Troy’s WNIT run ends with loss in Buffalo

For the full story on Troy’s final two games of the WNIT, visit tropnews.com.

Brady Fitch photo

Zay Dyer takes a jump shot during Troy's game at Buffalo.

Troy women’s basketball’s historical season came to an end in heartbreaking fashion, as the Trojans fell to Buffalo 88-84 on the road in the Women’s National Invitational Tournament championship game. The loss followed a thrilling 99-96 win over Illinois State in Normal, Illinois.

“This was a special team,” said head coach Chanda Rigby in an interview with Troy Athletics. “It’s upsetting -- we are filled with tears because this team is full of winners.

“They gave it everything they had all season long and all game long. This team took us to new heights, taking us to a shot at a national championship. They wanted to win this game for Troy.”

The Trojans broke records in the loss, scoring 453 points in their five game WNIT run. The tally beat an 18-year-old record set by Wyoming in 2007, as the Cowgirls scored 452 points in six games compared to Troy’s 453 in five games.

Two Trojans also garnered WNIT All-Tournament team awards, as junior Zay Dyer and senior Briana Peguero both got the award. Dyer averaged 16.6 points per game over the five-game stretch, while contributing 15 points and 17 rebounds in the championship game loss.

Peguero came right behind Dyer in averages as she averaged 16.2 points per game, including consecutive career highs games against North Dakota State, with 22 points, and Illinois State, with 28 points. The senior guard was heavily guarded by the Bulls though, still contributing nine points in the effort.

The loss saw six Trojans scoring in double digits for the second game in a row. The total meant that five-plus Trojans scored in double figures in all five games of the WNIT postseason tournament.

Behind Dyer on the stat sheet came juniors Khila Morris and Emani Jenkins who both finished with 11 points. Three other Trojans added 10 points, as seniors Shaulana Wagner and Brianna Jackson added 10 while junior Fortuna Ngnawo added 10.

Buffalo set an attendance record in the matchup, one that became evident immediately. The Bulls scored six straight points to start the game, with Troy getting its first points almost four minutes into the quarter off two Ashley Baez free throws.

That was enough to get the Trojan offense going though, as a Jenkins steal and layup, Wagner jumper and a Jenkins three gave Troy their first lead in the young game, 9-8. Buffalo got a quick bucket before Jenkins rattled in another three to push the pace.

Four straight points from Wagner plus a Jackson layup put the Trojans up 18-12 before a Bulls 3-pointer cut the Troy lead down to 18-15 at the end of the first.

The second quarter was all Troy, as the Trojans shot 70%from the field, extending the lead to as large as 14 at one point. The Trojans started with a 15-4 run through the first half of the quarter to build up a 33-19 lead until the Bulls started to chop away.

Seven points in less than a minute from Buffalo saw the Troy lead dwindle down to seven points, 33-26. Wagner responded with a good layup while Peguero followed that up with seven straight points. Another Wagner layup capped the 11-2 Troy run to push the lead back up to 14.

The Bulls got a layup and jumper at the buzzer to cut the Troy lead down to 10, 44-34, heading into halftime.

Troy came out of the break the way they entered, scoring, as a Ngnawo jumper gave the Trojans a 12-point lead once again. The Bulls found a 10-2 run, one only broken up by two Dyer free throws, to cut a 12-point lead to four.

Jackson tried her best to stifle the run with a layup, but Buffalo still had gas in the tank, getting their own jumper to make it a 50-47 Trojan lead. Finally, the Trojans found a way as a Ngnawo jumper pushed the lead back out to five.

After a stop on the other end, Morris erupted for Troy, scoring five straight points with a nifty and-1 capping the personal run. Buffalo got two free throws to cut it to a 57-49 lead before Morris came down the court and knocked down a triple, pushing the lead back up to 11.

The Bulls responded quickly with another layup, cutting the lead back down to nine. The Bulls found another 10-2 run, cutting the lead down one point, 62-61.

The quarter ended in scoring with two Peguero free throws to give Troy a 64-61 lead going into the final 10 minutes.

Buffalo almost immediately found a tying basket from three before a Jackson and-1 pushed the Troy lead back out to three. The Bulls would go split a pair of free throws before Ngnawo and Baez buckets gave Troy a six-point lead at 71-65.

Each time Buffalo scored over the next two minutes, the Trojans would score back to maintain their six-point advantage. After a Dyer jumper was sandwiched by two Bulls three pointers, the Trojans saw a 79-77 lead with four minutes left. From there it seemed to slowly unravel for the road fatigued Trojans.

A Dyer free throw was immediately answered with a Bulls and-1 to quickly tie the game. The Trojans got another free throw before a Buffalo three gave them a lead they would not return.

The Bulls followed that three with a steal and layup to quickly turn a one-point deficit into a five-point lead. The only thing Troy could do was hit free throws as Jenkins added three to cut the Bulls lead down to two.

