Turnovers cost Mountaineers in loss to Troy

Courtesy of Katherine Jamtgaard, App State Athletics

Sophomore guard Emily Carver pulls up from long range against Troy Feb. 18, 2023.

Ethan Smith, Sports Editor
February 20, 2023

App State women’s basketball traveled to Troy, Alabama, Saturday for a matchup against the Trojans, losing 73-66.

The loss dropped the Mountaineers to 9-18 on the season and 5-11 in conference. App State finished its road schedule with a 2-13 record.

The Mountaineers started the first quarter strong, going up 4-0 after a pair of baskets from senior guard Janay Sanders. App State went up 18-4 after scoring from multiple players, including sophomore guard Emily Carver and graduate student guard Brooke Bigott. Troy ended the quarter on a 10-0 run to make it 18-14 at the end of the first.

The Black and Gold started out the second quarter on a 10-4 run. Carver hit a 3-pointer and a layup, and Sanders made a pair of free throws and a layup. The Trojans countered with an 8-0 run before two layups from sophomore Mariah Frazier made it 32-29.

App State went into halftime with a 38-31 lead. The Mountaineers shot 41% from the field in the first half while limiting Troy to 3-12 from 3-point range.

App State continued to build onto its lead in the third quarter. Some free throws and a layup from redshirt junior A’Lea Gilbert gave the Moutnaineers a 42-35 lead early in the quarter. With 42 seconds left in the third quarter, Frazier scored a layup then assisted Carver for a 3-pointer to put the Black and Gold up 59-48 heading into the fourth quarter.

Troy opened the final quarter on a 14-0 run after a long scoring drought from App State, securing their first lead of the game with 4:16 left in the game. Junior guard Faith Alston cut the lead to 68-66 after a layup and a 3-pointer, but the Trojans held on and secured the 73-66 win over the Mountaineers.

Turnovers decimated App State, turning over the ball 24 times, leading to 33 points for Troy. The Trojans held a massive rebounding advantage over the Moutnaineers, 55-35, resulting in 23 second chance points.

Despite the cold shooting in the fourth, App State shot 42% from the field in the game and 29% from 3-point range. The Mountaineers shot 75% from the free throw line.

Carver and Sanders both finished with 14 points, and Alston was the only other Mountaineer in double figures with 10 points.

The Black and Gold have two remaining games in the regular season before the Sun Belt Tournament begins.

App State returns to Boone Thursday against James Madison. The game starts at 6:30 p.m. and can be streamed on ESPN+.

Leave a Comment

Donate to The Appalachian

$1386

$5000

Contributed

Our Goal

We hope you appreciate this article! Before you move on, our student staff wanted to ask if you would consider supporting The Appalachian's award-winning journalism. We are celebrating our 90th anniversary of The Appalachian in 2024!

We receive funding from the university, which helps us to compensate our students for the work they do for The Appalachian. However, the bulk of our operational expenses — from printing and website hosting to training and entering our work into competitions — is dependent upon advertising revenue and donations. We cannot exist without the financial and educational support of our fellow departments on campus, our local and regional businesses, and donations of money and time from alumni, parents, subscribers and friends.

Our journalism is produced to serve the public interest, both on campus and within the community. From anywhere in the world, readers can access our paywall-free journalism, through our website, through our email newsletter, and through our social media channels. Our supporters help to keep us editorially independent, user-friendly, and accessible to everyone.

If you can, please consider supporting us with a financial gift from $10. We appreciate your consideration and support of student journalism at Appalachian State University. If you prefer to make a tax-deductible donation, or if you would prefer to make a recurring monthly gift, please give to The Appalachian Student News Fund through the university here: https://securelb.imodules.com/s/1727/cg20/form.aspx?sid=1727&gid=2&pgid=392&cid=1011&dids=418.15&bledit=1&sort=1.

About the Contributor