Troy University Athletics
Thursday, January 22
Troy, Ala.
6 p.m.
Troy University
vs
Georgia Southern
Women’s Basketball Invites First of Two Peach State Teams in Georgia Southern
1/21/2026 9:34:00 AM | Basketball (W)
TROY, Ala. – The Troy women's basketball program invites its first of two Peach State teams to Trojan Arena this week, with the first matchup against Georgia Southern since 2024. The programs face off on ESPN+ on Thursday, Jan. 22, at 6 p.m.
The Trojans (15-3, 6-1 SBC) sit half a game behind Arkansas State for the lead in the Sun Belt Conference, while the Eagles (13-5, 6-2 SBC) are a full game back, tied with Marshall for third.
Troy athletics is proud to be giving away cardinal t-shirts to the first 200 students in attendance. At halftime, fans will be treated to the Air Elite Dunkers, who will perform.
Game Information
Location: Troy, Ala. – Trojan Arena
Matchup: Troy (15-3, 6-1 SBC) vs. Georgia Southern (13-5, 6-2 SBC)
When: Thursday, Jan. 22 – 6 p.m.
Watch: ESPN+
Listen: Troy Sports Radio Network
Stats: troytrojans.com/livestats
2-0 on the Road
Troy earned two narrow wins last week at ULM and Texas State, leaving it as one of two teams remaining in the SBC with one league loss (Arkansas State). Zay Dyer dominated on the road with 18 points, 15.5 rebounds, 2.5 steals and 1.5 blocks through the two outings. Both wins came within two possessions, marking the lone two conference wins within 10 points. Troy sits 4-0 in double-digit games in league play and 2-1 in games decided by single-digits.
The Trojans return home to Trojan Arena as the highest-ranked NCAA NET team in the SBC at No. 62 and seventh in the Mid-Major rankings. Troy is perfect at home, sitting at 7-0, 2-0 SBC in Trojan Arena and 4-0, 1-0 SBC in Thursday games. Troy's magic number is 40 percent for defensive field goal percentage, recorded at 11-0, 5-0 SBC when limiting opponents to under 40 percent from the floor.
All five Troy starters average double figures, the only team in the conference to do so. Fortuna Ngnawo continues to lead Troy with 15 points and 9.9 rebounds, followed by Dyer (13.1), Emani Jenkins (12.5), Ashley Baez (10.3) and Rachel Leggett (10.0). The duo of Dyer and Ngnawo also combine for 19 double-doubles as No. 5 leads the SBC with 10, while Ngnawo ranks third with nine.
Scouting Georgia Southern
Georgia Southern has won 12 of its last 14 games, with the two losses coming at Old Dominion and James Madison. Through eight league games, the Eagles have won the turnover battle by 1.6 per game. The Eagles lead the league in assist/turnover ratio (1.0) and field goal percentage (44.9). Kishyah Anderson leads the Eagles in SBC play with 16.1 points on 54.1 percent shooting. Overall, Destiny Garrett is the team leader in points with 14.5 on 44.2 percent from the field.
Notables
• Thursday will mark the first meeting between Troy and Georgia Southern since Jan. 4, 2024, with Troy winning the last four and 21 of its last 23 meetings.
• Zay Dyer and Leilani Guion are the only active Trojans to play Georgia Southern in a Troy jersey, with Dyer having four points and 15 rebounds and Guion adding two points and an assist.
• Troy has never lost to Georgia Southern at home, sitting at 11-0 all-time.
• The Trojans rank sixth in the Mid-Major polls and 63rd in the NCAA Net Rankings, leading the Sun Belt Conference in the NET ranking.
• Troy shot 60.2 percent from the field in the second half at ULM to shoot above 50 percent (50.7) for the fifth time in 2025-26 – the Trojans are 5-0 when they shoot above 50 percent and 12-1 when shooting above 40 percent.
• Zay Dyer claimed the most rebounds in a Division-I career with her 678th Troy rebound with a defensive board with 1:36 remaining in the second quarter against Texas State. She is four rebounds from reaching 1,000 rebounds in her career.
• Rachel Leggett ended with a season-high 17 points at Texas State for her ninth game with 10-plus points over the last 10 games after having one in her first eight games as a Trojan.
• With the 22-point win over Arkansas State, Troy's won eight games by at least 20 points. Of their 15 wins, 11 have come in double figures.
• Shakirah Edwards ended with a block and steal at Texas State. Edwards has a block and a steal in eight games, including the last four games.
• Zay Dyer leads the conference with 10 double-doubles, followed closely behind by Fortuna Ngnawo at nine.
• Chanda Rigby sits five wins away from becoming the winningest coach in Troy history. She currently has 270, looking to pass Joyce Sorrell for the most at 274. She is also two wins from her 500th career victory, currently sitting at 498.
