For the first time since 2017, the Troy men's basketball team is back in the big dance, as it clinched a berth in the NCAA Tournament after defeating Arkansas State 94-81 in the Sun Belt Tournament Championship game on Monday night in the Pensacola Bay Center.
Troy (23-10) used a huge final 10 minutes of the game to overcome an eight-point deficit and clinch its third trip to the tournament in program history. The Trojans outscored Arkansas State (24-10) 36-15 over the final 10:07 to pick up its third win over the last three days. All of Troy's tournament wins came by 13 points or more.
Sun Belt Player of the Year Tayton Conerway (6'3''-G) exploded for 16 second half points, which all came during Troy's huge run to close out the game. Conerway was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player after recording a game-high 21 points and grabbing six rebounds. Conerway averaged 20.3 points over Troy's three tournament victories.
Myles Rigsby (6'6''-F) also shined for Troy with 20 points on 5-10 shooting. He was 9-10 from the line, including 7-8 in the second half.
The Trojans opened the game strong and held a 25-16 lead at the halfway mark of the first half. The Red Wolves clawed back as the half winded down and took a 43-41 lead into the halftime break thanks to a three-pointer with 24 seconds left. Troy shot 35.1 percent in the first half, while Arkansas State sat at 44.4 percent. Nine Trojans scored in the opening half.
Troy came out of the locker room on a 7-0 run to take a 48-43 lead but Arkansas State responded. The Red Wolves went on a 23-10 run to take a 66-58 lead and looked close to putting the game away. But, like it has all season, Troy bounced back and dominated the final 10 minutes to win its third conference tournament title in its D-I era.
Thomas Dowd (6'8''-F) also earned a spot on the All-Tournament Team after recording 14 points and nine rebounds a day after recording 18 points and 11 rebounds. Jackson Fields also had 10 points on 3-5 shooting.
The Trojans shot 65.2 percent (15-23) in the final 20 minutes to finish the night with a 46.7 percent shooting clip. Troy held the Red Wolves to 38.9 percent in the second half and 41.3 percent in the game.
Dyondre Dominguez led Arkansas State with 19 points.
The Trojans dominated the paint battle, outscoring the Red Wolves 46-30 under the basket and outrebounding them 39-35. Troy also turned it over just eight times. In the Trojans quarterfinal win over Old Dominion, they turned it over seven times.

Quotable ­­– head coach Scott Cross
"I want to thank the good Lord for this victory. He shined down on us. What a blessing it is. The last time I was in the NCAA Tournament was 2008. I don't take this for granted by any means. This is one of the hardest things to do, especially in the Sun Belt because there are 14 teams, and they are very close in terms of talent and ability. It's a different league. It's a gauntlet."

Up Next
The Trojans will find out their destination and opponent for the NCAA First Round during the Selection Sunday show at 5 p.m. CT on CBS. Troy will either open its postseason play next Thursday or Friday.

Notables
• Troy punched its ticket to the NCAA Tournament for the third time in program history and the first time since 2017. Troy also made the tournament in 2003.
• Troy moves to 19-14 all-time against Arkansas State and 2-1 this season.
• Tayton Conerway was named the Sun Belt Tournament Most Outstanding Player after averaging 20.3 over Troy's three games. He had a game-high 21 points in the championship, including 16 points in the final 10 minutes of the game.
• Thomas Dowd was named to the Sun Belt All-Tournament team after scoring 14 points and nine rebounds in the championship game. He also had 18 points and 11 rebounds in the semifinal on Saturday.
• Trailing by eight with 10:07 to go, Troy closed the game on a 36-15 run to win the title. Conerway had all 16 of his second-half points during that stretch.
• Jackson Fields had 10 points on 3-5 shooting. He had a career-high 21 points in Troy's semifinal win on Sunday.
• Troy is now 15-14 in Sun Belt Tournament games.
• This is the second time Scott Cross has led a team to the NCAA Tournament. He took UT-Arlington to the tournament in 2008.

Sun Belt League Final:
Troy - Arkansas State 94-81

Sun Belt League Semifinals:
South Alabama - Arkansas State 71-74
James Madison - Troy 60-79

Sun Belt League Quarterfinals:
Arkansas State - Marshall 77-74
Troy - Old Dominion 75-59
Marshall - Georgia State 79-76
App State - Old Dominion 56-61

Sun Belt Third Round:
Texas State - Old Dominion 61-64
Georgia State - Georgia Southern 80-71

Sun Belt Second Round:
Georgia Southern - Southern Miss 78-64
Old Dominion - Louisiana 67-49

Sun Belt First Round:
Louisiana - ULM 73-69, OT
Southern Miss - Coastal Carolina 66-63

Courtesy of sunbeltsports.org