Troy University Athletics
Saturday, December 2
Memphis, Tenn.
2 p.m.
Troy University
at
Memphis
Troy Travels to the Grind City to Battle Memphis
12/1/2023 3:33:00 PM | Basketball (W)
MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Troy women's basketball travels to the 'Home of the Blues' to battle the Memphis Tigers at 2 p.m. on Saturday in the Elma Roane Fieldhouse, searching for its first win of 2023-24.
The Trojans (0-4) and Tigers (2-5) meet for the first time in program history, with both looking to turn around their season by ending their respective losing streaks. Memphis also marks the second American Athletic Conference opponent for the women's team ever, having battled Tulane three times (0-3).
Game Information
Location: Memphis, Tenn. – Elma Roane Fieldhouse
The Matchup: Troy (0-4, 0-0 SBC) vs. Memphis (2-5, 0-0 AAC)
When: Saturday, December 2 – 2 p.m.
Watch: ESPN+
Listen: Troy Sports Radio Network
Live Stats: TroyStats.com
Keep Getting Closer
Troy continues to improve and looks to be on the verge of breaking through for its first win despite falling to 0-4 with a third loss at Trojan Arena to Belmont on Wednesday, 72-68.
A lopsided foul count plagued the Trojans, having 24 compared to Belmont's 11, which resulted in 32 free throw attempts for the Bruins – Troy had 13. Troy made a late push, trimming the Belmont lead to four after Zay Dyer ripped the rebound out of Belmont's hands, pulled a spin move and dished off an assist to Tai'Sheka Porchia down low, 65-61, with 2:24 remaining. However, five fouls committed by Troy in the final two minutes allowed Belmont to maintain by going 7-of-10 from the line and win the ballgame.
Despite the loss, Troy outmatched Belmont in nearly every statistical category, winning the points from turnovers (17-5), fast break points (17-5), bench points (26-5) and offensive rebounds (19-16).
Four Trojans reached double-figures for the fourth straight game, with Ja'Mia Hollings leading the charge for the third game of 2023-24 with 13 points. Porchia also managed her fourth straight double-digit performance to open the new season, while Makayia Hallmon returned to the court with an 11-point, one assist, one rebound performance.
Home of the Blues
The Tigers look to turn their season around after a 2-5 start that saw wins to Howard, 52-43, and Alabama State, 95-51. Over the last nine days, the Tigers have averaged 58 points scored with losses to No. 23 Marquette, 88-59, and Middle Tennessee, 64-57.
Saturday will mark the second home game of the season for Memphis and the second career home game coached at Elma Roane Fieldhouse for the 13th head coach in program history, Alex Simmons. Simmons comes to Memphis after being named Big South Coach of the Year, with four of her five starters earning All-Big South honors in 2022-23 while over Gardner-Webb. In five seasons, she amassed a 90-59 record and made the program's first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 2011.
Through seven games, Madison Griggs and Kai Carter are the dynamic duo, averaging double-figures with 14.6 and 13.9, respectively. Griggs has the ability to shoot the long ball, leading the Tigers with 21 made 3-pointers – Ki'Ari Cain has the second most at eight. With the 209th-ranked scoring offense (64.4) and 271st-scoring defense in the NCAA, the Tigers must rely on their 26th-ranked block defense (5.3) to win.
Let's Rock 'n Roll
• With a surprise start in her return to the court, Hallmon marked her 30th career start at Troy in 31 appearances. Through those 31 games, Hallmon averaged 14.8 points, 2.7 rebounds and 2.4 assists.
• Hallmon netted her 1,000th career point at the buzzer on Wednesday for her 1,001st point. She's scored 460 of those as a Trojan on 178 made field goals, 35 triples and 69 free throws.
• Zay Dyer started her first career game at Troy, playing 15 minutes to produce six points, five rebounds, two assists and one steal.
• Through the opening four games, Hollings (18-17-16-13) and Porchia (10-10-18-11) have consistently put up 10-plus points in 2023-24, with Hollings leading the team in scoring in 3-of-4 games.
• The Trojans closed the month of November at 0-4. Saturday allows Troy the chance to open December strong. Last season, the Trojans opened December 0-2 before finishing at 3-4 with wins over Texas State, LaGrange and Mercer.
