Troy University Athletics
Troy University
Arkansas State
Men’s Basketball Takes on Arkansas State in Crucial Conference Showdown
2/14/2025 12:51:00 PM | Basketball (M)
TROY, Ala. – In a battle of the top two teams in the Sun Belt Conference, the Troy men's basketball team travels to Jonesboro, Ark., for a nationally televised showdown with Arkansas State at the First National Bank Arena. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m. on ESPN2.
Troy (16-9, 9-4 SBC) is coming off an 18-point win over Louisiana on the road Wednesday night and currently sits in a four-way tie for second place in the SBC standings. Arkansas State (19-7, 10-3 SBC) sits in sole possession of first place and won its Wednesday night dual against Southern Miss.
Game Information
The Matchup: Troy at Arkansas State
When: Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025 | 7 p.m. CT
Where: Jonesboro, Ark. | First National Bank Arena (10,563)
TV: ESPN2 | Matt Schick (PxP) and Paul Biancardi (Analyst)
Radio: Troy Sports Media Network | Barry McKnight
Live Stats: Troystats.com
Watch Party: Baumhower's Victory Grille
The Trojans, who have been lingering at the top of the Sun Belt standings all season, are coming off a key road victory over the Ragin' Cajuns in Lafayette. Troy got impressive play from Myles Rigsby and Thomas Dowd, who combined for 38 points and 30 in the second half. Each player finished the night with 19 points, while Dowd had 12 rebounds to record his first double-double of the season and the third of his career.
Rigsby's 19 point were his most in a game since he had 22 against Georgia State to open conference play. He scored in impressive fashion, going 7-9 from the field.
A key to Troy's good offensive showing on Wednesday night was its ability to pass the ball, as the Trojans had 19 assists on 26 made buckets. Tayton Conerway had a team-high seven, while Marcus Rigsby Jr., had a career-high six and no turnovers. Conerway's 123 total assists is second in the Sun Belt and 50th nationally. The Trojans are 13-1 this season when recording 15 or more assists in a game.
The Trojans also put on a rebounding clinic on Wednesday, winning the battle on the boards 42-20, including grabbing 17 offensive rebounds. This season, Troy has a conference leading +6.5 rebound margin, a mark that is in the country. When it comes to the offensive glass, Troy is pulling down 14.0 rebounds a night, which is second in the Sun Belt and 11th nationally.
This season, Troy is 15-3 (8-2 SBC) when leading at halftime. Against Louisiana, the Trojans took a nine point lead into the locker room. Slow starts have been Troy's biggest kryptonite this year, as Troy is 1-6 when trailing at the break. The lone win came on the road against Marshall on Jan. 4.
Scouting Arkansas State
Troy is looking to snap its three-game skid against the Red Wolves, who overcame a nine-point first half deficit to beat the Trojans in Troy earlier this year. Despite the lack of recent success against Arkansas State, Troy still leads the all-time series 17-14.
In the teams last matchup on Jan. 11 in Trojan Arena, Conerway had a career-high 32 points on 8-12 shooting. He was 4-7 from 3-point range and 12-15 from the free throw line. It was the first time a Trojan scored 30 or more points since Jordan Varnado had 33 points at Louisiana on Jan. 26, 2019.
Theo Seng had a career-high 18 points on 6-7 shooting.
Leading the charge for the Red Wolves this season has been Taryn Todd and his 15.5 points. Also scoring in double-digits this season has been Kobe Julien (13.0) and Joseph Pinion (12.3). Arkansas State is the only Sun Belt team ranked in the top 100 in the NCAA Net Rankings and KenPom.com.
Arkansas State is 12-0 this season when playing on its home court.
Watch Party
The official watch party headquarters of Troy Athletics, Baumhower's Victory Grille has wall-to-wall TVs that will allow for all eyes to be turned to a battle of the top two teams in the Sun Belt Conference this season. As a thank you to all that attend the watch party, each fan will receive a complimentary ticket to Troy's Feb. 20th game against Louisiana to cheer on the Trojans in person in Trojan Arena. Additionally, all fans in attendance will be to entered for a chance to win a pair of courtside tickets to next Thursday's contest.
Notables
• Scott Cross is in his sixth season at the helm for Troy men's basketball, and his 18th as a Division I men's basketball head coach. While at Troy he has put together a 96-85 record, which includes three straight seasons of 20 or more wins. In each of those three seasons, he has also led the Trojans to 10 or more conference wins.• After dropping a pair of games last week, the Trojans got back into the win column on Wednesday night in Lafayette, as it took down Louisiana 74-56 for its fourth straight win over the Ragin' Cajuns.
• Troy played strong defense and limited Louisiana to a 40.7 percent shooting clip.
• Thomas Dowd recorded his first double-double of the year with 19 points and 12 rebounds, while Myles Rigsby had 19 points.
• Saturday is Troy's first nationally televised game of the season. Last year, Troy played three games on television.
• Troy's road game at Arkansas State last season aired on ESPNU.
• Conerway has scored in double-digits in all 12 of 13 conference games this year and has ten games of 15-plus points.
• Conerway's career-high 32 points against Arkansas State was the first time a Trojan has scored 30-plus points since 2019.
• Against ULM on Jan. 15, Conerway had the first double-double of his career with 10 points and a career-high 12 assists.
• The Trojans entered 2024-25 picked to finish third in the Sun Belt Coaches Preseason Poll, which is the highest it had been selected to finish since the start of the 2017-18 season. Troy received one first-place vote.
• Troy's last regular season conference title game during the 2008-09 season.
• Scott Cross has started 20 of 25 games this season with the same starting lineup (Rigsby Jr., Conerway, Rigsby, Dowd and Fields).
• That starting lineup returned to the court on Wednesday for the first time since Feb. 1 vs. ULM. Troy's 15-5 this season when starting those five players.
