Troy University Athletics
Tuesday, February 24
Jonesboro, Ark.
5 p.m.
Troy University
24-5,15-2Sun Belt
61
at
54
Arkansas State
22-8,13-4Sun Belt
1
2
3
4
F
Troy
20
17
9
15
61
Arkansas St.
12
14
17
11
54
Women’s Basketball Clinches Bid into Sun Belt Semifinals with Crucial Road Win Against Arkansas State
2/24/2026 9:24:00 PM | Basketball (W)
JONESBORO, Ark. – The Troy women's basketball team weathered the second-half comeback by Arkansas State to win 61-54 on Tuesday night in the First National Bank Arena and clinch a bye into the Sun Belt Conference Tournament semifinals.
The Trojans (24-5, 15-2 SBC) handed the Red Wolves (22-8, 13-4 SBC) their first league loss at home in two seasons to clinch a top-2 seed in the tournament for the fifth time in head coach Chanda Rigby's tenure. With a win on Friday, the Trojans guarantee a share of the regular-season title.
The Trojans outrebounded the Red Wolves 64-32 and held them to zero second-chance points. Zay Dyer and Fortuna Ngnawo accounted for over half the rebounds with their double-double performances. The current Sun Belt Player of the Week scored 14 points with 16 rebounds, while the week one player of the week had 14 points and a career-high 18 rebounds. It was their 21st and 17th of the season, respectively, to hold the top-two spots in the SBC. Emani Jenkins had two 3-pointers in the first quarter and finished with three for 11 points and four rebounds.
Arkansas State looked to Zyion Shannon (15), Mia Tarver (11) and Crislyn Rose (12) for scoring. But the Red Wolves managed just four makes from beyond the arc on 21 attempts for 19 percent shooting. They also managed just 29 percent from the field. After making three 3-pointers in the third quarter, Arkansas State shot 0-of-4 from deep in the fourth to lose.
Weathered the Storm
Troy found its largest lead of the game, 39-26, 12 seconds into the second half, with a second-chance layup from Dyer. However, Arkansas State used the third quarter to storm back to make it a three-point game heading into the final quarter, outscoring Troy 17-9. They continued in the first two minutes of the fourth, making it a one-possession game, 48-46, with a free throw for Shannon.
The Red Wolves tied the game twice, including with 3:37 remaining, with a jumper for Shannon to make it 52-52. Dyer took over in the next minute, hitting a pair at the line and getting the pass from Rachel Leggett for a layup and a 56-52 lead with 3:03 left.
Shannon hit again with 2:16 on the clock, but it would be the final bucket for the Red Wolves as Leggett responded with a driving fastbreak layup 10 seconds later for a 58-54 advantage. Arkansas State missed four straight attempts over the next two minutes, forcing the team to foul Troy.
Ashley Baez hit one at the line with 29 seconds left to make it a two-possession game, 59-54. The Red Wolves called a timeout to advance the ball, and Shannon went in for the layup but missed as Ngnawo grabbed the rebound with 18 seconds remaining. Rigby called the timeout to inbound the ball to Baez, where she was intentionally fouled and hit both free throws to end the game 61-54.
Double-Digit Into the Break
Arkansas State ended a nearly two-minute scoring drought by both sides with a driving layup, but Troy took complete control with a 9-0 run into the media timeout with 6:04 left in the first. Baez found Jenkins on the wing, and she hit the 3-pointer before Leggett grabbed the defensive rebound and hit the jumper on the fastbreak for a 5-2 advantage.
Ngnawo continued the run with a pair of free throws and a fastbreak layup off a Kamesha Moore assist for the 9-2 lead. Out of the media timeout, the Red Wolves missed the three, but Jenkins didn't as she cashed in her second of the quarter for a 12-2 lead with 5:36 left.
The Red Wolves brought the margin down to six, 14-8, with 1:33 left. But Troy would find its way back to a double-digit lead, 20-10, with 20 seconds on the clock with a layup for Dyer, a free throw for Moore and a 3-pointer for Leilani Guion.