• Hollings was a menace for Belmont's defense, swiping away a career-high five steals, which marked the first 5-plus steal game for a Trojan since Sharonica Hartsfield had five at Georgia State on Jan. 7, 2022.
The Trojans (0-4) and Tigers (2-5) meet for the first time in program history, with both looking to turn around their season by ending their respective losing streaks. Memphis also marks the second American Athletic Conference opponent for the women's team ever, having battled Tulane three times (0-3).
Game Information
Location: Memphis, Tenn. – Elma Roane Fieldhouse
The Matchup: Troy (0-4, 0-0 SBC) vs. Memphis (2-5, 0-0 AAC)
When: Saturday, December 2 – 2 p.m.
Watch: ESPN+
Listen: Troy Sports Radio Network
Live Stats: TroyStats.com
Keep Getting Closer
Troy continues to improve and looks to be on the verge of breaking through for its first win despite falling to 0-4 with a third loss at Trojan Arena to Belmont on Wednesday, 72-68.
A lopsided foul count plagued the Trojans, having 24 compared to Belmont's 11, which resulted in 32 free throw attempts for the Bruins – Troy had 13. Troy made a late push, trimming the Belmont lead to four after Zay Dyer ripped the rebound out of Belmont's hands, pulled a spin move and dished off an assist to Tai'Sheka Porchia down low, 65-61, with 2:24 remaining. However, five fouls committed by Troy in the final two minutes allowed Belmont to maintain by going 7-of-10 from the line and win the ballgame.
Despite the loss, Troy outmatched Belmont in nearly every statistical category, winning the points from turnovers (17-5), fast break points (17-5), bench points (26-5) and offensive rebounds (19-16).
Four Trojans reached double-figures for the fourth straight game, with Ja'Mia Hollings leading the charge for the third game of 2023-24 with 13 points. Porchia also managed her fourth straight double-digit performance to open the new season, while Makayia Hallmon returned to the court with an 11-point, one assist, one rebound performance.
Home of the Blues
The Tigers look to turn their season around after a 2-5 start that saw wins to Howard, 52-43, and Alabama State, 95-51. Over the last nine days, the Tigers have averaged 58 points scored with losses to No. 23 Marquette, 88-59, and Middle Tennessee, 64-57.
Saturday will mark the second home game of the season for Memphis and the second career home game coached at Elma Roane Fieldhouse for the 13th head coach in program history, Alex Simmons. Simmons comes to Memphis after being named Big South Coach of the Year, with four of her five starters earning All-Big South honors in 2022-23 while over Gardner-Webb. In five seasons, she amassed a 90-59 record and made the program's first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 2011.
Through seven games, Madison Griggs and Kai Carter are the dynamic duo, averaging double-figures with 14.6 and 13.9, respectively. Griggs has the ability to shoot the long ball, leading the Tigers with 21 made 3-pointers – Ki'Ari Cain has the second most at eight. With the 209th-ranked scoring offense (64.4) and 271st-scoring defense in the NCAA, the Tigers must rely on their 26th-ranked block defense (5.3) to win.
Let's Rock 'n Roll
• With a surprise start in her return to the court, Hallmon marked her 30th career start at Troy in 31 appearances. Through those 31 games, Hallmon averaged 14.8 points, 2.7 rebounds and 2.4 assists.
• Hallmon netted her 1,000th career point at the buzzer on Wednesday for her 1,001st point. She's scored 460 of those as a Trojan on 178 made field goals, 35 triples and 69 free throws.
• Zay Dyer started her first career game at Troy, playing 15 minutes to produce six points, five rebounds, two assists and one steal.
• Through the opening four games, Hollings (18-17-16-13) and Porchia (10-10-18-11) have consistently put up 10-plus points in 2023-24, with Hollings leading the team in scoring in 3-of-4 games.
• The Trojans closed the month of November at 0-4. Saturday allows Troy the chance to open December strong. Last season, the Trojans opened December 0-2 before finishing at 3-4 with wins over Texas State, LaGrange and Mercer.
• Hollings was a menace for Belmont's defense, swiping away a career-high five steals, which marked the first 5-plus steal game for a Trojan since Sharonica Hartsfield had five at Georgia State on Jan. 7, 2022.
Players Mentioned
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