Nelson Phillips scored 10 points in the last 10 minutes to lead Troy to a 61-57 come-from-behind Sun Belt Conference win over South Alabama on Thursday night.
The Trojans trailed, 34-27, at halftime and were down by as much as nine points in the second half. South Alabama took a 50-41 lead when Judah Brown hit a 3-pointer with 11:34 left in the game. Troy’s Zay Williams got the comeback started when he hit a short jumper with 10:10 left in the game. From that point forward, Troy outscored South Alabama 18-7.
Phillips had 10 of his 16 points during that stretch. His 3-pointer with 4:49 left pulled the teams even at 52. His layup with 45 seconds left gave Troy the lead for good.
“Nelson Phillips, man, did he give us a lift,” said Troy head coach Scott Cross. “He played absolutely phenomenal on the offensive end of the floor as well as getting steals and creating offense with his defense. Our guys did an outstanding job keeping them out of the paint. We needed one of these games where we had to fight and claw. We showed a ton of resilience and couldn't be more proud of our guys.”
Troy (15-11 overall, 7-6 SBC) moves into a four-way tie for fourth place. Phillips added three rebounds and four steals. Zay Williams had eight points and 13 rebounds, and Kieffer Punter had 12 points and four rebounds.
South Alabama (11-14 overall, 5-8 SBC) lost for the first time in four games. Judah Brown had 16 points, four 3-pointers and eight rebounds. Isaiah Moore had 14 points, four assists and two steals.
“We just didn't finish the game,” said South Alabama head coach Richie Riley. “We gave them the game. We had three turnovers in the last 1:45 that were unforced. But there were a lot of possessions in the second half where we gave up offensive rebounds and missed a lot of easy shots. We pride ourselves on our discipline, valuing the ball and trying to do the right things, and we just didn't. We had a heck of a chance to win the game."
UNA 70, Austin Peay 57: Freshman guard Jacari Lane had a memorable first start as a college player. Lane, who has been a key contributor off the bench this season, scored a season-high 29 points, hitting 11 of 13 from the field and 7 of 8 from the free throw line, while adding four rebounds, three assists and a steal. His performance helped the Lions (15-11 overall, 7-6 ASUN) overcome a sluggish first half.
Daniel Ortiz had 18 points, 11 rebounds and two steals for the Lions. Austin Peay fell to 8-18 overall and 2-11 in ASUN.
Kennesaw State 54, Jacksonville State 52: Demond Robinson scored on a layup with four seconds left to lift the league-leading Owls (19-7 overall, 11-2 conference) to the ASUN road win. His game-winning bucket came 28 seconds after Skyelar Potter tied the game with a 3-pointer for the Gamecocks. Potter’s basket capped a rally that began with Jax State (10-16 overall, 3-10 conference) trailing by 10 points with five minutes left.
Potter finished with a career-best 28 points on 10 of 15 shooting from the field, 6 of 11 on 3-pointers and 2 of 4 from the free throw line. He added 10 rebounds. Clarence “Monzy” Jackson had nine points and 12 rebounds.
Christian Brothers 73, Montevallo 70: James McNeil scored 26 points to lead Montevallo, but the Falcons (9-17 overall, 5-13 Gulf South Conference) fell short in the overtime loss. McNeil also had six rebounds, five assists and a blocked shot. Christian Brothers improved to 9-17 overall and 5-13 in GSC.
Auburn-Montgomery 86, Union 80: The Warhawks (12-12 overall, 10-10 GSC) survived a late rally to win at home. Joseph Lanzi and Travis Anderson each had 18 points in the win. Union falls to 12-11 overall and 11-8 in GSC.
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