By KEVIN ECKLEBERRY

Daily News

The Troup Lady Tigers were pushed to the limit, but when the clock hit zero they were still unbeaten.

Troup, taking on a determined Harris County squad, held on for a 59-54 victory on Friday night to improve to 6-0.

Senior Amber Gilbert led Troup with 21 points while making some clutch three throws late to seal it, and Aniya Pamer had 12 points, including six points in the fourth quarter.

Jada Green had 10 points, all in the first half, and Samarria Weldon made a 3-pointer and scored seven points.

Troup, after winning most of its games in blowout fashion, found itself in a down-to-the-wire game against Harris County.

“Sometimes, you have to be careful what you wish for,” said Carla Thornton, Troup’s head coach. “One of my girls was saying earlier that she wishes we’d have more close games, and you see tonight we got exactly that. So, I was glad to see them finish the game off and compete until the end. It’s easy to hang your heads, but they had the will to win.”

Troup was clinging to a two-point lead when Gilbert was fouled with 11 seconds to play, and she made a pair of free throws to make it a 58-54 game.

After Harris County missed a 3-pointer, Gilbert made a free throw to cap the scoring.

Troup led 17-10 after the first quarter, and it led by as many as 12 points in the third quarter before Harris County rallied.

Harris County got as close as four points late in the second quarter, and Troup had a 33-27 lead at the half.

Trailing by seven points in the third quarter, Harris County went on an 8-1 run to tie it.

The game was still deadlocked until Gilbert made a 3-pointer in the closing moments of the third quarter, giving Troup a 46-43 lead.

It remained tight throughout the fourth quarter, with Troup unable to put Harris County away.

Harris County was within one point with less than two minutes remaining, but Troup finished the game on a 7-3 run.

While glad to see her team prevail, Thornton did stress to her players the importance of treating every game the same.

Troup beat Harris County handily earlier in the season, but the rematch was much more competitive.

“I fussed at them before the game because I didn’t think we were focused enough,” Thornton said. “Sure enough it showed during the game that we weren’t where we were supposed to be mentally.”

Troup visits Newnan on Tuesday.