Cooper Campbell drives into the paint during Troy’s game against Houston.
Troy men’s basketball split its road trip with a win over ULM followed by a loss to South Alabama last week.
The Trojans began their week-long trek with a Wednesday night clash with the ULM Warhawks. After dropping the previous two games at home, Troy managed to rally the team with a dominating win.
A slow start to the game found the two teams in a back-and-forth battle for the majority of the first half. A late 6-0 run gave the Trojans the advantage heading into the locker room at 35-30.
Coming out for the second half, it was all cardinal the rest of the way. The Trojans had a 14-0 run to provide a comfortable gap. Troy built on that lead in a dominating 77-58 victory over the Warhawks.
“We did a lot of good things. I thought we played really well offensively,” Head coach Scott Cross said. “We were really moving the ball and sharing the ball.”
It was freshman guard Cooper Campbell who had the hot shooting that night. Campbell led the team with 16 points while shooting over 50% from the floor.
Veterans Tayton Conerway and Thomas Dowd both had strong performances as well. Conerway earned another double-double with 10 points and 12 assists, while Dowd was just short of it with 13 points and nine assists.
Following the victory, Troy hoped to march into enemy territory in Mobile, Alabama, and earn a win over rival South Alabama. The Trojans were unable to do so after a devastating loss in the final moments.
With a similarly slow start to the ULM game for Troy, South Alabama was able to take full advantage early on. The Jags shot out front and did not look back on their way to the locker room with a 42-22 halftime lead.
While some Troy fans may have tuned out at halftime the team certainly gave those who watched the second half hope for some time. Troy rallied back from down 20, and with just 11 seconds left on the clock Troy had miraculously taken the lead back following a pair of Jackson Fields free throws to make it 63-62.
With Troy sitting at arm’s length away from pulling off a historic rivalry comeback, South Alabama still had a chance. The Jaguars missed a shot with just five seconds on the clock, but after reviewing the play, , the officials controversially determined it was still South Alabama’s ball.
An inbound pass followed by an attempted dunk Barry Dunning Jr. would draw a foul with just 1.9 seconds left. Dunning had not shot a free throw all game but buried the pair when it mattered most. South Alabama survived the late comeback from Troy to win 64-63.
“It was a tale of two halves,” Cross said. “First half, we had no energy.
“We didn’t turn them over, couldn’t hang onto the ball. We couldn’t catch the ball and weren’t passing it good, but our guys played extremely hard, and to get back into that game is a testament to our guys. I’m proud of them for the way they fought.”
Tayton Conerway had his work cut out for him in the near comeback win. The senior had 23 points, four rebounds and five assists. South Alabama’s top scorer was none other than Dunning Jr., who had 14 points including the final two to take the lead.
Troy has now lost three of their last four games. Two of those have come from opposing free throws made with less than two seconds remaining.
Despite the losses, Troy is still holding on to its fourth-place position in the Sun Belt Conference. The Trojans will have two major chances to right the ship this week with a home game against Southern Miss followed by a rematch with South Alabama.
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