Dominant Defense Keeps Troy’s Win Streak Rolling

Thursday, January 12

Atlanta, Ga.

6 p.m.

Troy University

12-6,4-1Sun Belt

Georgia State

8-9,1-4Sun Belt

Troy

Georgia St.

Dominant Defense Keeps Troy’s Win Streak Rolling

1/12/2023 9:31:00 PM | Basketball (M)

Box Score BOX SCORE (PDF)

By: Troy Athletics Communications

ATLANTA, Ga. – A strong defense and a dominant paint presence propelled Troy to a 65-53 victory on Thursday night over Georgia State in the GSU Sports Arena.

Troy continues its four-game winning streak with the team's fifth road win of the season, keeping the Trojans (12-6, 4-1 SBC) in a three-way tie for first place in the Sun Belt. Meanwhile, the Panthers (8-9, 1-4 SBC) fall below .500 and last in the conference standings.

Kieffer Punter stood firm for the Trojans in the second half, scoring nine of his 16 points, including two clutch 3-pointers with under eight minutes remaining. Darius McNeill had himself a game with 10 points, three steals, four assists and three rebounds to add to the victory.

Brenden Tucker gave GSU a 21-point performance, going 7-of-7 from the free-throw line. Overall, the Panthers shot 35.3 percent from the field and 18.8 percent from deep to fall against Troy.

Never Gave In
All the momentum seemed to be in GSU's favor with 13:14 remaining after Tucker netted two from the charity stripe to extend the Panthers' lead, 44-38 at the end of a 7-0 run.

After a miss from deep for Aamer Muhammad, Zay Williams seized the offensive board and dished it back to Muhammad, who drew the shooting foul. The guard nailed both at the stripe at the 7:26 mark, shifting the momentum to Troy, 44-40.

Both sides exchanged misses from deep before Christian Turner drove into the lane for the bucket off the assist from McNeill with 11:22 remaining, 44-42.

McNeill wasn't done, swiping the ball from Evan Johnson on the next possession and taking it coast-to-coast for the two-point bucket to tie the ballgame, 44-44 – 10:53 left on the clock.

The run continued for Troy, ending at 17-1 after McNeill, Christyon Eugene, Williams and Punter scored in that order over the next five minutes. Punter went back-to-back from the field off assists from Phillips and Muhammad to end the run at the 14:44 mark, 55-45.

GSU responded with an 8-2 run of its own after Tucker opened and Hudson finished it with two makes at the line, 57-53 – 2:08 remaining in the ballgame.

Turner hit one at the line before a miss from GSU's Hudson led to McNeill with the ball in his hands. The UTSA transfer drove into the lane only to find Punter open on the wing. With a hand in his face, Punter drilled the 3-point dagger with 0:59 left, 61-53.

McNeill iced the game at the charity stripe, ending the night 4-of-4 at the foul line, 63-53. A miss from Jamaine Mann allowed Eugene to take the cross-court pass from Punter to put the exclamation point on the ballgame via a slam, 65-53.

Head Coach Scott Cross
"It was a huge win. Our guys were really locked in and gritted it out. That 17-1 run was huge for our team. It's the third conference game where we get that huge late game run. These guys are figuring out how to win. Obviously, it happens with defense. Our guys forced 20 turnovers with 12 steals. And to hold them under 40 percent from the field is phenomenal. That's what it takes to win on the road. Just overall a huge win for our guys."

Road Trip Views
• Williams tied Jeff Black (1993-97) for sixth all-time in career blocks for Troy at 97 with two blocks in the first half - took sole possession with a third block in the second (98).
• Troy led by three through the first 20 minutes, 30-27. With the win, the Trojans rise to 9-3 when leading at the half.
• Williams ended the night with his 61^st double-figure night in scoring, ending the night with 12 points on 6-of-8 shooting.
• Phillips returned to Georgia State for the first time since transferring out at the end of 2021-22. In the return, Phillips finished with seven points, six rebounds and three steals.
• Troy dominated the paint, scoring 40-of-65 points from inside. Those numbers doubled that of GSU, who finished with 20.

Off to the Mountains
The Troy men's basketball team continues its road trip by heading up to face Appalachian State on Saturday at 4 p.m. in the Holmes Convocation Center.