When Troy Steward hit a fadeaway bank 3-pointer at the buzzer to send Georgetown into overtime against Cumberland University on January 12, he acted like it’s almost any other shot he’s hit in his life.
Steward remained calm, cool and collective as the Tigers controlled the overtime and won the game, 85-74 to improve to 17-1 and 3-0 in the Mid-South Conference prior to their two contests with University of the Cumberlands on January 17 and Life University on January 20.
That’s just the nature of Steward, who hails from Flemingsburg and has been playing in big games since his junior year when he helped Fleming County to two straight 16th Region titles in 2013 and ‘14. When the shot fell against Cumberland, Steward ran over to the bench, got in the huddle and was ready to go for the extra frame.
“That was definitely my biggest shot of my career so far,” Steward said. “We can definitely build off it, especially how we played in overtime.”
The shot is just one of many things Steward is doing exceptionally in his senior season with the Tigers. Prior to Thursday’s contest against University of the Cumberlands, Steward was averaging 19 points per game, hitting 48 percent of his shots from the field and 36 percent from 3-point land. He was also pulling down 3.5 rebounds, dishing out 3.1 assists and swiping 1.2 steals per game. His point per game average is in the top 25 nationally in NAIA.
After redshirting his first year at Georgetown, Steward was part of the national runner-up team in 2016, losing a heartbreaker to Mid America Christian, 100-99 in overtime. A couple years later, Steward sees some similarities with this year’s team.
“It’s a very similar team. There’s a lot of scoring pieces, great defensive team and we share the ball well,” Steward said. “We’re all bought in, we get along well, have great chemistry and love playing together.”
The start of the season is also similar to the 2015-16 team, currently sitting at 17-2, exactly what the runner-up team was at that point of the season. They are currently ranked No. 6 in the NAIA top 25 poll. Some more losses are likely as they play in the competitive Mid-South Conference with three teams in the top 25 (Georgetown No. 6, Campbellsville No. 10 and Pikeville No. 15), two others in the receiving votes category as Cumberlands comes in at No. 29 and Life at No. 35. Every team in the Mid-South currently has a winning record.
“That prepares us a lot when the tourney comes. It’s such a good conference and really helps us in tournament play,” Steward said. “We have goals to win the conference and a national championship, but we’re focused on one game at a time.”
Unlike when he was a freshman and still learning the ropes, Steward has expanded his role with the team not only with his production, but leadership as well. After pouring in 1,913 points in a Panthers uniform, Steward is currently 249 points shy of 2,000 as a Tiger. With 10 regular season games remaining, the conference tournament and NAIA tournament to go…2,000 is well within reach.
The folks in Flemingsburg have his utmost support back home too. The Fleming County boys’ team will be coming to watch him play on February 9 when they host University of the Cumberlands. Steward is well known around the area, helping out with kids’ camps over the summer and playing in local tournaments such as the Dirt Bowl.
“It means a lot to have Fleming County behind me and other places. It gives me something to play for,” Steward said.
When he’s done in a Tiger uniform, Steward plans to try and play professionally. He has a cousin that may know a thing or two about that, Chris Lofton, who just started his 11th season playing overseas.
“We really never talk about that but I plan on trying to talk to him after the season about it,” Steward said, who plans to hire an agent after his college is over.
Steward will graduate with a degree in Communications in May. Until then, he’s hoping to help lead the way to the Tigers third national championship in program history.
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