The Trojans continued to bring their advantage back into double-digits as they headed into the break. Jenkins hit her third 3-pointer of the game to start the second quarter. Arkansas State brought the deficit back to six, 30-24, with 3:31 left in the first half, but Troy outscored the opposition 7-2 in the remaining time to head into the break with a 37-26 lead – Leggett (2), Dyer (4) and Saniya Jackson (1) scored on the run.
Head Coach Chanda Rigby
"What a win here tonight against Arkansas State. We did what we do and that's double their rebounds. And they did what they do and caused turnovers. They had their second-half surge per usual, but we weathered the storm. I appreciate our coaches for resting our starters enough to stop their surge. I appreciate our bench for coming in during big moments and our starters for producing how they do. The whole game was so fast, and we were pleading with our players to break the press. We knew if we could slow the game down late in the game, we could handle it, and we did. Overall, the effort was great, and we did what we needed to do to win. Now, we got to rest our bodies because we got one more to go. We aren't overlooking South Alabama. We need to not play around with them, especially with a championship on the line."
Up Next
The Trojans close out the regular season with the finale in Mobile, Ala., playing South Alabama on Friday, Feb. 27, at 5 p.m.
Avenging Stats
• Troy double-double duo did it again as Zay Dyer claimed her 21st of the season, while Fortuna Ngnawo claimed her 17th.
• The Trojans won their second straight against Arkansas State to improve their record to 19-14 and 6-6 on the road.
• Troy clinched a bye into the semifinals with the victory, needing one win on Friday to clinch a share of the regular season title.
• Kamesha Moore tied her career-high in assists with four against Arkansas State.
• Troy outrebounded the opposition 64-32 and held Arkansas State to zero second-chance points.
• Emani Jenkins hit three 3-pointers in the win over Arkansas State for her 18th game with three or more makes from behind the arc.
• The Trojans improve to 7-1 in league play on the road as they hand the Red Wolves their first league loss at home since 2023-24.
The Trojans (24-5, 15-2 SBC) handed the Red Wolves (22-8, 13-4 SBC) their first league loss at home in two seasons to clinch a top-2 seed in the tournament for the fifth time in head coach Chanda Rigby's tenure. With a win on Friday, the Trojans guarantee a share of the regular-season title.
The Trojans outrebounded the Red Wolves 64-32 and held them to zero second-chance points. Zay Dyer and Fortuna Ngnawo accounted for over half the rebounds with their double-double performances. The current Sun Belt Player of the Week scored 14 points with 16 rebounds, while the week one player of the week had 14 points and a career-high 18 rebounds. It was their 21st and 17th of the season, respectively, to hold the top-two spots in the SBC. Emani Jenkins had two 3-pointers in the first quarter and finished with three for 11 points and four rebounds.
Arkansas State looked to Zyion Shannon (15), Mia Tarver (11) and Crislyn Rose (12) for scoring. But the Red Wolves managed just four makes from beyond the arc on 21 attempts for 19 percent shooting. They also managed just 29 percent from the field. After making three 3-pointers in the third quarter, Arkansas State shot 0-of-4 from deep in the fourth to lose.
Weathered the Storm
Troy found its largest lead of the game, 39-26, 12 seconds into the second half, with a second-chance layup from Dyer. However, Arkansas State used the third quarter to storm back to make it a three-point game heading into the final quarter, outscoring Troy 17-9. They continued in the first two minutes of the fourth, making it a one-possession game, 48-46, with a free throw for Shannon.
The Red Wolves tied the game twice, including with 3:37 remaining, with a jumper for Shannon to make it 52-52. Dyer took over in the next minute, hitting a pair at the line and getting the pass from Rachel Leggett for a layup and a 56-52 lead with 3:03 left.
Shannon hit again with 2:16 on the clock, but it would be the final bucket for the Red Wolves as Leggett responded with a driving fastbreak layup 10 seconds later for a 58-54 advantage. Arkansas State missed four straight attempts over the next two minutes, forcing the team to foul Troy.