• Troy enters Thursday's matchup as the second-best Division-I team in rebounds at 50.2. The Trojans have led the nation in rebounds over the last seven seasons.
• Fortuna Ngnawo leads Troy and sits fourth in the conference with 15.0 points per game on the fifth-highest field goal percentage at 46.4.
• Zay Dyer leads the SBC in double-doubles (10), rebounds (216), defensive rebounds per game (7.6) and rebounds per game (12.0). She also ranks fourth in total rebounds per game nationally.
• Troy enters the matchup against Georgia Southern as the conference leader in assists (15.6), free throws made per game (15.3), rebound margin (plus-12.3), defensive rebounds (32.6), offensive rebounds (17.7), total rebounds (50.3), scoring margin (plus-17.2), scoring (84.6) and win percentage (83.3).
• Zay Dyer has scored in double-figures in 26 of her last 31 games with double-digit rebounds in 18 of her last 24 games.
• For the ninth time in the last 11 games, Fortuna Ngnawo ended with a double-double on 12 points and 17 rebounds at Texas State. She also scored double-figures in 20 of her last 21 games.
• Freshman Saniya Jackson has scored in all 16 appearances.
• Emani Jenkins has hit 52 threes in her last 15 games to average 3.5 per game. She's earned three or more 3-pointers in 10 games in 2025-26.
• With her 57 3-pointers (second in SBC), Emani Jenkins averages 3.2 per game to sit second the SBC – her 57 3-pointers already sits tied for ninth in Troy D-I single season history. She ranks seventh and fourth in the nation, respectively. She also leads the conference in 3-point percentage at 44.9, ranking 13th in the country.
• Emani Jenkins is third in Troy D-I single-season shooting chart for threes at 44.9 percent. She currently ranks No. 1 in career 3-point percentage in Division-I at 39.7.
• Jenkins' 10 threes against Oakwood ties three players for the most in a single game in 2025-26, while breaking the all-time single-game record at Troy.
• Troy broke its single-game records for points (132), 3-pointers (20) and assists (36) in the win over Oakwood.
• For the third straight season, the Trojans were crowned champions of an in-season tournament: Austin Peay Christmas Classic (2023), Great Alaska Shootout (2024) and Resorts World Las Vegas Classic (2025).
• Zay Dyer joined the 1,000-point club against Missouri with 7:01 left in the second quarter on a jumper.
• Fortuna Ngnawo became the first 2025-26 Sun Belt Player of the Week on Nov. 11, averaging 19.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, four blocks and 1.5 steals in the first two games.
• Troy reached the WNIT Championship game last season, falling to Buffalo after a historic run.
The Trojans (15-3, 6-1 SBC) sit half a game behind Arkansas State for the lead in the Sun Belt Conference, while the Eagles (13-5, 6-2 SBC) are a full game back, tied with Marshall for third.
Troy athletics is proud to be giving away cardinal t-shirts to the first 200 students in attendance. At halftime, fans will be treated to the Air Elite Dunkers, who will perform.
Game Information
Location: Troy, Ala. – Trojan Arena
Matchup: Troy (15-3, 6-1 SBC) vs. Georgia Southern (13-5, 6-2 SBC)
When: Thursday, Jan. 22 – 6 p.m.
Watch: ESPN+
Listen: Troy Sports Radio Network
Stats: troytrojans.com/livestats
2-0 on the Road
Troy earned two narrow wins last week at ULM and Texas State, leaving it as one of two teams remaining in the SBC with one league loss (Arkansas State). Zay Dyer dominated on the road with 18 points, 15.5 rebounds, 2.5 steals and 1.5 blocks through the two outings. Both wins came within two possessions, marking the lone two conference wins within 10 points. Troy sits 4-0 in double-digit games in league play and 2-1 in games decided by single-digits.
The Trojans return home to Trojan Arena as the highest-ranked NCAA NET team in the SBC at No. 62 and seventh in the Mid-Major rankings. Troy is perfect at home, sitting at 7-0, 2-0 SBC in Trojan Arena and 4-0, 1-0 SBC in Thursday games. Troy's magic number is 40 percent for defensive field goal percentage, recorded at 11-0, 5-0 SBC when limiting opponents to under 40 percent from the floor.
All five Troy starters average double figures, the only team in the conference to do so. Fortuna Ngnawo continues to lead Troy with 15 points and 9.9 rebounds, followed by Dyer (13.1), Emani Jenkins (12.5), Ashley Baez (10.3) and Rachel Leggett (10.0). The duo of Dyer and Ngnawo also combine for 19 double-doubles as No. 5 leads the SBC with 10, while Ngnawo ranks third with nine.
