Women’s basketball takes two in road trip

(Photo/Chris Wallace)Junior guard Jasmine Robinson drives past a Louisiana defender in the Trojans’ loss on Jan. 11.Scott SheltonSports Editor The Troy women’s basketball team defeated Georgia Southern and Georgia State on the road last weekend, bouncing back from a loss to Louisiana. The win moves the team’s record to 5-1 in the Sun Belt Conference and 14-3 overall. The Trojans have won 11 of their last 12 games and sit atop the conference in a three-way tie with Coastal Carolina and Texas-Arlington. Last Thursday against the Eagles, the Trojans were outscored in three of the four quarters but managed to come away with a 10-point victory thanks to the defense. After the game, Head Coach Chanda Rigby discussed the team’s defensive efforts on the night. “I really think part of it on the defensive end was that we stopped giving them second-chance shots,” Rigby said. “They had seven offensive rebounds in the first quarter, and then we started doing our jobs on the boards and didn’t allow those second shots.” The team went into the second quarter trailing 19-18 but held the Eagles to just three points for the entire 10 minutes while scoring 22 of their own. The defense also forced four turnovers in the quarter and six for the entire first half to steal momentum from the Eagles. The Trojans scored 27 points off turnovers for the game, and the Eagles scored seven points off Trojan turnovers. The defensive performance proved to be key as the offense shot just 36% from the field, but the defense held the Eagles to just 32%. Despite Georgia Southern’s early advantage on the glass, Troy grabbed 59 rebounds, edging the Eagles’ 51. Senior Japonica James led the offense with 19 points, and the forward also grabbed five rebounds and shot a perfect 5-5 from the free-throw line. Junior-college transfer Tyasia Moore set her career-high in points with 12, and Jasmine Robinson also reached double-digit points with 10 on the night. Another junior-college transfer, Alexus Dye grabbed 13 rebounds, posting double-digit rebounds for the fourth time this season. On Saturday against Georgia State in Atlanta, the Trojans broke their three-game losing streak to the Panthers in the team’s third double-digit win in five games. “Anytime you get a road conference win, and we got two on this road trip,” Rigby said, “It’s a big deal, and we are very thankful.” After starting off the season 1-2 in road games, the Trojans have since won five-straight road games to improve the team’s road record to 6-2 for the season. The team started off slowly in the first quarter, converting just six of 19 shots for 14 points, but the defense held the Panthers to just seven points in the first quarter. The offense picked up for both teams in the second quarter with both squads shooting nearly 50% or better. After allowing the Panthers to shoot a high percentage in the middle of the game, the Trojans held the Panthers to 29 percent shooting in the fourth quarter and defeated Panthers for the 71-57 victory. Four Trojans reached double-digit points with Amber River’s 13 points leading the way. Rivers needs just four points to reach 1,000 points for her career. Japonica James scored 12 points, and Harriet Winchester and Dye scored 11 points each. Winchester also grabbed eight rebounds and was just two shy of reaching her second double-double of the season. Next, the team returns to Trojan Arena for a four-game home stand starting this weekend with games against Texas State today and Texas-Arlington on Saturday. Tip-off for Thursday’s game is scheduled for 6 p.m., and Saturday’s game will begin at 2 p.m.