By: Elise Hempker for Miami County 10
TROY HIGH SCHOOL – After a shaky start, the Troy Varsity Boys Basketball team quickly found their groove and began to pull away after halftime. The Trojans were led by junior Kellen Miller who put up a whopping 23 points.
The Trojans were a little sluggish right out of the gate, as most season-opening games can be, but it didn’t take long for the boys to make adjustments.
“We’ve got the first game and the jitters out of the way. Now we have an opportunity to round ourselves and get better,” said Troy head coach Mark Hess.
One of the key adjustments was the Trojans’ aggressive defense as they forced 30 turnovers on Greenville.
“We really try to use our length and athleticism when it comes to defense and our guys did a really good job,” said Hess. “We had some breakdowns, a little more than I would have liked, but our length and how hard we play makes up for those mistakes.”
Speaking of length and athleticism, 6’6” forward Kellen Miller put on a spectacular show with 23 points and a dunk in the third quarter that got the student section going.
“Kellen is really active. He’s long, gets a lot of deflections, and he’s good on the glass,” explained Hess. “He played with a lot of confidence, made some good plays, and was a great spark for us tonight.”
The Trojans kept an unwavering lead for all but the first few minutes of the game and while senior Konyae Foster may not have been the lead scorer, he was a huge contributor with several key steals that helped the Trojans end the first half with a 35-23 lead.
After the break, the Trojans came out strong forcing turn over after turn over from the Green Wave. Along with Miller, seniors Isaac Phillips, Noah Davis, Hollis Terrell, and Foster combined for 36 points and were vital to securing the lead in the second half.
Senior Nick Prince had 6 points, junior Evan Kaiser put up 3, and senior Quinton Farris had 2.
The Trojans are now 1-0 on the season and will turn around to face West Carrollton at home this Friday, December 2nd at 7:00PM.
BOXSCORE:
Greenville – 7 – 16 – 12 – 11 – 46T
Troy – 13 – 22 – 15 – 20 – 70T
Troy Scoring:
Kellen Miller – 23
Isaac Phillips – 10
Noah Davis – 9
Hollis Terrell – 9
Konyae Foster – 8
Nick Prince – 6
Evan Kaiser – 3
Quinton Farris – 2
Greenville Scoring:
Eric Brenner – 14
Jarrod DeMange – 10
Drew Hamilton – 10
Chace Drew – 4
Haiden Livingston – 4
A.J. Shaffer – 2
Jack Chick – 2