(PHOTO/Troy Athletics)
Senior guard Jasmine LeBlanc puts up a shot over a Jacksonville State defender earlier this
season. LeBlanc posted team high 19 points with 11 boards.
Hanna Cooper
Staff Writer
The Troy women’s basketball team trumped Jacksonville State 94-64 on Saturday in Trojan Arena before falling on the road to No. 10 Mississippi State on Monday, 122-82.
The Trojans became the first team since the 2005-06 squad to begin the season 3-0 with its convincing win over in-state foe Jacksonville State. Troy held a tight grasp on the lead through all four quarters of the matchup.
After jumping out to an early lead, Troy shut out the Gamecocks over the last four minutes of the first quarter to seal a 24-10 lead heading into the second.
The second frame started out similar to the first with the Trojans firing on all cylinders scoring the first six points and taking a 30-13 advantage.
The Gamecocks began to settle in, stopping Troy from any major runs through the end of the second quarter and the entirety of the third by outscoring the Trojans, 26-24, but the fourth quarter solidified the game for Troy outscoring Jacksonville State, 28-11.
“They did a good job holding onto the lead,” Head Coach Chanda Rigby said. “In fact, I thought their energy improved throughout the game, so I was proud of them for that.”
The Trojans’ victory trail proved to be short, falling to Mississippi State on Monday.
Both teams came out firing going toe-to-toe for the first 12 points on the opening frame, but the Bulldogs quickly caught the rhythm and extended their lead to 13 points to end the first quarter with a 28-15 lead.
Mississippi State maintained the momentum through the second quarter, building the lead to 30 points by the end of the period, but the Trojans did not back down coming out of the half outscoring the Bulldogs 26-25 in the third period.
A high-scoring fourth quarter affair for Mississippi State sealed the game, 31-18.
For the second consecutive game, Jasmine LeBlanc and Alexus Dye saw double-doubles. LeBlanc led the Trojans with 15 points while adding 11 rebounds. Dye had 12 points and led the team with 16 points.
“Before we came in here, we didn’t know what we didn’t know, but we learned a lot about ourselves tonight,” Rigby said. “This game showed us that our players will never give up.
“We gained a tremendous amount of experience tonight. Of course, we wanted to win, but this game, I believe, made us better.”
Next, Troy will play Duke this Sunday at historic Cameron Indoor Stadium. The contest is scheduled for 1 p.m. and will be aired on ACC Network Extra.
