Troy falls in all-too familar scenario

TROY – The script started and ended like it has in several games for Troy at home this season.

The Trojans got hot early against Florida International, taking a 10-point lead, but stalled the rest of the way and ended up losing 63-50.

Troy is now 7-14 overall, 2-8 in Sun Belt play and sitting all alone in last place in the Sun Belt East division. FIU improved to 6-15, 3-6. Troy is 1-4 in Sun Belt home games this year.

Neither team shot well, but Troy hit 8-of-29 (27.6 percent) from behind the 3-point line and a horrid 4-of-12 (33 percent) from the free throw line.

“All losses sting,” Troy’s Justin Wright said. “We didn’t play very well. We didn’t hit free throws. We just couldn’t score tonight. Losing that way really sucks.”

Troy started off hot, jumping out to a 9-0 lead in the first four minutes. Center Tim Owens had six points and three rebounds in that stretch, but didn’t score again and had only two more rebounds the rest of the night.

Troy led 12-2 after Wright’s 3-pointer, but that lead quickly evaporated as FIU got hot. The Golden Panthers scored the next 16, capping it off on a 3-pointer from Phil Taylor.

The only other first-half lead Troy had was at 23-22 with 4:32 left in the first half. FIU led 28-25 at halftime.

“After we got to 12 points, from that point on, we struggled the rest of the game trying to score baskets,” Troy head coach Don Maestri said. “We also struggled scoring from the foul line, where nobody’s guarding you. I’m not quite sure if that’s a contagious thing or not.”

Troy got hot for a stretch in the second half, as Alan Jones hit three straight threes to give the Trojans a 38-36 lead with 12 minutes left, but FIU’s DeJuan Wright answered with a 3-point play and FIU never trailed again.

The Golden Panthers’ size helped them in the second half with offensive rebounding. At crucial times, it seemed like Troy would make a defensive stop, only to allow an offensive rebound to FIU.

“We’d stop and they’d get a rebound and get a chance to put it back in, even on their own free throws,” Maestri said. “You can’t let that happen and expect to win a game.”

Troy players admitted that FIU played harder and better than they did.

“They got every loose ball tonight,” Justin Wright said. “There were balls on the floor we didn’t dive for. There were a lot of things that we didn’t do that we were doing all week in practice. In order to win close games like that, you’ve got to get 50-50 balls. We didn’t do any of that tonight.

“They just outplayed us. They outhustled us. They were just better than us tonight.”

Troy cut the lead to 53-50 with three minutes left, but didn’t score again. The backbreaker came when FIU’s Jeremy Allen hit a three with 1:31 left to give FIU a 57-50 lead.

FIU’s Wright double-doubled with 18 points and 13 rebounds. Cameron Bell scored 10 with nine rebounds and Allen scored 11.

Troy was led by Alan Jones, who scored 13 off the bench. R.J. Scott scored 12 and Wright scored 10.

Troy hosts UL-Lafayette Saturday at 7:30 p.m.