‘Their time to shine’: Troup girls basketball aims for history in state championship
Aniya Palmer doesn’t say much. The Troup sophomore sits atop a training table inside the school’s indoor practice facility, taping her own ankles — the trainer made her handle the task herself, she jokes — as the Tigers begin Tuesday practice.
Palmer is one of the quieter voices on the young basketball team, which plays Americus-Sumter at 11 a.m. EST Friday at the Macon Centerplex for the GHSA class 4A state championship. She’s shy, according to coach Carla Thornton, but she lights up at the thought of bringing a title back to LaGrange.
“We’d make history,” Palmer said.
Indeed.
SHOOTING FOR HISTORY
Troup’s girls have already made history this season: They knocked off last year’s state champion, Carver, in their first-ever Final Four appearance. Friday will be the first time the school has competed for a girls basketball state championship.
Troup lost just one game this season and went undefeated in the regular season. Its only loss was against Sandy Creek in the second round of the region tournament.
“Tunnel vision,” Thornton said. “There are only two teams left practicing. We’re one of those two teams, so finish the season strong. Always finish. We didn’t get this far off of nothing. ... We’re happy to be the people who are able to make history. I told my girls, ‘You’ve been a great team, so now you get to go down in history.’”
Indeed, the Tigers’ big season was no fluke.
ALL EYES ON FRIDAY
Media presence is heightened at Troup this week, according to Thornton, but she believes her girls are “up to the challenge.”
The Tigers ran the floor hard against Carver, often leaving just one or two players inside to grab defensive rebounds while the rest broke off running up the floor. The strategy worked to perfection: Carver could never settle into its full-court press, which resulted in many easy fast-break layups.
It’s unclear if the Tigers will utilize the same strategy against Americus-Sumter. Thornton said she believes the Panthers will want them to try and play fast, which may play into the Tigers’ favor. Then again, Carver wanted to play fast last week, and Troup cruised to a comfortable win.
The team began practice Tuesday with a fast break drill.
The Tigers have flown under the radar all year, but they are certainly are not a one-player show.
The Tigers can score from all across the floor, as they showed against Carver: Freshman Alexcia Murphy led the team with 15 points, and sophomore Aniya Palmer added 13 points.
“Everybody knows that when their number’s called, it’s their time to shine,” Thornton said. “And they do that.”
This story was originally published March 4, 2020 at 2:00 PM.
