Cross earns contract extension, Troy’s season ends early

PENSACOLA, Fla. - Troy men’s basketball had its Sun Belt title hopes dashed by Texas State in the quarterfinals last week.

The Trojans came into the Sun Belt Tournament as a three seed with high expectations, but the Texas State Bobcats had other ideas. Troy would suffer a 74-68 loss, ending any hopes of a postseason appearance.

“It’s a disappointment,” said head Coach Scott Cross. “Everybody’s goal is to go to the NCAA Tournament, and we fell short.”

It was a back-and-forth brawl for nearly the entire game. Tempers were flaring early, as Randi Ovalle was ejected midway through the first half in the aftermath of a scuffle with the Bobcats. Around this same time, guard Myles Rigsby went down with an injury and did not return. A loss of a key component to the Trojans shooting that would be missed in the remainder of the game.

At the half, the Trojans trailed 33-30. The second half became a game of “cat and mouse”, as Troy continued to close the gap, but never could get back in front for long. The Trojans finally got back in control with a 49-48 lead with 9:50 to play, but Texas State fired back with a 15-2 run that would seal the victory for the Bobcats.

Despite coming off the bench, Tayton Conerway was the leading man for Troy with 16 points, five assists and four rebounds. It was not enough to match Texas State’s Jordan Mason, who put up 25 points, five assists and one rebound.

The game was decided by two major aspects: free throws and turnovers. From the charity stripe, Troy shot below 60% at 13-22. On the other end, Texas State was very efficient by going 17-20. The turnover margin was detrimental to the Trojans. Despite forcing 19 Bobcat turnovers, Troy ended with 27 of its own. Multiple of those occurred late in the game at costly moments.

The Trojans wrap up their season with a final record of 20-12. This marks the third straight season Troy has finished with 20 or more wins. Coach Cross praised the leadership of seniors Christyon Eugene and Aamer Muhammad over those seasons.

“I’m super thankful for both these guys, they’ve been absolutely phenomenal for the program,” Cross said.  “I’ll be forever indebted to these guys for how much they’ve given to this team.”

Though the season is at an end, Troy continues to be on the rise following a third-place regular season Sun Belt finish. Following the tournament, Cross agreed to a four-year contract extension. According to ESPN’s Pete Thamel, the extension includes an increase in salary, an increase in the assistant coaching staff salary’s pool and an increase in budgetary support.