BOONE, N.C. - Appalachian State University women's basketball (8-17, 5-11 SBC) stormed back from a 22-point deficit to force overtime, but fell short to Troy (13-12, 8-8 SBC) Saturday afternoon,100-89, in a track meet at the Holmes Center.
Appalachian had four student-athletes score in double figures with Joi Jones scoring a career-high 22 points on 10-for-18 shooting from the floor. The junior guard had an all-around performance with a team-high six assists while also pulling down five boards.
Madi Story recorded her second double-double of the season with 19 points (all in the second half) and a tied a game-high with a personal best 12 rebounds.
Kaila Craven scored 12 point for the Mountaineers, as she would start the second half, while KeKe Cooper scored 10 points and eight boards to round out the leading scorers.
The Apps showed grit and resiliency in the comeback in the second half, turning a 22-point Troy lead with 1:39 left in the second quarter into a 23-point turnaround and had the lead at one point, 84-83, thanks to an 18-6 run before regulation ended.
With 2:42 left in the game and trailing, 83-79, the Apps finished the game on a 6-2 run to force overtime. Bria Carter started the run with a layup followed by a free throw from Cooper after Story's jumper cut the Trojan lead to one, 83-82. Cooper's bucket on the following possession gave Appalachian its first lead since the fourth quarter. After Ashley Beverly-Kelly gave Troy the lead with a jumper, 85-84, Carter stepped up to the line to go 1-of-2 and hit the clutch foul shot to tie the game. Appalachian had a chance for the game-winner with three seconds left, but couldn't get the shot off.
But the Apps couldn't get the same rhythm going in the extra frame. Troy scored seven of the first nine points to take a 92-87 lead. Appalachian closed the gap to four, 93-89, with 2:29 left in the game thanks to a pair of free throws from Jones. However, the Trojans ended the contest on a 7-0 run while App State missed its last four shots, ensuring the win for the visitors.
App State came out sluggish in the opening half, giving Troy the momentum it needed at the start. After taking an early 4-3 lead in the first 1:18 of the game from one of Carter's three field goals, the Trojans outscored App, 20-7, the rest of the way. App State shot just 22.2 percent from the field while Troy hit four 3-pointers and shot 47.4 percent that helped keyed the 12-point lead, 23-11, going into the second frame.
Troy stayed in front of the Mountaineers in the second quarter, expanding the lead to as much as 22, 42-20, with 1:39 left in the first half. App State was able to slice the lead by six points, 44-28, going into the half. A layup from Jones and a pair of trifectas from Craven and Farrahn Wood capped off an 8-2 spurt going into the locker room.
The Trojans shot 51.5 percent from the field in the first stanza to App State's 34.4 shooting clip, and forced Appalachian into 12 turnovers for 11 points.
It was a different story in the second half, as App State scored 61 points in the second half and overtime. Appalachian clawed its way back going on an 11-for-14 stretch that started at the 1:10 mark in the second quarter and carried over into the third period. The Mountaineers put together a 12-2 run while trailing 51-34 that saw the Trojan lead dwindle to seven, 53-46. Craven sparked the squad with nine of the points during the run after finding out she was starting in the second half.
App State kept inching its way back and closed the gap to five, 59-54, once Story hit a shot from outside the arc. Troy responded by doubling the advantage to 10, 69-59, at the end of the third quarter by responding with a 10-5 run to end the third period.
The Mountaineers kept pushing and pushing in the fourth quarter until eventually taking the lead. Trailing 77-66 with 6:14 left in the game, Appalachian went 8-for-9 from the field including a string of five straight buckets that highlighted an 18-6 run over 4:25 to take the lead,84-83. Four different student-athletes scored during the run while Story and Ashley Bassett-Smith combined for 11 of the team's points during the charge.
Appalachian's defense clamped down holding the visitors to 6-for-20 shooting from the field going back to 1:20 left in the third quarter to the end of regulation. Overall, the Mountaineers held Troy to 10-for-31 (32.2 percent) over the final 17:35 of the game after Troy shot 51 percent late into the third period (25-for-49). The Mountaineers also held the Trojan 3-point attack to 3-for-11 shooting in the second half and OT (7-for-16 in the second half).
After shooting just 22.2 percent in the first period, Appalachian shot 28-for-49 (57.1 percent) in the final three quarters to mount the comeback. Story stepped up with a huge second half where she scored all 19 of her points going 7-for-11 from the floor.
The conference's leading scorer, Ashley Beverly-Kelley, scored a game-high 32 points on the night. But the pure scorer shot just 5-for-18 for 13 points in the second half after shooting 7-of-9 and turning in 19 points in the first stanza.
Appalachian held a 38-34 advantage in the paint while outscoring the Troy reserves, 28-8.
App State will head to Georgia next week in what could decide the eighth and final seed in the conference tournament. The Mountaineers will play archrival Georgia Southern on Thursday before heading to Atlanta on Saturday to play Georgia State.
