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Both the Troy Trojans men’s and women’s basketball teams picked up Sun Belt Conference wins over the Marshall Thundering Herd on Saturday, Jan. 4.

The Troy men’s team (10-4, 3-0) survived an exciting 58-57 slugfest over Marshall (8-8, 1-2) on the road after making a big shot late and an even bigger defensive stop in the final seconds. With just 1:32 left in the second half, Tayton Conerway knocked down a basket to tie the score 57-57. Then, with just 20 seconds remaining, Jackson Fields knocked down a free throw to give the Trojans the 58-57 lead. Marshall held the ball in the final seconds for a shot at a winning three-pointer but it came up short and Conerway grabbed the defensive rebound to secure Troy’s third straight win to open the conference schedule.

Troy trailed Marshall 31-19 at halftime but outscored the Herd 39-26 in the second half. The Trojans shot 37.3 percent from the field, while Marshall shot 39.3 percent. Marshall won the rebound battle 37-30 and also forced 16 Trojan turnovers. Both teams scored 17 points off turnovers.

Conerway led Troy with 20 points, four rebounds, five steals and three assists, while Myles Rigsby added 13 points and three rebounds. Thomas Dowd grabbed nine rebounds. For Marshall, Obinna Anochili-Killen scored 17 points with nine rebounds, two steals and an eye-popping five blocks.

Troy, South Alabama and Louisiana are the only teams left undefeated in conference play. The Trojan men return home on Thursday, Jan. 9, for another conference matchup with Texas State at 6 p.m.

Meanwhile, the Troy women’s team (8-7, 2-1) throttled Marshall (5-9, 0-3) by a score of 80-69 at home. Troy trailed Marshall 20-14 going into the second quarter but cut the lead to 33-30 at halftime. The second half, though, was all Troy as the Trojan women outscored Marshall 50-36 in the final half of play.

Troy shot 42 percent from the field and held Marshall to 38.7 percent shooting. The Trojans also dominated the boards, outrebounding Marshall 51-30. Troy’s bench also outscored Marshall’s 36-13 and the Trojans outscored the Herd 32-22 in the paint. Troy also scored 22 second chance points compared to 10 for the Herd.

Zay Dyer had another big night for the Trojans with 11 points, 12 rebounds and two assists, while Briana Peguero tallied 17 points, seven rebounds, three assists and two steals. Khila Morris totalled 13 points, three rebounds and three assists, while Leilani Guion chipped in with 12 points and two rebounds. Ashley Baez grabbed seven boards and scored nine points. Shaulan Wagner tallied six points, seven rebounds and four assists. Aislynn Hayes led Marshall with 18 points, four rebounds, five assists and five steals.

The women hit the road on Jan. 9 to face Appalachian State at 11 a.m. in another conference game.