by by Matt Mays
TROY, Alabama – The nation’s top offense was on full display, but the Troy women’s basketball team was sparked by it’s defense in a dominating, 104-51, win over Nicholls at Trojan Arena on Tuesday.
Troy (3-2) held Nicholls to just 25 percent shooting and had 19 steals on 35 Nicholls turnovers that led to 41 Trojan points. Troy’s 53-point victory was just two points shy of tying the program’s Division I era record for margin of victory.
“Scoring a 100 points is what people like to talk about,” Troy head coach Chanda Rigby said. “But as a team we know, and have decided that, it doesn’t matter how many times we score 100, if we don’t hold people to lower scores we’re not going to achieve our goals.”
The defense was the headline, but Troy’s offense was as powerful as normal as the Trojans scored 100 points for the third time in as many home games this season. The win was Troy’s eighth straight at Trojan Arena.
Five Trojans scored in double figures, led by 16 points from Caitlyn Ramirez (Seminole Nation) who also led the team with nine rebounds. The junior, who entered leading the Sun Belt in field goal percentage, upped that number even more with a 7-of-10 showing, including 6-of-7 in the second half.
Three Trojans scored 15 points each, including Ashley Beverly Kelley who was also 7-of-10 from the floor with four assists. Rachel Reid and Jayla Chills each scored 15 off the bench for Troy, combining for five of Troy’s 12 3-pointers.
Amanda Mendoza hit 3-of-4 from long range and was the fifth Trojan in double figures, scoring 11 points in her first career start. The Sun Belt’s leading assister also dished out a game-high five dimes.
The Trojans shot 54 percent (40-of-74), upping a team shooting percentage that already ranked eighth in the NCAA. Troy hit 52 percent (12-of-23) from long range and 12-of-16 from the free throw line.
Troy’s defense was suffocating from the start, holding Nicholls to nine points in the first quarter. Troy never trailed and took just 6:30 to pull ahead by 10 points. Nicholls (2-4) never scored more than 16 points in a quarter, and after a 19-point effort in the first period, Troy never scored less than 24 in a quarter.
Troy outscored the Colonels in the paint, 48-22, thanks in large part to 10 blocks, including four from Claresa Banks in just 11 minutes off the bench. Kristen Emerson swatted three shots for the second straight game and tied a career high with nine points.
Nicholls was led in scoring by Karrignton Brown who had 16 points off the bench, but committed 11 turnovers. The Colonels leading scorer on the season, Hope Pawlowski, had 11 points but was just 2-of-12 from the floor.
Troy now has nine days between games as it next travels to Vanderbilt for a game against the Commodores on Thursday, December 10.
