Women’s Basketball Survives Defensive Battle Against Texas State

Saturday, January 17

San Marcos, Texas

1 p.m.

Troy University

15-3,6-1Sun Belt

Texas State

7-10,3-4Sun Belt

Troy

Texas St.

Women’s Basketball Survives Defensive Battle Against Texas State

1/17/2026 4:22:00 PM | Basketball (W)

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

By: Troy Athletics Communications

SAN MARCOS, Texas – Troy women's basketball survived a defensive battle with Texas State on Saturday afternoon in Strahan Arena, 67-63, for its 12^th straight win over the opposition.

In the final Sun Belt Conference regular season matchup with the Bobcats (7-10, 3-4 SBC), the Trojans (15-3, 6-1 SBC) won their sixth straight in Strahan Arena to end the SBC series ahead 15-5.

Ashley Baez had seven points and two steals in the final three minutes of the fourth quarter to end with 13 points and four steals, including the final two free throws to secure the victory with four seconds on the clock. Rachel Leggett led the Trojans with 17 points on 5-of-9 shooting and six free throws. Zay Dyer and Fortuna Ngnawo dominated the post, combining for 24 points, 35 rebounds and a pair of double-doubles. Dyer secured a season-high 18 rebounds with four steals and two blocks, while Ngnawo tied her career-high for the third time with 17 boards.

Saniya Burks had 27 points on seven 3-pointers to lead the Bobcats and account for 42.8 percent of their points. KP Parr led Texas State in assists (6) and steals (4), while Kyra Anderson neared a double-double on nine points and 10 rebounds. Both teams scored 28 points in the paint, but Troy outrebounded Texas State 51-42 with 18 offensive rebounds for 18 second-chance points.

Defensive Finish
Troy wrestled back to the lead with 5:49 on the clock in the third, outscoring Texas State 11-5 in the opening four minutes. After a missed free throw, Dyer grabbed the offensive board and Baez finished the possession with a 3-pointer and a Troy lead, 43-41 – Troy's first lead since the 3:10 mark of the second quarter.

Neither side could pull away for the remainder of the third, but Troy ended it with a 51-48 lead on a 4-0 burst in the final minute from Dyer and Ngnawo. Leggett was the lone Trojan to score in the first seven minutes of the final quarter, hitting three free throws and a layup to maintain a five-point advantage, 56-51, with 6:06 remaining.

After a three-minute scoring drought by Troy allowed Texas State to bring the margin to one, 56-55, Baez timed the steal and broke away for the lay-in as Troy called the timeout. The Bobcats managed a free throw before Dyer hit the layup and Baez came up with her second steal-and-score for the 62-56 lead with 1:04 left.

Baez boosted the lead back to six with a free throw, 65-59, with 22 seconds left before Texas State scored back-to-back in nine seconds off a Troy turnover to make it a one-possession game with five seconds left. Head coach Chanda Rigby called the timeout, and a held ball was called one second later. On Troy's second inbound, Baez got the ball with four seconds left, forcing the foul and hitting the final free throws to clinch the 67-63.

Hot Start
Troy started fast with a 10-0 run before Texas State called the timeout with 6:17 on the clock. Emani Jenkins started Troy off with a three before Leggett capitalized off the Bobcat turnover with a hookshot in the first 73 seconds.

One minute and 24 seconds later, Dyer scored her first bucket inside off the assist from Ngnawo. A bad pass by Parr gave Troy possession and Leggett hit her third 3-pointer of the season, with the assist going to Baez for the 10-0 lead.

The Bobcats outscored the Trojans 13-3 after the media timeout to tie the game at 13 before Jenkins hit her second 3-pointer of the game to retake the lead, 16-13, with 1:05 left in the opening quarter.

Both sides exchanged buckets with Texas State getting the final say in the first quarter to end it down one, 18-17. Freshman Saniya Jackson opened the second quarter for Troy with her seventh career 3-pointer 1:10 in to give Troy the 21-17 lead.

Head Coach Chanda Rigby
"We're very fortunate to go home to Troy 2-0 on this road trip. Both games were absolute dog fights. They made some really good adjustments from game one to game two. We started strong but really didn't get off on the right foot because they were willing rebounds away from us. Big shoutout to Fortuna and Zay for having huge rebound numbers, especially with how hard they had to work for them. I'm beyond proud of Ashley for her will to win. She came up with some huge steals and scores late in the ballgame. Now, we head back to Troy with a pair of teams that we haven't played yet. So, I'm excited to see Trojan fans pack the stands."

Up Next
Troy returns to Trojan Arena on Thursday, Jan. 22, at 6 p.m., welcoming Georgia Southern.

12-Straight Stats
• Zay Dyer claimed her league-best 10^th double-double with 12 points and 18 rebounds. She also had four steals and two blocks.
• With her 18 rebounds, Zay Dyer is now four away from reaching 1,000 career rebounds.
• Shakirah Edwards claimed a block in the 10^th game of 2025-26. She also got a steal to have a block and a steal in eight games, including the last four.
• Rachel Leggett led Troy in scoring for the first time with a season-high of 17. She's scored 10-plus points in six straight with nine in her last 10 games.
• With the victory, Troy's won 12 straight over Texas State. They end the SBC series with the Bobcats at 15-5.
• Troy won the rebound battle 51-42 and had 18 second-chance points to Texas State's four.
• Fortuna Ngnawo secured her 17^th double-digit scoring performance in the last 18 games with her ninth double-double in the last 11 games.