PENSACOLA, Fla. — The Sun Belt Newcomer of the Year—junior forward Efe Odigie—and the Sun Belt Freshman of the Year—freshman guard Duke Deen—lifted Troy to a 69-62 quarterfinal win over No. 12-seeded Little Rock at the Hercules Tires Sun Belt Conference Men's Basketball Championship.
Odigie nearly recorded a double-double in the first half, with 11 points and nine rebounds, as the Trojans carried an 11-point advantage into the locker room. Odigie would finish with 16 points and 11 rebounds.
Deen picked up where Odigie left off, netting 15 second-half points to keep the Trojans on top. Odigie punctuated the win with a transition dunk as Little Rock had cut the lead to a single possession in the closing minutes.
With the win, Troy advances to the tournament semifinals, where it will meet No. 8-seeded Louisiana at 5 p.m. CT on Sunday, March 6. The Ragin’ Cajuns won the lone regular-season meeting, 69-59, on their home floor on Jan. 22.
Little Rock senior forward Nikola Maric (18) and freshman guard Jordan Jefferson (17) put up double-digit scoring efforts in the loss.