Wesley Kirchharr
Staff Writer
After topping AUM in last week’s exhibition game, the Troy women’s basketball team tipped off the 2017 regular season with an 89-62 win in Trojan Arena over Division II Stillman.
Under Head Coach Chanda Rigby, the Trojans have won five of their six home openers, all while playing five new players. Troy also scored more than 80 points in a game for the 74th time with Rigby at the helm — good enough for 46.5 percent of her games as head coach.
The Trojans found consistent offensive rhythm early on and maintained it all the way through, scoring 24 points in the first quarter, 21 in the third, and 22 in both the second and fourth quarters. Troy sophomore Kayla Robinson led the offense with her 17 points on 7-9 shooting in her 23 minutes of play.
Five other Trojans, three of whom made their debut in cardinal and white, tallied double-digit point totals. Freshman Janiah Sandifer finished with 14 points; Amber Rivers had 13; and Jasmine Robinson, Jasmine Sanders and Sky’Lynn Holmes each scored 10.
While Troy shot just 39.5 percent from the field, it made up for it by scoring 44 points in the paint. By scoring nearly half their points close to the basket, the Trojans outscored the Tigers by 18 points down low.
Along with those 44 points, Troy had 20 second-chance points, led by the rebounding of Queen Ford and Holmes, each having nine boards. Stillman had only three second-chance points the entire night.
On the other end of the court, Troy pressured Stillman into committing 24 turnovers, leading to Troy’s 29 points off turnovers. That defensive effort was led by Troy’s Harriet Winchester, who tallied six steals in her team-high 31 minutes of action.
Jalicya Lowery led the Tigers with 18 points.
Troy looks ahead to a Thursday night matchup against Alabama State in Montgomery for an in-state rivalry game. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on WTBF radio and can be accessed online.