After Buffalo split another pair of free throws, the Trojans saw one more chance to tie the game in the waning seconds. The chance would never materialize for Troy, with Buffalo stealing the ball at half court.

From there the Bulls hit one more free throw and the Trojans eight-day road trip ended in heartbreak and a second-place finish, 88-84.

The loss should does not overshadow the rest of the miracle WNIT run as the Trojans won a heart stopping match in the Fab 4 against Illinois State to even reach the championship game.

Once again six players scored in double figures as Peguero was on fire, pushing out a career high 28 points with six made threes to lead the Trojans in scoring.

Ngnawo came behind her with 16 points while Jenkins put in 15 points with five made triples. 

 Dyer added 13 points while Jackson contributed 11 and Baez dropped in 10 points. 

It was a race to begin the game as neither team missed for the first two minutes, going a combined 8-for-8 from the field to leave the game tied at nine.

Eventually the Redbirds found an opening to take a 12-9 lead before Troy slammed it closed and pushed it into a 13-12 lead.  

Neither team could get a bigger lead than three points before the Redbirds extended their lead to 20-15. Still Troy found a way, going on a 10-0 run capped by a Jenkins three to take a 25-20 lead.

Illinois State found a jumper before Jenkins sank another three to extend the Trojan lead.  

The Jenkins three was the last points for either side in a high scoring quarter as the Trojans took a 28-22 lead going into the second quarter.  

The second quarter started much how the first one ended as Jenkins cashed in her third consecutive triple to quickly open up a nine-point lead in favor of Troy. The Redbirds added two quick baskets to show they weren’t going away, but Troy dropped four quick points of their own to force the Illinois State timeout down nine.  

The timeout seemed to work for the Redbirds as they went on a 10-0 run to chop the Trojan lead into a deficit. From there it was back and forth much like the first quarter as Illinois State carried a 45-42 lead into halftime, a lead the packed-out home crowd was loving. 

Illinois State kept up the pressure out of halftime, dropping off a small 5-0 run to put Troy in their biggest hole at the time, down 50-42. A Jackson layup was immediately met with a Redbirds three and the Trojans where now down nine.  

The deficit wouldn’t deter the Cardiac Trojans as a Dyer jumper kicked off an 8-1 run that would have the Trojans knocking on the Redbirds door.

A Redbirds jumper was an answer but not enough of one as Jenkins knocked down yet another triple to put Troy down 55-56.  

After the basket Illinois State started to push the tempo again, creating a 9-2 run seemingly out of nowhere. A Jackson layup and then free throw tried to deter the Redbirds, but another quick five-point run would put Illinois State up 10, 70-60.  

With 32 seconds left in the quarter the tide began to shift as Peguero hit a huge and-1 three pointer to cut it down to a 70-64 Redbird lead. Illinois State would get one more free throw to hold a 71-64 lead heading into the final quarter.  

Out of the quarter break came Jenkins as she nailed another three 3-pointer to continue to cut into the deficit. The Redbirds would seem to have an answer to everything though, as another Peguero three cut it to 72-78 before another Redbirds layup.  

The layup would be the last points Illinois State would get for the next three minutes as Troy found Ngnawo for a layup before back-to-back Peguero baskets and a Dyer free throw put Troy down one, 79-80, with 4:36 left to play.  

Dyer would miss the second free throw before Peguero grabbed the rebound and got it back out Wagner.

With the shot clock winding down Wagner chucked an off camera, from the logo three pointer to save the turnover.  

Swish. Momentum changer. Trojans lead.  

The Trojans were buzzing.

Illinois State got a layup and free throw to respond but another Peguero three quickly nullified the effort. From there it was back to back-and-forth play with a Baez free throw giving Troy an 89-88 lead with two minutes left.

A Wagner steal on the other end led to yet another Peguero three to hand Troy a four-point lead with 1:38 left on the clock. Both teams would go scoreless over the next minute before Dyer found the free throw line to extend the lead to six.  

The two teams both banged two free throws to make the score 96-90 in favor of the Trojans before an Illinois State three-pointer with 28 seconds left put the Redbirds right back in the game.  

A Peguero free throw pushed the lead back out to two possessions at 97-93 until the Redbirds sank another three to cut it down to 97-96. Baez split free throws meant the Redbirds still had a chance to win the game as they trailed 98-96 with 12 seconds left and possession.  

Instead, Shaulana Wagner said no. As Illinois State drove down the court the senior guard swiped the ball and forced a foul, going to the line with four seconds left to ice the game. The senior split the free throws before the Redbirds missed the tying three just short off the front of the rim.  

The Trojans secured the win and what would be their last win of the 2024-25 season in exciting fashion, 99-96. Coach Rigby and her squad next return to the court next year for the 2025-26 season.