Seniors Keri Jewett-Giles and Nasrin Ulel combined for 42 points to lead the No. 24 FGCU women's basketball team (30-3) to a 73-57 win over North Florida (16-15) in the A-SUN Championship semifinals on Wednesday inside Alico Arena.
"There's definitely a lot of bright spots," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said, "(such as) the way we came out in the second half, moved the ball and knocked down shots. We were getting open threes and had them spread out and got layups, which helped us extend the lead. Give North Florida credit. They kept fighting and kept coming at us. I thought we lost our defensive intensity and weren't running our offense (after that). Hopefully there's a lesson to be learned about finishing the game the way we want to."
With the win, the Eagles advance to the A-SUN Championship game for the ninth-consecutive season, which extends a conference record. They will face Liberty (20-11), who defeated North Alabama 90-87 in overtime to set up a rematch of last year's title tilt, at 3 p.m. on Sunday. The game is open to fans and tickets can be purchased online at FGCUtickets.com.
The triumph also gives FGCU its fourth 30-win season over the past six years and allows the Eagles a chance to tie Florida International's all-time A-SUN record with four straight conference tournament championships. As of now, the Green and Blue are just one of four to win three straight, and they improved the program's all-time conference tournament record to 24-2 (.923). On top of that, FGCU is now 48-13 (.787) all-time in the month of March (3-0 this year), and they are 27-3 against North Florida with six straight wins in the series, including 16-0 inside Alico Arena and 4-0 in the postseason.
As a team, FGCU racked up 11 more 3-pointers against North Florida to push its nation-best total to 397, which puts them three shy of becoming just the fourth team in NCAA Division I women's basketball history with at least 400 in a season. The 2017-18 version of the Eagles currently holds the all-time record with 431 with the 2014-15 Sacramento State (424) and 2017-18 DePaul (422) squads ranking second and third.
Offensively, the duo of Jewett-Giles and Ulel produced FGCU's 14th and 15th all-time 20-plus point performances in A-SUN Championship play in Wednesday night's win.
Jewett-Giles, who had a game-high 22 points along with five rebounds, three assists and two steals, racked up her 70th career double-digit scoring performance, and it was the 19th time she's scored 20-or-more, which includes 12 this year alone.
Ulel, meanwhile, had 20 points, eight rebounds and two blocks. She finished 7-for-14 from the field, including 4-for-6 from long distance, for her sixth 20-plus point performance of the season. It was also her 20th double-digit scoring game of the season, and she also added a bit more history to her performance by moving into 10th place on the A-SUN's all-time 3-point field goals list with 229, surpassing Stetson's Brianti Saunders (227, 2013-17).
Grad student Ashli O'Neal also produced offensively by recording her second double-digit performance of the tournament with 12 points on 4-for-9 shooting. She is averaging 16.5 PPG over her first two A-SUN tournament games.
Senior Tytionia Adderly, meanwhile, continued her solid all-around play. While finishing with six points and three steals, she also had her fourth-straight double-digit rebound performance with a game-high 14, which ties her own program record for most in an A-SUN tournament game. She has eight of FGCU's 11 all-time double-digit rebounding efforts in the postseason event. If that isn't enough, she had seven assists vs North Florida, which is tied for the third-most in program history in conference tournament play.
Furthermore, Adderly pushed her career rebounding total to 1,185, which is just 15 shy of making her the second player in A-SUN history with 1,200 in a career. Georgia Southern's Phylette Blake (1,242, 1985-89) holds the all-time record. On Wednesday, the senior also pushed her career double-digit rebounding game total to 55, which includes a career-high 16 this year alone.
Both teams got off to slow starts offensively, combining for just nine points through the game's first five minutes. With the game knotted at five apiece, Jewett-Giles spurred a 10-0 run by forcing a steal and finishing a fast break layup, and Ulel added five points during the stretch. Jewett-Giles then closed the quarter with a second-chance jumper off the glass just before time expired to give FGCU a 17-7 lead.
A three-point play from Jewett-Giles pushed the lead to as many as 19 in the second quarter before FGCU settled on a 38-22 lead at the break. O'Neal then buried a 3-pointer to cap a 15-2 run for the Eagles to open the second half and, following back-to-back 3-pointers from Adderly and Ulel, FGCU held a 59-29 lead with 4:40 left in the third quarter.
From there, things got interesting as the Green and Blue scored just seven points over the next 10 minutes, while Janesha Green's layup pulled the visitors within as few as 13 with 4:20 left in the fourth. O'Neal stemmed the tide, however, with a 3-pointer from the left wing, and Jewett-Giles added a layup on the next possession to essentially seal the game.
