Troy University Athletics
Saturday, January 10
Atlanta, Ga.
11 a.m.
Troy University
8-5, 3-1SBC
96
at
87
Georgia State
7-7, 2-3SBC
1
2
F
Troy
50
46
96
Georgia State
51
36
87
Team Stats
TROY
GSU
FG%
.463
.380
3FG%
.478
.370
FT%
.818
.850
RB
44
50
TO
9
15
STL
11
7
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
27
FGM
9
3FGM
6
FTM
3
Pts
18
FGM
8
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Pts
12
FGM
4
3FGM
4
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ Basketball (W)
G
/ Basketball (W)G
/ Basketball (W)F
/ Basketball (W)
G
/ Basketball (W)G
/ Basketball (W)
Photo by: Chris Davis
Troy Wins Third Straight in a Shootout at Georgia State
1/10/2015 2:29:00 PM | Basketball (W)
ATLANTA – The Troy women's basketball team won its third straight game, this one an offensive shootout at Georgia State, 96-87, on Saturday at the GSU Sports Arena.
Troy (8-5, 3-1) is now 3-1 to start conference play for the first time since 2002-03, when it was a member of the Atlantic Sun Conference. Troy hit 11 3-pointers in the contest, including a career-best six from Kourtney Coleman who tied a career high with 27 points.
She was one of five Trojans to score in double figures; and the offensive numbers were astounding, but it was defense down the stretch that sealed the game for Troy. After 17 lead changes and 10 ties over the first 36:38 of the game, Troy had an 88-87 lead with 3:22 to go.
From there, Georgia State (7-7, 2-3) went scoreless as Troy closed the game on an 8-0 run to pull away late. GSU missed all six of its shots in that span, including five 3-pointers, while Troy stayed hot. Rachel Reid hit the fourth of her four, second-half 3-pointers to start the run. Reid, who finished with 12 points, has now made multiple 3-pointers in six straight games.
On the next Troy possession, Ronita Garrett hit a jumper that extended the lead to six, 93-87, with 2:42 to go. Garrett posted her eighth double-double with 18 points and 15 rebounds on 8-of-13 shooting. She also posted a team-high five steals.
After a couple of empty possessions from both teams, Troy put things away with three free throws in the final minute.
"It's an honor to have the best Sun Belt start in Troy history," head coach Chanda Rigby said. "The fact that two of the three came on road is a big accomplishment. The team is showing maturity, and we can still get a lot better."
Ashley Beverly-Kelley and Lacey Buchanon also finished with double-figure scoring with 13 and 10 points, respectively, for Troy. Buchanon was a perfect 5-of-5 from the field, all from mid-range. Beverly-Kelley tied for the team-high with five assists to go along with four steals. Aissata Maiga also had five assists for the second straight game.
The final minutes from GSU was the only cold stretch for either team and was the difference in a game that was close throughout. Coleman kept Troy in it in the first half with 24 points, including 6-of-6 from long range. She had nearly half of the Trojans' points as they trailed 51-50 at the half.
Troy shot 53 percent in the first half and 46 percent (38-of-82) overall, including 11-of-23 from long range (48 percent). The Trojans committed a season-low nine turnovers, while forcing Georgia State into 15.
The Panthers had just five turnovers in the first half, but Troy turned up the pressure in the second half, especially early. GSU had six miscues in the first four minutes as Troy quickly turned the one-point halftime deficit into a seven-point lead, 60-53, with 16:20 to go.
Neither team ever led by double digits in what was Troy's second win over GSU in Atlanta in 14 tries. GSU now leads the series between the former Atlantic Sun Conference rivals, 22-7, but Troy has won the last two and is 2-1 under Rigby.
Georgia State got 22 points from freshman Makeba Ponder who was 6-of-15 from long range. Three other Panthers scored in double-figures, but not Brittany Logan or Kayla Nolan who entered averaging over 11.0 points per game, each. In fact, neither Logan nor Nolan played until the second half.
Troy now takes its three-game winning streak to ULM where it will take on the Warhawks at 5:15 p.m. on Thursday at Fant-Ewing Coliseum.
For more information on Troy Athletics, visit TroyTrojans.com. Fans can also find Troy on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube by searching for Troy Athletics.
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Thursday, April 03