Troy Win Streak Snapped in Cajundome

Saturday, January 25

Lafayette, La.

2 p.m.

Troy University

13-8,7-2Sun Belt

Louisiana

9-9,5-4Sun Belt

Troy

Louisiana

1/25/2025 5:33:00 PM | Basketball (W)

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

By: Troy Athletics Communications

LAFAYETTE, La. – Troy's seven-game win streak came to a halt on Saturday afternoon at the hands of Louisiana, 70-53, in the Cajundome.

Despite the loss, the Trojans (13-8, 7-2 SBC) stay atop the Sun Belt standings in a two-way tie with App State for third. The win snaps a four-game skid by the Ragin' Cajuns (9-9, 5-4 SBC) as they jump to sixth in the league.

Zay Dyer willed the Trojans with her 11^th double-double on 11 points and 19 rebounds. Of her 19 rebounds, 10 came on the offensive end to become the first Trojans with double-digit offensive boards since Tai'Sheka Porchia had 11 at ULM on Feb. 1, 2024. Brianna Jackson also impressed, shooting 5-of-9 on the floor for 13 points in 21 minutes. Briana Peguero rounded out the trio in double-figures for points with 10 points on two triples. The fourth quarter saw the Trojans find their stride, shooting 50 percent from the field.

Ashlyn Jones ended Louisiana's four-game losing streak on a 20-point performance, where she shot 8-of-9 at the charity stripe – she also had two steals and six rebounds. One point behind Jones was Erica Lafayette, who scored 19 points on 7-of-12 from the field, followed by Nubia Benedith, who ended with 12 points, two steals, and three assists. Louisiana thrived at the charity stripe, going 19-of-23, and combined it with 26 forced turnovers for the win – ULL scored 24 points off turnovers.

Final 10
Troy delivered its best shot to start the final quarter as Emani Jenkins opened with her 14^th triple in the last four games, 52-35 – 0:18 in. The triple sparked a 9-0 run for the Trojans, 52-41, that included a second-chance layup for Fortuna Ngnawo, a lay-in by Dyer, and ended with a tip-in layup by the junior forward with 7:43 remaining.

A pair of makes at the charity stripe by Benedith paused the Troy run, 54-41. However, Peguero kept the rally going on her second 3-pointer to cut the margin to 10, 54-44.

Louisiana stretched the advantage back to 15, 59-44, at the 4:06 mark via Jones as she scored five straight points on an and-one and two more free throws. Jackson responded with two consecutive trips to the line and three makes, 59-47, to cut the margin to 12 with 3:55 remaining.

However, Louisiana regained complete control on a 7-0 run to hold a 66-47 lead with 2:00 left on the clock. Jackson tried to bring Troy back with back-to-back makes, 68-51, between a jumper for Lafayette, but Louisiana split the regular season series, 70-53.

First 30 Minutes
After a 4-0 start by Louisiana, Jackson got Troy on the board, 4-2, with a hook shot at the 2:17 mark. Dyer tied the game, 4-4, as Peguero found her inside for the jumper. Both sides exchanged a pair of free throws before Ngnawo retied the game at eight with 3:13 left in the first with a one-woman steal/score that ended on a pullup jumper – Uniyah Franklin scored before Ngnawo on a layup.

Louisiana dominated the rest of the first half of action as it led into the half 31-18, forcing 13 turnovers by Troy and holding the program to 19.4 percent shooting. Peguero kept it within reach as she was the lone scorer (7 points) in the final nine minutes of the second quarter on a triple, jumper and pair of free throws.

Jones started the second half in the first 0:14 on a turnaround jumper, 33-18. Jackson responded, bodying the post for her sixth point to start a spurt for Troy. An empty possession for Louisiana allowed Ashley Baez to drive inside for the lay-in, 36-22, with 8:18 left in the third.

The run continued 0:25 later when Peguero found Leilani Guion, who drained her 48^th career triple, 36-25. Dyer ended the burst at the 3:05 mark, cutting the margin down to 10, 36-26, at the charity stripe. But, in the final seven minutes of the third, Louisiana outscored Troy 16-6 to head into the fourth with a 52-32 lead.

Head Coach Chanda Rigby
"It was a very disappointing night here in the Cajundome. We had a rough night. We weren't shooting the ball well and turned the ball over 26 times. It's hard enough to win with that at home, let alone on the road. We didn't get the job done. And we're disappointed. We wanted the win streak to extend, but we must learn from these mistakes and do better next time. This team we faced tonight is not a 3-point shooting team, and in the fourth, we had to force the pressure. This team didn't give up, and we battled back, so I'm proud of that. Zay has bought into the insurance plan of rebounding, and she knows that when the chips are down, we have to rebound. So, I'm proud of her for that. Next up, we have Arkansas State and a challenge coming up. We have to fight and claw back to get tied back up in second place."

Onto Jonesboro
Troy heads to the First National Bank Arena to face Arkansas State on Thursday, Jan. 30 at 7 p.m.

Final Notes
• Dyer dominated the board in the first half with 12 (10 offensive) to end with 19 rebounds and her 12^th game with 10-plus rebounds – she's grabbed 15-plus rebounds in five games.
• The SBC leader in double-doubles found her way back as Dyer led the team with 11 points and 19 rebounds.
• The fourth quarter saw Troy outscore Louisiana 21-18 on 50 percent shooting.
• Despite the loss while shooting above 70 percent at the charity stripe, Troy remains 12-2, 6-1 SBC when hitting at the line.
• Jenkins remained a threat from deep with two triples – she's converted 14 in the last four games and made 2-plus triples in eight of her last nine games.
• For the sixth time in the last seven games, Peguero led Troy in assists with three.
• Dyer (10) became the first Trojans since Tai'Sheka Porchia at ULM on Feb. 1, 2024, to have double-double offensive rebounds.