Troy University Athletics
Troy University
1-0,0-0Sun Belt
Kent State
0-1,0-0MAC
Men's Basketball Outlasts Kent State in Thrilling Overtime Victory
11/3/2025 10:50:00 PM | Basketball (M)
KENT, Ohio – Five Trojans scored in double figures as the 2025-26 Troy men's basketball team opened its season with a thrilling overtime win on the road, defeating Kent State on Monday night.
Troy (1-0) controlled the game for most of the night, trailing for fewer than four minutes of regulation. Kent State (0-1) didn't take its first lead until the 1:28 mark of the second half, going up 86-84 before the Trojans forced overtime and closed out the win.
It was Cooper Campbell who delivered at the end of regulation for Troy, going coast-to-coast for a game-tying layup with one second left to send the game to an extra period.
Campbell stayed hot in overtime, scoring seven points along with Theo Seng, who finished with a game-high 24 points.
The Trojans opened the game strong, jumping out to a 16-3 lead five minutes into the contest.
Troy maintained a lead for the entirety of the first half, despite Kent State cutting it to an eight-point game as the teams headed to the locker room.
Victor Valdes and Theo Seng each scored 12 points in the opening period, and their final totals of 23 and 24 points, respectively, marked new career highs for both players.
Kent State trimmed the Troy lead to five early in the second half, and later to eight on multiple occasions, but each time the Golden Flashes made a push, the Trojans answered with a run of their own.
Thomas Dowd, who had just four points at halftime, played a massive role in that effort. The junior scored 15 in the second half and pulled in seven rebounds. His 13 total rebounds give Dowd his first double-double of the season, and the sixth of his career.
Kent State eventually grabbed its first lead of the night when Rob Whaley Jr. knocked down a three. The teams then traded free throws in the final minute before Campbell's late bucket sent the game to overtime, where Troy went on to secure the win.
For Kent State, preseason All-MAC First Team selection Delrecco Gillespie led the way scoring 22 and pulling down 16 rebounds, nine of which were offensive.
Quotable – Head Coach Scott Cross
"What a great victory. The good Lord definitely shone down on us tonight. The guys didn't lose their composure, I mean this is a tough road environment. We led for pretty much the entire game, but they did grab the lead there, and they had all the momentum in the world. What a huge bucket Cooper Campbell hit. I decided not to call a timeout because we have confidence in our guys and it ended up being the right thing because Cooper is a baller. This was a team effort though; to score 103 points in this building is not an easy task. Kent State is a great basketball team and it took everything for us to win this game."
Notables
- Troy is now 6-1 in season openers under Scott Cross. Troy has also won six season openers in a row.
- Tonight marked Troy's first overtime game March 1, 2024 when the Trojans lost to Texas State, 79-82.
- The last time Troy scored 100 points against a Division I opponent was on Feb. 11, 2017 against Louisiana. The Trojans won that game, 100-88.
- Troy was just one of four Sun Belt teams to win in the MAC-SBC Challenge on Monday. Arkansas State, Marshall, and South Alabama also earned victories over MAC opponents.
- The Trojans are now 3-2 all-time in the MAC-SBC Challenge, and picked up their first road win in the event.
- Cooper Campbell had a career-night in his first game of his sophomore season, setting new career-bests in points (19), rebounds (6), assists (8), and steals (3).
- Theo Seng's career-high of 24 points was six more than his previous high. Seng had 18 on Jan. 11 against Arkansas State last season.
- Similarly, Victor Valdes' 23 points was seven more than his previous – 16 against Arkansas State two seasons ago.
- Cooper's brother, Cobi Campbell played in his first game at Troy after redshirting last season due to injury. Campbell played 33 minutes, scoring 10 points and shooting 2-3 from beyond the arc.
- Redshirt-freshman Austin Cross made his first career appearance for Troy and hit a three in the second half.
- Corbin Green, a transfer from Texas Tech, also made his Trojan debut.
- Freshmen Javen Colbert and Emmanuel Clarton both saw game action.
- Thomas Dowd tied a career-high in rebounds with 13.
- Troy is now 2-0 all-time against Kent State.
Up Next
Troy will stay on the road, heading to Greenville, S.C. for a Friday night game against Furman at 6 p.m. CT. The game will be available to stream on ESPN+, with the radio broadcast on Troy Sports Media Network.
