South Alabama at Troy Trojans

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TROY LINEUP: G Wesley Person (6-3, Fr.) 14.1 ppg.; G Kelton Ford (6-0, So.) 7.6 ppg.; G Musa Abdul-Aleem (6-5, Sr.) 15 ppg.; F John Walton III (6-7, Jr.) 7.8 ppg.; F Kevin Thomas (6-8, Sr.) 10.2 ppg.

USA LINEUP: G Ken Williams (6-2, So.) 14.9 ppg.; G Taishaun Johnson (6-0, Fr.) 12.8 ppg.; Barrington Stevens III (5-10, Jr.) 7.5 ppg.; F Abdul Lewis (6-9, Fr.) 6.7 ppg.; F Dionte Ferguson (6-6, Sr.) 11.2 ppg.

NOTEWORTHY: Ferguson was a Class 6A honorable mention All-State player for Prattville as a senior in 2010. ? Ferguson is averaging 13.1 points in Sun Belt play. ? Ferguson had 12 points in USA's 65-54 loss to Georgia State on Saturday. ? Ferguson scored a career-high 25 points on 8-of-13 shooting at Arkansas-Little Rock on Jan. 5. ? Ferguson played for two seasons at Morehead State before transferring to South Alabama. He averaged 3.7 points in 27 games last year. ? The Jaguars have lost three straight. ? Thomas had a team-high 13 points and three other Trojans scored in double figures in Troy's 65-62 loss at Appalachian State on Saturday.



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[IE]

Troy set to take on new-look South Alabama basketball team



In the past couple of years, facing the South Alabama Jaguars has meant contending with a strong inside game led by 2012-13 Sun Belt Player of the Year Augustine Rubit .

But with Rubit graduated, the Jaguars have adapted a new attack, one the Troy Trojans get to see Thursday at 7:30 p.m. at Trojan Arena.
?They?re a really quick team. They have three small guards (Barrington Stevens, Taishaun Johnson and Ken Williams) and the challenge is we haven?t faced off against someone like that,? Trojans head coach Phil Cunningham said. ?It?s like seeing three different point guards.?
The guards pose a challenge different from most teams? perimeter players. Williams, Stevens and Johnson all drive the lane well, giving them another scoring option besides perimeter shooting.

?They are all capable of going to the hole in two or three steps,? Cunningham said. ?It?s something our wings, Musa Abdul- Aleem and Wesley Person, will have to be mindful of.?

Williams, who leads the Jaguars (7-17 overall, 5-8 conference) with 14.9 points per game, is South Alabama ?s best 3-point shooter ? hitting 36 percent of his shot attempts from deep. The Jaguars are third in the Sun Belt in 3-point shooting overall.
The Trojans (9-13, 4-9) are in a good position mentally, though, to handle the challenge. Troy won two of its three games on a long road trip that included stops in Texas , Arkansas and North Carolina .

The recent uptick comes after four straight games where the Trojans lost halftime leads and eventually the contests.
?I think if you had told us we were going to win two out of three before we left, I think we would be happy with it,? Cunningham said. ?We had a chance to make it three straight wins, but we just couldn?t pull it out (against Appalachian State).?
In the wins against Texas-Arlington and Arkansas State , John Walton III emerged as a viable scoring and defensive threat. He recorded 18 points and 10 rebounds against UTA and then followed with 12 points and six rebounds against Arkansas State .
Cunningham said seeing Walton?s performance improve was encouraging.
?We?ve been waiting all year for John. He?s coming off major surgery, and he?s still not 100 percent,? Cunningham said. ?So much of his style of play is his athleticism, his lateral quickness, and what?s happening is he?s found how to move (again). He?s gotten some confidence back.?

If his recent play continues, it gives the Trojans another scoring threat outside Abdul- Aleem (15 ppg), Person (14.1 ppg) and Kevin Thomas (10.2 ppg ).

It could also help the Trojans make a late push in Sun Belt play. Troy is tied with three other teams for the final spot in the conference tournament since Appalachian State is ineligible for the postseason.

A win against South Alabama would help since the Jaguars are currently a game ahead of Arkansas State , Arkansas -Little Rock and Troy .