Troy Holds Off Late Charge to Defeat the Warhawks

Thursday, January 20

Monroe, La.

6:30 p.m.

Troy University

13-5,4-1Sun Belt

ULM

10-9,2-5Sun Belt

Troy

La.-Monroe

Troy Holds Off Late Charge to Defeat the Warhawks

1/20/2022 10:30:00 PM | Basketball (M)

Box Score BOX SCORE (PDF)

By: Troy Athletics Communications

Monroe, La. - Troy holds off a 15-4 run over the final nine minutes to defeat ULM, 73-65, at Fant-Ewing Coliseum. This win extends the Trojans' lead atop the Sun Belt Conference.

The Trojans (13-5, 4-1 SBC) continue to race towards the best season since 2003-04 despite having two games canceled due to COVID-19.

Troy had four players finish in double-digits (Duke Deen - 14, Duke Miles - 11, TK Smith - 11) with Zay Williams at the helm with 18 points. Deen and Smith had massive nights behind the arc, combining for 7-of-12.

Smith was a perfect 4-of-4 from the field, including a career-high three 3-pointers. With 11 points, Smith tied his career-high in points, set earlier this year against Florida Atlantic.

ULM (10-9, 2-5 SBC) had four players find themselves in double figures (Russell Harrison - 15, Andre Jones - 13, Koreem Ozier - 11, Nika Metskhvarishvili - 11). Despite outscoring the Trojans 36-30 in the second half, the Warhawks couldn't complete the comeback.

Best First Half of the Season
Troy didn't have any rust after their week off, starting the game on an 8-0 run, including back-to-back buckets from Williams in his return to the court.

After Khalyl Waters converted from the charity stripe, the Trojans took the lead 19-9 with 14:41 left in the half.

The Trojans extended their lead out to as many as 23 points, off a made jump shot from Nick Stampley - with 13:59 left in the first.

Troy held a 14-point lead on a season-high 66.7 percent from the field when the buzzer sounded at the half.

Second Half Save
The Trojans led by 19 with 8:35 remaining in the game. After a make from Metskhvarishvili, the Warhawks mounted their comeback. Metskhvarishvili sparked a 15-4 run to close out the game for ULM that included five buckets in the paint.

Miles ended an 11-0 run for the Warhawks with one make from the charity stripe, providing the Trojans enough space to capture their eighth win in nine games.

Statement From Coach Scott Cross
"I'm very, very pleased after basically being off for over a week. Our guys could have come out very rusty with not much energy. We did the very opposite. We came out with a ton of energy. We were very, very sound offensively; in fact, it was one of the best offensive performances in the first half that I've seen all year long. Our guys were really sharp. We were hitting shots."

"Then we were playing great defense on top of it. So, I'm very proud of our guys. Zay Williams was phenomenal, going 8-of-9 from the field. I thought TK Smith gave us a huge lift being 4-of-4 and 3-of-3 from the three-point line. Cody Dean played really good. He had some big shots, but all our guys that played contributed. On top of that, on the defensive end, I felt like everybody was really solid because they're a very good offensive basketball team. And we knew we were going to have our hands full."

Stat Watch
• The Trojans end a three-game losing streak to the Warhawks, retaking the series lead 10-9.
• Williams exploded for a season-high 18 points. This is the seventh game Williams finished in double figures - the 21st of his career.
• Troy shot 66.7 percent from the field in the first half. It's the best the team has shot all season. The previous best was the season-opener against Carver at 65 percent.
• Smith tied his career-high in points with 11. This is the second time he has scored 11 this season.

What's the Next Destination?
The Trojans continue their two-game road trip in the Bayou state when they face off against Louisiana on Saturday. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. in the Cajundome.