Ashley Baez hit one at the line with 29 seconds left to make it a two-possession game, 59-54. The Red Wolves called a timeout to advance the ball, and Shannon went in for the layup but missed as Ngnawo grabbed the rebound with 18 seconds remaining. Rigby called the timeout to inbound the ball to Baez, where she was intentionally fouled and hit both free throws to end the game 61-54.
Double-Digit Into the Break
Arkansas State ended a nearly two-minute scoring drought by both sides with a driving layup, but Troy took complete control with a 9-0 run into the media timeout with 6:04 left in the first. Baez found Jenkins on the wing, and she hit the 3-pointer before Leggett grabbed the defensive rebound and hit the jumper on the fastbreak for a 5-2 advantage.
Ngnawo continued the run with a pair of free throws and a fastbreak layup off a Kamesha Moore assist for the 9-2 lead. Out of the media timeout, the Red Wolves missed the three, but Jenkins didn't as she cashed in her second of the quarter for a 12-2 lead with 5:36 left.
The Red Wolves brought the margin down to six, 14-8, with 1:33 left. But Troy would find its way back to a double-digit lead, 20-10, with 20 seconds on the clock with a layup for Dyer, a free throw for Moore and a 3-pointer for Leilani Guion.
The Trojans continued to bring their advantage back into double-digits as they headed into the break. Jenkins hit her third 3-pointer of the game to start the second quarter. Arkansas State brought the deficit back to six, 30-24, with 3:31 left in the first half, but Troy outscored the opposition 7-2 in the remaining time to head into the break with a 37-26 lead – Leggett (2), Dyer (4) and Saniya Jackson (1) scored on the run.
Head Coach Chanda Rigby
"What a win here tonight against Arkansas State. We did what we do and that's double their rebounds. And they did what they do and caused turnovers. They had their second-half surge per usual, but we weathered the storm. I appreciate our coaches for resting our starters enough to stop their surge. I appreciate our bench for coming in during big moments and our starters for producing how they do. The whole game was so fast, and we were pleading with our players to break the press. We knew if we could slow the game down late in the game, we could handle it, and we did. Overall, the effort was great, and we did what we needed to do to win. Now, we got to rest our bodies because we got one more to go. We aren't overlooking South Alabama. We need to not play around with them, especially with a championship on the line."
Up Next
The Trojans close out the regular season with the finale in Mobile, Ala., playing South Alabama on Friday, Feb. 27, at 5 p.m.
Avenging Stats
• Troy double-double duo did it again as Zay Dyer claimed her 21st of the season, while Fortuna Ngnawo claimed her 17th.
• The Trojans won their second straight against Arkansas State to improve their record to 19-14 and 6-6 on the road.
• Troy clinched a bye into the semifinals with the victory, needing one win on Friday to clinch a share of the regular season title.
• Kamesha Moore tied her career-high in assists with four against Arkansas State.
• Troy outrebounded the opposition 64-32 and held Arkansas State to zero second-chance points.
• Emani Jenkins hit three 3-pointers in the win over Arkansas State for her 18th game with three or more makes from behind the arc.
• The Trojans improve to 7-1 in league play on the road as they hand the Red Wolves their first league loss at home since 2023-24.
Team Stats
TROY
ASU
FG%
.355
.290
3FG%
.278
.190
FT%
.600
.769
RB
64
32
TO
30
13
STL
4
13
Game Leaders
Pts
14
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
3
FTM
0
Pts
6
FGM
2
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
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/ Basketball (W)Chanda Rigby Postgame Press Conference - Arkansas State
Wednesday, February 25
Troy at Arkansas State (Full Highlights)
Tuesday, February 24
Player Postgame Press Conference (Zay Dyer, Fortuna Ngnawo) - Arkansas State
Tuesday, February 24
Underdogs Untold: Senior Day Celebration
Monday, February 23