Gabe Sadetsky
Staff Writer
The Lady Trojans were able to continue their winning streak against UT Arlington, 85-62, on Wednesday, Jan. 22, but failed to defeat the Texas State Bobcats in overtime with the final score being 87-82 on Saturday, Jan. 25.
Senior guard Joanna Harden and sophomore guard Ashley Beverly-Kelley were the leading scorers against UTA with 32 and 16 points respectively.
UT Arlington scored more free throws but Troy was able to maintain a healthy lead throughout most of the game thanks to Harden’s early scoring in the first half.
The Mavericks had a 28.6 field goal percentage while the Trojans had a total 47.4 percent for the game. Troy outscored UT Arlington 44-24. Neither team was very successful scoring 3-pointers with the Trojans only making seven out of 25 and the Mavericks scoring six out of 25.
On Saturday, the momentum from the previous game wasn’t enough as they fell on the road to the Texas State Bobcats in an overtime thriller.
The Bobcats used late scoring runs, both at the end of regulation and overtime, to ruin the Lady Trojan’s chances of a three-game winning streak, beating Troy 87-82.
Texas State built a 10-point lead early and saw it dwindle away as Troy took a seven-point lead with only six minutes left in the game.
The Bobcats then went on to tie the game after scoring four unanswered points at the end of regulation. A potential game-ending shot by Harden, which fell short, sent the game to overtime.
The Trojans jumped to an early lead in overtime, only to see the Bobcats, once again, end on a 9-0 scoring run and win the game. Troy now moves to 6-13 overall and 2-6 in conference play. They are currently ranked ninth in the Sun Belt standings.
Harden, despite her inconsistent shooting eight out of 32, lead the team in scoring with 21 points. Two other Trojans, sophomore guard Ashley Beverly-Kelley and junior forward Ronita Garrett, finished with double-doubles. Garrett also led the team in rebounds with 13.
For Texas State, sophomore guard Erin Peoples led the Bobcats with 22 points. Redshirt junior forward Jacqueline Jeffcoat and senior center Ashley Ezeh both ended with double-doubles. Jeffcoat had a team-high 11 rebounds while Ezeh also snatched three steals.
Troy finished the day shooting 38.7 percent (23.5 percent from three-point-range) while gaining a total of 56 rebounds, 19 on offense and 37 on defense. Foul trouble plagued Troy the entire game, giving Texas State a total of 42 free-throw attempts, 13 of those coming in overtime.
The Trojans will return home Saturday, Feb. 1, against Sun Belt leader Arkansas State. Tip-off is set for 5:15 p.m. in Trojan Arena. They will also play against South Alabama on Thursday, Feb. 6, at 5:15 p.m. at home.