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Showing posts with label FGCU Basketball. Show all posts
Showing posts with label FGCU Basketball. Show all posts
FGCU WBB vs Lipscomb: A-SUN Conference Tournament Quarterfinals Recap
Redshirt senior Davion Wingate poured in a single-game record 38 points, while classmate Ashli O'Neal had a season-high 21 points as the No. 24 FGCU women's basketball team (29-3) routed Lipscomb (7-23) 105-71 in an A-SUN quarterfinal matchup inside Alico Arena on Saturday night in front of 1,710 fans.
With the win, the top-seeded Eagles advance to Wednesday's semifinal against fifth-seeded North Florida, who knocked off Jacksonville in overtime on Saturday for their first A-SUN tournament win in 10 years. No. 2 North Alabama and No. 3 Liberty will meet in the other semifinal. The Green and Blue are now 23-2 all-time in the A-SUN tournament.
"Obviously, the first quarter, we came out with good energy. We shared the ball, took good shots and shot an exceptional percentage," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "Davion really got us going. She was aggressive and finding good opportunities from the start. And then Ashli, in that first half, came off the bench and immediately started knocking down shots and doing good things for us. It's a great start to the tournament. I like the way we came out. Now we're going to going to have to prepare for a really good team and compete again."
Wingate finished 13-for-16 from the field, including 6-for-7 from 3-point range while adding five rebounds, three assists and one steal. It was her third 30-point outing of the season, and her 38 points eclipsed the program's previous Division I era single-game scoring record of 36 set by Rosemarie Julien and senior Nasrin Ulel. Furthermore, the team's 105 points ties an A-SUN tournament single-game team record that was coincidentally set by the Eagles two years ago against Lipscomb.
O'Neal tallied her season-high 21 points on 7-for-11 shooting, including a 4-for-5 finish from long distance. She added a pair of steals and rebounds over 20 minutes and topped her previous season-high of 20 set against Saint Francis. Ulel added 10 points, five assists and two rebounds, while nine others also scored.
On the glass, senior Tytionia Adderly had a game-high 12 rebounds while adding seven points, four assists, two steals and a block. It was her third straight game in double-figure rebounds, and she needed just 15 minutes of play to accomplish it. Overall, she pushed her career total to 1,171, which is 72 shy of eclipsing Georgia Southern product Phylette Blake's all-time A-SUN record of 1,242 from 1985-89). Ulel, meanwhile, now sits at 225 career made 3-pointers after her two against Lipscomb. She needs two more to move into a tie for 10th-place in A-SUN history.
As a team, FGCU finished 36-for-75 (.480) from the field, including a 16-for-37 (.432) performance from 3-point range. With those 16, the Eagles have now made 386 this year, which gives them the second-most in a single-season in program history and moves them into a tie with the 2016 Sacramento State squad for fifth-most in a single-season in NCAA Division I history. Only three teams have ever made 400 in a season, including the 2017-18 version of the Green and Blue, who hold the all-time record with 431.
Adderly, who poured in a career-high seven 3-pointers in the last meeting against Lipscomb, drained a left-wing 3-pointer just over a minute into the game to open the scoring. The Eagles continued to pour it on, jumping out to a 16-0 lead to open the game in a run that featured buckets from four different players along with four points, two rebounds and an assist from Wingate.
After Lipscomb's Taylor Clark drove the left side for a layup with 4:33 left in the opening quarter for her team's first points of the game, the Eagles scored the next 14 points with five more from Wingate. By the time the dust settled, FGCU led 30-2 and eventually held a 31-point advantage at the end of the quarter.
In the second quarter, Wingate put on a show by scoring 18 of her 29 first-half points on 6-for-6 shooting. She made all four of her 3-point attempts in the quarter, including one from straightaway as time expired. She also assisted on two of the five other field goals for the Eagles in the frame and converted a pair of old-fashioned three-point plays.
The visiting Bisons, featuring a young and up-and-coming roster, didn't back down in the second half despite the score as they outscored FGCU 49-40 over the final 20 minutes. Lipscomb's Jalyn Holcomb, who became the first player in program history to be named the A-SUN's Freshman of the Year, finished with a team-high 15 points.
FGCU is now 28-0 all-time against Lipscomb, including three wins in the A-SUN tournament, and every win has been by double-digits.
