NORFOLK — Double the overtime, double the frustration.
The hump Old Dominion is trying to get over remains a moving target.
Theo Seng scored 24 points and first-place Troy made just enough free throws down all three stretches Wednesday in an 83-77 double-overtime victory over the Monarchs at Chartway Arena.
The Trojans (14-6, 7-1 Sun Belt) pulled away by making 4 of 6 from the free throw line in the final 43 seconds of the second overtime.
ODU (6-15, 3-6), meanwhile, committed two turnovers in the final 16 seconds en route to its third loss in four games, all of them by six points or fewer.
No matter the quality of the conference opponent, lately the Monarchs seem destined to living on the edge.
Second-year coach Mike Jones pointed out that four of his team’s Sun Belt losses have come down to a single possession.
“Just one play,” Jones said. “And that’s the tough pill to swallow. But the positive side is we’re right there against one of the better teams in our league. We showed ourselves and everybody else that we can go toe-to-toe with anybody. We’ve just got to get over the hump here.”
Old Dominion Monarchs guard KC Shaw (0) and forward Jared Turner (13) go for a loose ball against Troy Trojans forward Kerrington Kiel (0) during the second half at Chartway Arena in Norfolk, Va., on Jan. 21, 2026. (Peter Casey / The Virginian-Pilot)
KC Shaw scored a career-high 34 points for the Monarchs, who shot 44% from the field to Troy’s 37%. ODU made 3 of 18 from 3-point range.
Monarchs guard Robert Davis Jr., the league’s preseason player of the year, went scoreless on 0-for-8 shooting, including 0-for-7 from long range.
Victor Valdes scored 21 points for Troy, and Seng grabbed 14 rebounds.
With his team leading by a field goal with just under two minutes left in the second overtime, Seng’s dunk on a backdoor play gave the Trojans a 79-75 lead and elusive separation in a seesaw game.
ODU did not score for the game’s final 1:12.
The Monarchs had split four road games, with wins at Coastal Carolina and Appalachian State bookending losses at James Madison and Georgia Southern, since falling to Georgia Southern at home on Jan. 3.
Saturday’s scheduled home game against Louisiana has been moved to Feb. 16 at 5 p.m. because of anticipated inclement weather in the region, ODU announced before Wednesday’s tipoff.
When the Monarchs do take the court again, they’ll plan to build on another near-miss — this one against the defending Sun Belt Tournament champion.
“You’ve got to look at every game as growing,” said Shaw, who did his damage on 14-of-22 shooting on a night when the scoring load was thrust upon him.
“You’ve got to look forward. The season ain’t over with. So you’ve just got to look at the positive side of things, even though it’s not going our way right now.”
Davis played 43 minutes despite a poor shooting night. His coach said displaying that kind of patience was not difficult.
“Not at all,” Jones said. “I respect the question, but he, again, provides other things. I’m going to get on him for the breakdowns he had, but all in all, we’re a better team with Robert Davis on the floor.”
The first overtime ended in a 70-70 tie when Seng missed a wide-open 3 from the right corner at the final horn. Both teams were held to one field goal and four free throws during the period.
Locked in a 64-64 tie, ODU had a chance to win it in regulation. One too many passes off an inbounds play from the far end of the court with four seconds left resulted in no shot getting off.
Troy’s Thomas Dowd tied it with a jumper from the right elbow with four seconds left. It was his team’s first field goal in nine minutes.
The Monarchs failed to ice it by missing 2 of 3 free throws in the final 43 seconds of regulation. That came after the lead changed hands 14 times in the half’s first 14 minutes.
The teams entered halftime in a 35-35 tie after ODU led for nearly the entire first half.
The Monarchs led by as many as seven in the early going before Cooper Campbell’s three-point play tied it with 25 seconds left.
Jones, a former ODU star who has worked his whole career with an eye on returning to his alma mater, has been visibly emotional after some of his team’s closest home losses.
For this one, which was no exception, an announced 5,263 cheered loudly and frequently. Jones would like to have earned just a few more.
“I know every team that comes in here, they’re jealous because we to get to play in front of that, with that support,” Jones said. “I swear, it’s my mission to reward these fans for having our back. I swear.
“We’re trying so hard. We practice so hard. We, as a complete unit, want this so bad. We’re going to keep fighting, though. We’re going to keep fighting.”
David Hall, david.hall@pilotonline.com.
