halftime: ZOOperstars! The famous group will preform at halftime.
• Greek Life Challenge: Bonus points will be awarded in the Greek Life challenge.

Broadcast Information
ESPN2: Roy Philpott (PBP) and David Padgett (Color)
Live Audio: TroyTrojans.com/watch
Radio: Barry McKnight (PBP) and Jerry Miller (Color) on the Troy Sports Radio Network

Trojans Return Home for Friday Night Whiteout Matchup Against South Alabama

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Players Mentioned

Ty Gordon

KJ Simon

Nick Stampley

Davion Thomas

Desmond Williams

Troy University Athletics