Koranga’s Heroics Powers Troy to Exciting Victory Over Middle Tennessee

Saturday, December 11

Troy, Ala.

4 p.m.

Troy University

5-5,0-0Sun Belt

Middle Tennessee

-72,00 CUSA

Middle Tenn.

Troy

Koranga’s Heroics Powers Troy to Exciting Victory Over Middle Tennessee

12/11/2021 9:44:00 PM | Basketball (W)

Box Score Highlights Photo Gallery

By: Troy Athletics Communications

TROY, Ala.- Behind a bucket from Felmas Koranga with just 1.5 seconds left to play, Troy Women's Basketball defeated the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders, 77-76 Saturday afternoon at Trojan Arena. The victory was Troy's first top-50 NET victory of the season, as the Blue Raiders were ranked 44th in this week's NET rankings.

In the victory, Koranga and classmate Tiyah Johnson each scored 13 points for the Trojans (5-5) who defeated the Blue Raiders' (7-2) for the first time since the 2012-13 season. Koranga also added nine rebounds, two blocks and a pair of steals.

After a made layup from MTSU's Kseniya Malashka with 0:10 left to play in the fourth gave the visitors a 76-75 lead, Koranga banked a layup off a pass from Janiah Sandifer to keep Troy's 13-game home winning streak alive.

Dor Saar paced Middle Tennessee leading all scorers with 22 points. Courtney Whitson and Jalynn Gregory also ended the matchup in double figures with 16 and 13 points respectively.

How It Happened
Senior Tina Stephens kickstarted the night with a bang, draining a 3-pointer in Troy's first possession.

The two squads battled-toe-to-toe through the opening six minutes before the Trojans broke out on an 5-0 run, capped off by a triple from Za'Nautica Downs, that built a 14-9 lead for the Trojans at the end of the opening period.

After Middle Tennessee utilized a 9-0 run in the first four minutes of the second to take a 23-20 lead, a triple from Johnson at the 2:24 mark gave the Trojans the lead once again. Amber Leggett then followed with a layup that gave Troy a 31-28 halftime advantage.

Back-to-back makes from Johnson and a bucket from Jada Walton advanced the Trojans' lead to 38-31 with 8:19 left in the third period.

MTSU would answer a moment later, using four points from Courtney Blakely and a three from Saar to tie the game at 38 all at the midpoint of the third period.

Behind 10 clutch points from their post players, the Trojans were able to take a 49-43 lead into the final 10 minutes of action.

The Trojans looked to put the game out of reach with six points over the first two minutes of the final period, but the Blue Raiders refused to back down. Sparked by a layup from Blakely, Middle Tennessee scored 11 points over the next 1:50 to put the game back within reach. After a 7-1 swing by the Blue Raiders tied the game with 39 seconds left to go, a made free throw from Janiah Sandifer gave Troy a 75-74 lead.

MTSU regained the lead on the Malashka made the layup, before Koranga's buzzer-beater sealed the Trojan victory.

Quotable – Head Coach Chanda Rigby
"We really needed this win, especially how we won it. We needed to be able to battle with a great team and come away with a win. Everyone contributed tonight and helped us come away with the victory."

Notable

Tonight, marked the first Trojan game-winner (less than 10 seconds left on the clock) since the 2017-18 season. In that game Amber Rivers sank a layup with 0.2 seconds left to down Jacksonville in a thriller, 89-88, back on December 1, 2017.
The Trojans outrebounded Middle Tennessee, 48-35, marking the first time Troy has outrebounded an opponent since the win over Samford (Dec. 1).
Tina Stephens was the third Trojan to finish the game in double figures. She scored 12 points.
Sharonica Hartsfield started her second game as Troy's point guard. The freshman tallied six assists, marking her second consecutive game with five or more helpers.
As a team, Troy shot a season-best 48.1 percent from the floor on 26-of-54 shooting.

Next Up
The Trojans return to action on Wednesday night against in-state foe UAH. Tipoff from Trojan Arena is set for 6 p.m.