Troy Guarantees Bye into SBC Quarterfinals with In-State Rivalry Win

Saturday, February 22

Mobile, Ala.

2 p.m.

Troy University

18-11,12-4Sun Belt

South Alabama

6-21,2-14Sun Belt

Troy

South Alabama

Troy Guarantees Bye into SBC Quarterfinals with In-State Rivalry Win

2/22/2025 5:49:00 PM | Basketball (W)

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

By: Troy Athletics Communications

MOBILE, Ala. – Battling foul calls and South Alabama's march in the fourth quarter, Troy still came out on top, 86-71, Saturday afternoon in the Mitchell Center to secure a spot in the quarterfinal round of the Sun Belt Conference Tournament.

A loss by Arkansas State and App State with the Trojans (18-11, 12-4 SBC) victory over the Jaguars (6-21, 2-14 SBC) punched their ticket into the quarterfinal round, guaranteeing a top-4 seed for the 10^th straight season. With two games remaining and a one-game gap between the Trojans and Red Wolves, hope remains of a bye into the semifinals with regular-season champs James Madison.

The Sun Belt Conference leader in rebounding, Zay Dyer, had her second straight double-double performance with 23 points and 10 rebounds, pushing her season total to 14 – she entered the day ranked 14^th nationally in both categories. With 10 points and four steals, Ashley Baez secured her 20^th game with double-digits in the scoring column and 16^th multi-steal game – she leads all Trojans in steals. Together, the Trojans shot 50 percent from the field, including 29-of-48 from inside the arc, for the fourth time in league play (4-0).

South Alabama got 30 fouls off the Trojans to shoot 39 shots at the free-throw line. But the Jaguars managed 25 makes at the charity stripe to hit 64.1 percent. Of the 25 makes, 13 came from Rachel Legget, who led South Alabama with 27 points, eight rebounds and three steals. USA was dominated in the paint, 48-28, despite winning the rebound battle, 37-35, as it shot 37.5 percent from the field and had 24 turnovers.

Hold Off the Rally
Through the second quarter, Troy pulled ahead by as much as nine on four occasions, but South Alabama went on a 6-2 burst with 1:40 remaining to hold a five-point lead into the break, 46-41. Daniel Gonzalez made it a one-possession game, 48-45, with 8:55 left in the third quarter on a second-chance layup.

With 7:24 remaining in the third and the margin at four, 50-46, Troy opened an onslaught on both ends. Brianna Jackson opened an 18-2 run when she grabbed the offensive rebound and finished inside, 52-46. The run continued until 2:34 on the clock, and Baez finished inside to push the lead to 16, 64-48.

Troy held the double-digit advantage through the rest of the third to have an 11-point advantage, 70-58, heading into the final 10 minutes. USA launched a late comeback, bringing the deficit to four, 70-66, off a pair of makes at the line from Michiyah Simmons with 7:52 remaining.

However, the remaining 7:37, starting with a layup by Dyer, 72-66, was all Troy as it outscored South Alabama 16-5. South Alabama managed just one basket from Naomi Smitherman to cut the margin to nine, 78-69, with 4:50 left while the Trojans shot 8-of-13 with buckets from Dyer (4), Emani Jenkins (2), Shaulana Wagner (2) and Baez (6). Baez played hero in the final three minutes, going 3-of-3 inside the arc to seal the 86-71 win.

17-4
South Alabama had the momentum early in the first quarter, opening on a 15-6 run through the opening 5:12 when Terren Coffil drilled a triple off the Troy turnover. Troy controlled the rest of the quarter, outscoring the Jaguars 17-4 on 6-of-12 shooting.

The run opened with three straight buckets from Dyer when she scored with 4:31 left in the first on a jumper near the line and followed it with 3:46 on the clock on a layup off a Jenkins steal. Her third straight bucket came 0:36 later on another fastbreak layup, 15-12.

Fortuna Ngnawo took over for Dyer with five straight points when she drove inside off a Khila Morris steal and converted the and-one with 2:53 left to tie the game at 15. She kept the pressure on as Morris grabbed her second straight steal, and Ngnawo hit a pair at the line for a 17-15 lead.

Another pair of free throws from Dyer and three points from Rachel Legget made it a one-score game, 19-18, with 1:34 left. Leilani Guion and Briana Peguero found the scoring column before the quarter ended, while USA managed one free throw as Troy took the 23-19 advantage into the second quarter.

Head Coach Chanda Rigby
"We're very thankful to have this win in South Alabama. These road wins are not easy to come by, especially with an in-state rival. This game was closer than the final score shows. We had to become uncomfortable with our pace and slow down to manage the clock. It felt like every time they touched the ball, we were called for a foul, so we decided to just hold the ball until the final seconds of each possession. And Ashley was clutch at the end, hitting two big layups for us in the final minute for the win. This team did what they needed to do in terms of making stops and scoring at the other end. We stayed in green all night despite the adversity, and that showed a lot of growth for us. Now, we need to polish the apple and focus on Texas State on Wednesday in Trojan Arena."

Home Sweet Home
The Trojans return home for the final week of the regular season, starting on Wednesday at 7 p.m. when Texas State comes to town.

Alabama State Notes
• Dyer clinched her 14^th double-double off a 23-point, 10-rebound performance.
• Baez returned to double figures in scoring for the 20^th time in 2024-25. She also had her 16^th multi-steal game with four.
• Troy's win pushes it to 11-1 in the last 12 meetings with South Alabama, including a 4-1 record in the Mitchell Center.
• The Trojans shot 50 percent or higher for the fourth time in 2024-25 (50 percent), remaining undefeated at 4-0 with that feat.
• Morris ended with a team-high and career-high in steals with five. She became the third active Trojan and first to have 5-plus steals since Peguero had five against Oakwood on Dec. 4, 2024.
• The highest-scoring team in the league put up 86 points to improve its record when scoring above 80 points to 15-0, 11-0 SBC.
• Saturday was the second time the Trojans dawned their cardinal jerseys, improving to 2-0, 2-0 SBC when wearing cardinal.
• For the 10^th straight season, the Trojans will enter the Sun Belt Conference Tournament as a top-4 seed.