Troy shines during trip to Starkville

Published 8:27 pm Tuesday, December 21, 2021

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The Troy women’s basketball team finished off their non-conference schedule on a high note when they defeated Jackson State on Sunday afternoon.

The Trojans ride into Sun Belt Conference play winners of five straight and are 9-5 so far this season.

The Trojans picked up their fifth straight win with a 99-82 win over Jackson State in Starkville, Mississippi in the Mississippi State MTE.

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The Trojans overcame a 24-point deficit on their way to a 17-point win.

“This game will forever be in my memory as one of the special ones,” Troy head coach Chanda Rigby said. “I’ve coached a lot of players with a lot of heart, but I’ve never really witnessed the level of determination our Trojans displayed today. At one point, they scored 15 points in 1 minute and 47 seconds. They went from down 24 points to up 17 points. That’s determination. That’s the heart of a Trojan Warrior.” 

It was the last of three wins the Trojans picked up in Starkville. They picked up their first Power 5 win of the season and first since the 2018-2019 season when they defeated Mississippi State 73-66. The win over the Bulldogs was their first in seven attempts.

The Trojans had no trouble in the middle game of the weekend when they took on South Carolina State. Amber Leggett scored 19 points and the Trojans walked away with a 94-51 win.

“I knew it was going to be hard to comeback after such an emotional win against Mississippi State, especially with a 24-hour turnaround,” Rigby said. “I was right, we were slow in the beginning, but the team really picked it up in the second half to get us another win.”

Leggett, in the three games in Starkville, averaged 20 points per game and 11 rebounds.