Trojans prepare for second round of matchups against MAC opponents

Brady Fitch photo

Randarius Jones throws down a dunk against Toledo.

Officials from both the Sun Belt Conference and Mid-American Conference recently announced the schedule for the second part of the SBC-MAC Challenge.

In the second year of the challenge, Troy men’s basketball will hit the road to Miami (Ohio) to take on the RedHawks while Troy women’s basketball stays home to play. Host to Kent State in its matchup.

The men’s team looks to stay undefeated in the challenge this season as they started the season with an 84-74 win at home over Toledo, who currently sits at 10-7 overall.

The RedHawks of Miami (Ohio) are currently 13-4 while going 5-0 in conference play, tied for first with Akron. The RedHawks are also 7-1 at home with their sole loss coming to Wright State in Miami’s second game of the season.

In the first leg of the challenge, the RedHawks handled Appalachian State by a 77-63 margin to win on the road in Boone, North Carolina. Troy also holds a win over App State in Boone, North Carolina, this season, beating the Mountaineers 69-61 in the matchup earlier this month.

This will only be the third meeting all time for the two programs -- Troy won the last one handily, 73-60, back in 2011.

On the women’s side of the challenge, Troy women’s basketball will play host to Kent State for the second ever matchup between the two programs. The Trojans won the first one back in 2019 by a score of 71-64.

This will be the third MAC team the Trojans will play this season, as they currently sit 0-2 versus the MAC with a 78-80 loss to Buffalo in the first game of the season and a 62-70 loss to Toledo in the Cherokee Invitational in Cherokee, North Carolina.

The Golden Flashes sit at 11-7 overall with a 4-2 record in MAC action, putting them in a three-way tie for second place in the conference. Against common opponents, Kent State sits at 1-1 with a 56-67 loss to James Madison in the first leg of the SBC-MAC Challenge while holding an 80-70 win over Buffalo.

The Golden Flashes seem to struggle on the road, as they have a 2-4 record with only one loss being to a ranked team, NC State.

Another advantage the Trojans hold is in the rebounding game as Troy leads the nation in rebounds per game at 50.1 while the Golden Flashes come in at No.18 with 42.5.

Both teams take on their opponents on Feb. 8 as the men’s game in Ohio starts at noon and is available on ESPN+ while the women’s game tips off at 1 p.m. inside Trojan Arena.