Scouting Georgia Southern
Georgia Southern has won 12 of its last 14 games, with the two losses coming at Old Dominion and James Madison. Through eight league games, the Eagles have won the turnover battle by 1.6 per game. The Eagles lead the league in assist/turnover ratio (1.0) and field goal percentage (44.9). Kishyah Anderson leads the Eagles in SBC play with 16.1 points on 54.1 percent shooting. Overall, Destiny Garrett is the team leader in points with 14.5 on 44.2 percent from the field.
Notables
• Thursday will mark the first meeting between Troy and Georgia Southern since Jan. 4, 2024, with Troy winning the last four and 21 of its last 23 meetings.
• Zay Dyer and Leilani Guion are the only active Trojans to play Georgia Southern in a Troy jersey, with Dyer having four points and 15 rebounds and Guion adding two points and an assist.
• Troy has never lost to Georgia Southern at home, sitting at 11-0 all-time.
• The Trojans rank sixth in the Mid-Major polls and 63rd in the NCAA Net Rankings, leading the Sun Belt Conference in the NET ranking.
• Troy shot 60.2 percent from the field in the second half at ULM to shoot above 50 percent (50.7) for the fifth time in 2025-26 – the Trojans are 5-0 when they shoot above 50 percent and 12-1 when shooting above 40 percent.
• Zay Dyer claimed the most rebounds in a Division-I career with her 678th Troy rebound with a defensive board with 1:36 remaining in the second quarter against Texas State. She is four rebounds from reaching 1,000 rebounds in her career.
• Rachel Leggett ended with a season-high 17 points at Texas State for her ninth game with 10-plus points over the last 10 games after having one in her first eight games as a Trojan.
• With the 22-point win over Arkansas State, Troy's won eight games by at least 20 points. Of their 15 wins, 11 have come in double figures.
• Shakirah Edwards ended with a block and steal at Texas State. Edwards has a block and a steal in eight games, including the last four games.
• Zay Dyer leads the conference with 10 double-doubles, followed closely behind by Fortuna Ngnawo at nine.
• Chanda Rigby sits five wins away from becoming the winningest coach in Troy history. She currently has 270, looking to pass Joyce Sorrell for the most at 274. She is also two wins from her 500th career victory, currently sitting at 498.
• Troy enters Thursday's matchup as the second-best Division-I team in rebounds at 50.2. The Trojans have led the nation in rebounds over the last seven seasons.
• Fortuna Ngnawo leads Troy and sits fourth in the conference with 15.0 points per game on the fifth-highest field goal percentage at 46.4.
• Zay Dyer leads the SBC in double-doubles (10), rebounds (216), defensive rebounds per game (7.6) and rebounds per game (12.0). She also ranks fourth in total rebounds per game nationally.
• Troy enters the matchup against Georgia Southern as the conference leader in assists (15.6), free throws made per game (15.3), rebound margin (plus-12.3), defensive rebounds (32.6), offensive rebounds (17.7), total rebounds (50.3), scoring margin (plus-17.2), scoring (84.6) and win percentage (83.3).
• Zay Dyer has scored in double-figures in 26 of her last 31 games with double-digit rebounds in 18 of her last 24 games.
• For the ninth time in the last 11 games, Fortuna Ngnawo ended with a double-double on 12 points and 17 rebounds at Texas State. She also scored double-figures in 20 of her last 21 games.
• Freshman Saniya Jackson has scored in all 16 appearances.
• Emani Jenkins has hit 52 threes in her last 15 games to average 3.5 per game. She's earned three or more 3-pointers in 10 games in 2025-26.
• With her 57 3-pointers (second in SBC), Emani Jenkins averages 3.2 per game to sit second the SBC – her 57 3-pointers already sits tied for ninth in Troy D-I single season history. She ranks seventh and fourth in the nation, respectively. She also leads the conference in 3-point percentage at 44.9, ranking 13th in the country.
• Emani Jenkins is third in Troy D-I single-season shooting chart for threes at 44.9 percent. She currently ranks No. 1 in career 3-point percentage in Division-I at 39.7.
• Jenkins' 10 threes against Oakwood ties three players for the most in a single game in 2025-26, while breaking the all-time single-game record at Troy.
• Troy broke its single-game records for points (132), 3-pointers (20) and assists (36) in the win over Oakwood.
• For the third straight season, the Trojans were crowned champions of an in-season tournament: Austin Peay Christmas Classic (2023), Great Alaska Shootout (2024) and Resorts World Las Vegas Classic (2025).
• Zay Dyer joined the 1,000-point club against Missouri with 7:01 left in the second quarter on a jumper.
• Fortuna Ngnawo became the first 2025-26 Sun Belt Player of the Week on Nov. 11, averaging 19.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, four blocks and 1.5 steals in the first two games.
• Troy reached the WNIT Championship game last season, falling to Buffalo after a historic run.
Players Mentioned
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