Troy Women’s Basketball Routs South Carolina State

Sunday, December 19

Starkville, Miss.

1 p.m.

Troy University

8-5,0-0Sun Belt

South Carolina State

0-12,0-0MEAC

Troy

South Carolina St.

Troy Women’s Basketball Routs South Carolina State

12/19/2021 3:58:00 PM | Basketball (W)

Box Score Photo Gallery Photo Gallery 2

By: Troy Athletics Communications

STARKVILLE, Miss. – Behind double figure performances from Amber Leggett, Jhileiya Dunlap, Za'Nautica Downs and Gabbi Cartagena, the Troy Women's Basketball team routed South Carolina State, 94-51, Sunday in Humphrey Coliseum.

Amber Leggett led the Trojans (8-5) to their second win in Mississippi State MTE, pacing the way with 19 points.

For the Bulldogs (0-12), Nicole Gwynn led the way with 16 points and six rebounds.

How It Happened
The Trojans jump started the opening quarter riding last night's momentum to a 10-2 lead. South Carolina State started chipping away at Troy's lead with a 5-0 stretch just before the media timeout to cut the score to 15-7. Jhileiya Dunlap sank a jumper with 3:44 left to play in the quarter to give Troy a 17-12 lead, but back-to-back Shania Wright three-pointers and a free throw from Nicole Gwynn cut the Bulldogs deficit to just one at the end of the first period.

The toe-to-toe battle continued into the second quarter with neither side gaining more than a four-point advantage through the first six minutes of action. Both sides saw a near three-minute scoring drought spanning until the four-minute mark, before Gwynn broke the scoring drought with a pair of made free throws. With 2:24 left to play, Janiah Sandifer knocked down a pair of free throws of her own to ignite a 9-0 run in favor of the Trojans that eventually gave Troy the 38-29 advantage at the break.

Troy capitalized on the momentum it built before the beak, holding South Carolina State to just four points in the third quarter. Amber Leggett kick started the 28-point quarter with a fast break layup and never looked back. The Trojans went on a 26-2 scoring run spanning from the 2:24 mark of the second quarter until midway through the third. Jada Walton ended the third with a triple to give Troy the 66-33 advantage heading into the final 10 minutes of action.

The Trojans dominate performance continued into the fourth quarter, where Troy maintained a 30-plus point lead for all 10 minutes. With 1:20 left to play, Troy saw its largest lead of the game when Amber Leggett knocked down a shot from outside the arc to extend the Trojan lead to 44 points. Despite a pair of free throws for South Carolina State, Leggett had the final say with a free throw of her own, solidifying Troy's 94-51 victory.

Quotable – Head Coach Chanda Rigby
"I knew it was going to be hard to comeback after such an emotional win against Mississippi State, especially with a 24-hour turnaround. I was right, we were slow in the beginning, but the team really picked it up in the second half to get us another win."

Notable

Freshman Gabbi Cartagena recorded her second contest in double figures in the cardinal and white. The guard tallied 10 points and five rebounds in just 18 minutes of action.
Jhileiya Dunlap also finished the game in double-digits with 12 points and three blocks.
Powered by 4-of-12 shooting and four makes from the free throw line, newcomer Za'Nautica Downs posted 12 points.
The Trojans improve to 7-0 when outrebounding their opponent after outrebounding the Bulldogs, 54-46.

Next Up
Troy closes out play in the Mississippi State MTE tomorrow against Jackson State. Tipoff is set for 12 p.m.