Troy Moves On To Quarterfinals With 84-64 Win Over Appalachian State

Wednesday, March 8

New Orleans, La.

7:30 P.M.

Troy University

19-14

Appalachian State

9-21

Appalachian State

Troy

Troy Moves On To Quarterfinals With 84-64 Win Over Appalachian State

3/8/2017 10:31:00 PM | Basketball (M)

Box Score

By: Russ Schaffer

Box Score

NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana – Troy led by just seven at the break, but the Trojans were able to pull away in the second half to defeat Appalachian State 84-64 and advance to the quarterfinals of the Sun Belt Tournament against third-seed Georgia Southern.

Behind 29 points from Wesley Person on 5-6 3-point shooting, Troy (19-14) recorded the first postseason victory since March 8, 2013.

Person--the Trojans leading 3-point shooter--had 13 points in the first half, highlighted by a ferocious one-handed slam while the junior was being fouled. That was one of 14 shots Troy connected on in the first half as the Trojans shot 53.8 percent in the opening frame.

The offensive outburst only continued out of the break as Appalachian State (9-21) was unable to stop the trio of Person, Jordon Varnado and Jeremy Hollimon.

After a layup by Ronshad Shabazz cut Troy's lead to three four minutes into the second half, it was the three leading-scorers that got the Trojans lead back up to eight after a 3-pointer by Person and a layup by Varnado.

A layup by Hollimon was followed by two free throws by Daniel Peace, which increased Troy's advantage to 10 with 13:03 remaining in the contest. That double-digit lead was never relented, as the 20-point margin of victory was also the largest lead Troy had in the game.

Those two free throws by Peace sparked a 28-8 run the Trojans went on to close out the game. Even with the game slowly moving in Troy's favor, Person wasn't done with the highlights as he had two 3-pointers and a layup in a span of 1:10.

Person provided the exclamation point to the victory by draining a 3-pointer from the side of the key while being fouled with 4:35 to go. All 13 players were able to see game action before the conclusion of the victory.

Quotable
"I'm proud of our guys for coming down here and getting a win," head coach Phil Cunningham said. "It was a hard-fought game and we knew it would be. I have a lot of respect for Appalachian State with how hard they play and how physical they play. They're a really good, young team. I'm proud of our guys for hanging in there and pulling away in the second half.

Stat of the Game?
The win came despite Troy being outrebounded 35-25. The Mountaineers had nine offensive rebounds to the Trojans' two, which fueled 14 second-chance points for Appalachian State. Jordon Varnado was the leading rebounder on the night with six boards.

Turning Point
Troy led by 10 with 11:52 left in the second half and used a strong defensive effort and effective shooting to make sure Appalachian State did not cut too deeply into the lead. The Trojans shot 53.8 percent in the first half and boosted that up to 60.0 percent in the final 20 minutes. On the defensive end, the Mountaineers hit 13 shots in the second half and just one 3-pointer. Only Ronshad Shabazz had more than 11 points for the opposition with his team-leading 22 points.

Noteworthy?
• The 20-point postseason win was the largest for Troy since winning 107-83 over Arkansas State on March 3, 2006.

• Wesley Person is now 20-21 in his past two games from the free-throw line after going 8-9 tonight.

• Kevin Baker had a career-high nine assists on the night and committed just one turnover.

• Wesley Person and Jordon Varnado were the most effective players on the court as Person was a +22 and Varnado was a +33.
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Up Next?
Troy will advance in the Sun Belt tournament to face No. 3 seed Georgia Southern on Friday at 7:30 p.m. Troy fans in the area can visit Fulton Alley three hours before the game on Friday. A shuttle will take the tailgate party to the game one hour before tipoff. For more information on Troy men's basketball, follow the team on social media at @TroyMensHoops or visit TroyTrojans.com.