Troy University Athletics
Troy University
Kent State
Troy Opens Season in MAC-SBC Challenge at Kent State
11/2/2025 12:00:00 PM | Basketball (M)
TROY, Ala. - The 2025-26 Troy men's basketball season begins on Monday in Kent, Ohio, as the Trojans travel to take on the Kent State Golden Flashes as part of the MAC-SBC Challenge.
Troy enters the season as the defending Sun Belt Champions, winning three games in as many days en route to an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
The Trojans return several key pieces from that team, including Preseason Sun Belt First Team selection Thomas Dowd. Dowd is joined by four others who made at least one start last season – Cooper Campbell, Victor Valdes, Kerrington Kiel, and Theo Seng.
Troy will look to replace the production of its top scorers from last season, as Tayton Conerway (Indiana), Myles Rigsby (Tulsa), and starting center Jackson Fields (West Virginia) all departed via the transfer portal.
The Trojans will lean on their returning core - as well as the return of guard Cobi Campbell, who redshirted last season due to injury - to fill that void.
Game Information
Location: Kent, Ohio – Memorial Athletic & Convocation Center (6,327)
The Matchup: Troy vs. Kent State
When: Monday, November 3 – 7 p.m. ET
Watch: ESPN+
Listen: Troy Sports Radio Network
Back for More
Troy returns seven letterwinners from last season's roster, highlighted by Preseason All-Sun Belt First Team selection Thomas Dowd. Dowd looks to take on a larger role after averaging 9.6 points and a team-high 6.9 rebounds per game last season. Brothers Cooper and Cobi Campbell headline the Trojan backcourt, with Cooper coming off an impressive freshman year and Cobi set to make his Troy debut after missing last season due to injury. All in their third season as Trojans, Kerrington Kiel, Jerrell Bellamy, Theo Seng, and Victor Valdes are each expected to step into an expanded role in 2025–26.
Fresh Faces
Troy welcomes four newcomers to Troy this season - two transfers and two freshmen - along with two additions to the coaching staff. Transfers Corbin Green (Texas Tech) and Javier Gilgeous-Glasgow (Toronto Metropolitan) bring experience and depth, while freshmen Emmanuel Clarton (Livingston, Ala.) and Javen Colbert (Decatur, Texas) add athleticism and scoring to the team. On the sidelines, Kaleb Canales joins as Associate Head Coach, and Scott Campbell comes aboard as an assistant coach.
Scouting Kent State
Kent State opens the season after a 24–12 campaign in 2024-25, which included an 11–7 record in MAC play and a run to the NIT quarterfinals, where the Golden Flashes fell to Loyola Chicago. The Golden Flashes return multiple contributors from last year's roster, including Morgan Safford, the team's third-leading scorer, and Delrocco Gillespie, who was named to the Preseason All-MAC First Team. Kent State was selected to finish third in the MAC Preseason Coaches' Poll.
MAC-SBC Challenge
This season marks the third year of the MAC–SBC Challenge, a scheduling alliance between the two conferences. Thirteen Sun Belt teams will visit MAC schools on Monday, with MAC programs making the return trip to 13 Sun Belt campuses on Feb. 7. Last year, the conferences split the series 12–12 across the two dates. Troy opened the 2023-24 campaign with a home win over Toledo before falling on the road to Miami (OH) in February. Matchups are determined using a combination of NET data, geography, and frequency of previous meetings.
Up Next
Troy will head to Greenville, S.C., next Friday for a matchup with Furman. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m. CT, with the game streaming on ESPN+ and airing on the Troy Sports Radio Network.
Notables
• Scott Cross enters his seventh season at the helm of the Trojans, amassing a 103-87 record during his time at Troy. Over the last four seasons, Troy has won 20-plus games each year and finished 23-11 last season.
• Troy is coming off a historic season, winning the Sun Belt Championship and earning a berth to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since the 2016-17 season. The Trojans won three games in three days, defeating Old Dominion, James Madison, and Arkansas State to punch their ticket to the Big Dance. As the No. 14 seed in the Midwest Region, Troy fell to No. 3 seed Kentucky, 76-57 in the First Round.
• The Trojans will have a new look this season, returning just under 40 percent of their scoring from last year's championship team. Leading the returning group is junior forward Thomas Dowd, who was recently named to the Preseason All-Sun Belt First Team. Dowd started all but one game last season and will be called upon to take on an even larger role following the departures of the Trojans' two leading scorers from the 2024-25 squad — Tayton Conerway and Myles Rigsby.
• Other returning Trojans who made at least one start last season include Cooper Campbell (3), Victor Valdes (3), Kerrington Kiel (2), and Theo Seng (1). Jerrell Bellamy didn't record a start but appeared in 32 games. Campbell returns after an impressive freshman campaign, while Valdes, Kiel, Seng, and Bellamy all enter their third season in the Cardinal and White. This veteran core will be relied on to take a significant step forward, as Troy looks to replace major production from last year's roster. Cobi Campbell, Cooper's older brother, redshirted last season due to injury but is expected to join the starting lineup this year. He led the Trojans with 20 points in last Sunday's exhibition at Georgia, knocking down four of five attempts from three.
• The Trojans will open on the road for the first time since 2015, when they defeated South Florida, 82-77. Since that game, Troy has opened the season with seven home games and two neutral-site contests.
• Troy is 5-1 in season openers under head coach Scott Cross, including wins in each of the last five seasons.
• Troy is 1-0 all-time against Kent State. The Trojans defeated the Golden Flashes inside Trojan Arena on Feb. 10, 2024, 78-68. Myles Rigsby led the Cardinal and White with 22 points, shooting 7-11 from the field.
