Troy Dropped by ULM in Monroe

Thursday, February 20

Monroe, La.

6:30 p.m.

Troy University

17-11,11-4Sun Belt

ULM

10-16,6-9Sun Belt

Troy

ULM

2/20/2025 10:04:00 PM | Basketball (W)

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

By: Troy Athletics Communications

MONROE, La. – A fourth-quarter rally came up short Thursday night in the Fant-Ewing Coliseum as Troy lost its first meeting with the Warhawks in the last 15 matchups, 84-73.

The Trojans (17-11, 11-4 SBC) couldn't capitalize on a loss by Arkansas State as they remain two games outside the No. 2 seed. They now hold a one-game advantage over Coastal Carolina at No. 3. A five-game losing streak ends for the Warhawks (10-16, 6-9 SBC), staying in the lone No. 9 spot for the league.

Post-players Zay Dyer and Brianna Jackson ended with double-doubles. The Sun Belt Conference leader in rebounding and double-doubles claimed her 13^th of 2024-25 with 16 points and 18 rebounds. After returning to the court with an injury, Jackson followed Dyer with a 14-point, 10-rebound performance. Shaulana Wagner was the final Trojan with double digits in the scoring column, ending with 12 points – her first game with 10-plus points since she scored 15 against Arkansas on Dec. 19, 2024.

ULM used a four-headed monster of Meloney Thames, Jakayla Johnson, Sakyia White and Katlyn Manuel in the victory, with the four combining for 72 of its 84 points. Thames led the way for ULM with 22 points on five triples, followed by Johnson and White with 20 and 16, respectively – the pair also had nine rebounds. Trailing behind with 14 points on 7-of-12 shooting was Manuel off the bench. ULM shot 47.7 percent from the field as a unit, dropping Troy's record when allowing the opposition to shoot above 40 percent to 4-6, 3-2 SBC.

Rally Comes Up Short
The first 6:42 of the third quarter saw the score tied four times, with neither team gaining more than a four-point advantage as Jackson scored inside off a Warhawk turnover, 56-56. The rest of the 3:18 saw ULM end on a 12-2 run to enter the fourth with a 10-point lead, 68-58.

After White pushed the lead to 12, 70-58, with 8:33 left in the fourth on a layup, Troy mounted the comeback, starting on a second-chance layup from Dyer, 70-60. The Trojans cut the deficit to six, 70-64, when Emani Jenkins hit from behind the arc and scored one on the line with 7:00 left.

A free throw and triple from Thames pushed the lead back to double-digits, 74-64, with 5:40 on the clock. But, the Trojans, via a lay-in by Wagner and a second chance make from Jackson, brought it back to six, 74-68, as 3:47 remained on the clock. The comeback continued after a free throw from Johnson as the Trojans made it a four-point game, 75-71, with 2:59 left after Jackson's 14^th point off a layup and a 1-of-2 showing at the stripe for Leilani Guion.

ULM ended Troy's rally in the final three minutes, allowing Dyer to be the lone Trojan to score off a tip-in layup with 0:35 remaining. The bucket by Dyer was too little, too late, as the Warhawks pushed the advantage back to double digits at that point, 83-73. The Warhawks managed one more make at the line from White to polish off their first win over Troy, 84-73, since Jan. 21, 2016.

10-0 Run Late
ULM set the tone early with the first five points of the first quarter from Thames, 5-0, before Troy's following three buckets came from Dyer to keep Troy within two possessions with 6:14 left, 10-6.

The Warhawks controlled the next 2:45, outscoring the Trojans 13-5 to hold a 23-11 advantage when Manuel hit the jumper. Troy trickled the deficit down to seven as the first quarter expired as Wagner capitalized off a ULM turnover and hit the reverse layup, 26-19.

Quarter No. 2 saw Troy rally back as Jenkins scored the first points from either side with 7:42 from deep, 26-22. A ULM turnover allowed Fortuna Ngnawo to cut it to within a possession, 26-24, as she got the pass from Wagner and finished inside.

A pull-up jumper by Nya Valentine brought the Warhawks lead up to nine, 35-26, with 3:18 on the clock. But a triple by Guion opened a 10-0 run to finish the half as Ngnawo scored back-to-back layups, 35-33, with 1:43 remaining. The Trojans would take their first lead into the half as Briana Peguero ended the quarter with her 30^th triple in the last 16 games, 36-35.

Head Coach Chanda Rigby
"It was a disappointing loss here tonight in Monroe. They pushed back hard, and it seemed like everyone on that team had a great night, so congrats to them. We felt like we had an excellent game plan, but we allowed 33 points in the third quarter, and that made it difficult to come back. We will watch the film tomorrow and put everything we have into focusing on our game against South Alabama. That game is beyond important. The bottom teams are capable of being the top teams. The Sun Belt Conference is that competitive. So, we need to be hungry. That game needs to be our only focus."

To the Rivals
Troy heads to the Mitchell Center, where it plays in-state rival South Alabama for the final road game of the regular season on Saturday at 2 p.m.

Monroe Notes
• The SBC leader in rebounding and double-doubles expanded her advantage over the league on her 13^th double-double with 16 points and 18 rebounds.
• Despite the loss, Troy is 14-1 in the last 15 meetings with the Warhawks.
• The Trojans introduced their 11^th different starting five as Baez entered the starting lineup over Guion.
• The second quarter saw the Trojans outscore the Warhawks 17-9 on 50 percent shooting from the field and from deep, holding the opposition to 25 percent.
• Offensive rebounding was Troy's strength as it managed 15 to end with 23 second-chance points, while ULM had one second-chance point off six offensive boards.
• Jackson's 14 points and 10 rebounds marked her eighth game with 10-plus points in the last nine games and her sixth double-double.
• In both games against ULM, the Trojans had two players with double-doubles – both games were Dyer and Jackson.