Trojans sweep Throwback Night, hit winning stride

A finally full roster helped the Troy Trojans (4-6) run past the Noxon Red Devils (4-8) during Saturday’s Throwback Night in Troy. Defensive adjustments and fresh legs fueled Troy to a 47-35 win on the hardwood.

Senior post Oliver Grupenhoff’s 10 first-quarter points paced the visiting Red Devils to a 14-9 lead after the first frame. The lead was 12-4 before Troy’s Gage Tallmadge scored five points on a corner three-pointer and a buzzer-beating layup.

The second quarter saw three ties and four lead changes. Sean Opland and Gabe Hickman teamed with Tallmadge to score Troy’s 14 points in the frame. Grupenhoff continued to display impressive touch down low, but Tallmadge’s three-pointer only two seconds before halftime pulled the Trojans ahead, 23-22.

Noxon managed to tie the game midway through the third quarter when senior Tanner Tammaro knocked down a three. But buckets from four different Trojans earned a 37-29 lead in the old high school gymnasium.

A corner three by Tallmadge opened the final frame and stretched the lead to 11 points. Teams traded baskets on the way out. The final score was 47-35.

“It helps having everyone back,” Troy Coach Cory Andersen said. “The depth allows guys to not be so tired at the end of games.”

Starting post Bruce Metz, the team’s tallest player at 6 feet 3 inches, played his first game at full strength in two weeks Saturday after battling the flu. Hickman and fellow senior Luke Haggerty missed time earlier this year following off-the-court issues.

Tallmadge led all scorers with 22 points. Grupenhoff led Noxon with 20 points. Hickman was the only other player to record double-figures with 10 points.

“I was not surprised we started off a little slow,” Andersen said. “Maybe it was the different atmosphere of the old gym?”

Andersen said the key to his team’s comeback was troubling Grupenhoff.

“He’s been starting for years,” Andersen said. “He’s their centerpiece. We knew if we made it tough on him we would make it tough on his team. All week we focused on the basics and it showed this weekend. We shot better around the basket and made more free throws.”

Tallmadge’s scoring has also been significant.

“We worked on the fundamentals and form and he is shooting with better confidence,” Andersen said. “We need as many points as we can get. He helps a lot.”

The Trojans travel to Libby (1-9) at 7 p.m. Friday.

Troy 60, Plains 52

At Plains, the Trojans claimed a slim early lead and maintained control the rest of the game.

Troy led 27-24 at halftime and stretched the lead to 45-36 before trading baskets in the fourth quarter. Hickman led all scorers with 24 points. Opland scored 11, and Tallmadge chipped in nine points.

“Plains is not one of the stronger teams in our district, but they beat us earlier this year,” Andersen said. “We needed to come back and get that game.”

Troy 31, Noxon 13

At Troy, the Lady Trojans (2-9) made it a sweep on Saturday’s Throwback Night when they locked down Noxon (0-12), 31-13.

Troy was outscored in the first frame 7-5. The Lady Trojan defense stiffened and held the Red Devils to a meager two points in each of the final three quarters.

Trojan post Caitlin Johnston was a force, single-handedly outscoring the opponent with 15 points. Kellie Lundin scored eight. Perhaps the most notable line in the box score is Allie Brown’s three points.

“It was nice to have a full team,” Troy Coach Justin Young said.

Brown missed much of the season’s first half with a case of mono. After being cleared to play Friday’s game, Brown came down with a case of the flu. With a clean bill of health, Brown could make the difference in close games.

The Lady Trojans travel to Thompson Falls at 6 p.m. Saturday.

Plains 47, Troy 26

At Plains (6-0, 10-2), the Lady Trojan offense stalled at the wrong time Friday as a halftime lead slipped away. Troy led 16-14 at the midway point, but a 16-0 third quarter put the game out of reach.

“I thought we played our best half of basketball in the first half,” Young said. “I was really proud of our defense. Makaylin Randall and Taylor Brown played smart, scrappy ball.”

Johnston led Troy with 12 points. Plains’ Hailey Phillips led all scorers with 16.