Tickets for Wednesday's quarterfinal can be purchased online here, or by stopping by the FGCU ticket office Monday through Wednesday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
A-SUN Quarterfinal Results
No. 5 North Florida 77, No. 4 Jacksonville 67 (OT)
No. 2 North Alabama 70, No. 7 Stetson 60
No. 3 Liberty 91, No. 6 Kennesaw State 86
No. 1 FGCU 105, No. 8 Lipscomb 71
A-SUN Semifinal Matchups
Wednesday, March 11
No. 1 FGCU vs No. 5 North Florida, 7 p.m.
No. 2 North Alabama vs No. 3 Liberty, 7 p.m.
Bracket Updates:
Two teams have punched in their tickets so far for the national tournament: Boise State (MWC) and Southeast Missouri State (OVC).
With the win, the top-seeded Eagles advance to Wednesday's semifinal against fifth-seeded North Florida, who knocked off Jacksonville in overtime on Saturday for their first A-SUN tournament win in 10 years. No. 2 North Alabama and No. 3 Liberty will meet in the other semifinal. The Green and Blue are now 23-2 all-time in the A-SUN tournament.
"Obviously, the first quarter, we came out with good energy. We shared the ball, took good shots and shot an exceptional percentage," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "Davion really got us going. She was aggressive and finding good opportunities from the start. And then Ashli, in that first half, came off the bench and immediately started knocking down shots and doing good things for us. It's a great start to the tournament. I like the way we came out. Now we're going to going to have to prepare for a really good team and compete again."
Wingate finished 13-for-16 from the field, including 6-for-7 from 3-point range while adding five rebounds, three assists and one steal. It was her third 30-point outing of the season, and her 38 points eclipsed the program's previous Division I era single-game scoring record of 36 set by Rosemarie Julien and senior Nasrin Ulel. Furthermore, the team's 105 points ties an A-SUN tournament single-game team record that was coincidentally set by the Eagles two years ago against Lipscomb.
O'Neal tallied her season-high 21 points on 7-for-11 shooting, including a 4-for-5 finish from long distance. She added a pair of steals and rebounds over 20 minutes and topped her previous season-high of 20 set against Saint Francis. Ulel added 10 points, five assists and two rebounds, while nine others also scored.
On the glass, senior Tytionia Adderly had a game-high 12 rebounds while adding seven points, four assists, two steals and a block. It was her third straight game in double-figure rebounds, and she needed just 15 minutes of play to accomplish it. Overall, she pushed her career total to 1,171, which is 72 shy of eclipsing Georgia Southern product Phylette Blake's all-time A-SUN record of 1,242 from 1985-89). Ulel, meanwhile, now sits at 225 career made 3-pointers after her two against Lipscomb. She needs two more to move into a tie for 10th-place in A-SUN history.
As a team, FGCU finished 36-for-75 (.480) from the field, including a 16-for-37 (.432) performance from 3-point range. With those 16, the Eagles have now made 386 this year, which gives them the second-most in a single-season in program history and moves them into a tie with the 2016 Sacramento State squad for fifth-most in a single-season in NCAA Division I history. Only three teams have ever made 400 in a season, including the 2017-18 version of the Green and Blue, who hold the all-time record with 431.
Adderly, who poured in a career-high seven 3-pointers in the last meeting against Lipscomb, drained a left-wing 3-pointer just over a minute into the game to open the scoring. The Eagles continued to pour it on, jumping out to a 16-0 lead to open the game in a run that featured buckets from four different players along with four points, two rebounds and an assist from Wingate.
After Lipscomb's Taylor Clark drove the left side for a layup with 4:33 left in the opening quarter for her team's first points of the game, the Eagles scored the next 14 points with five more from Wingate. By the time the dust settled, FGCU led 30-2 and eventually held a 31-point advantage at the end of the quarter.
In the second quarter, Wingate put on a show by scoring 18 of her 29 first-half points on 6-for-6 shooting. She made all four of her 3-point attempts in the quarter, including one from straightaway as time expired. She also assisted on two of the five other field goals for the Eagles in the frame and converted a pair of old-fashioned three-point plays.
The visiting Bisons, featuring a young and up-and-coming roster, didn't back down in the second half despite the score as they outscored FGCU 49-40 over the final 20 minutes. Lipscomb's Jalyn Holcomb, who became the first player in program history to be named the A-SUN's Freshman of the Year, finished with a team-high 15 points.
FGCU is now 28-0 all-time against Lipscomb, including three wins in the A-SUN tournament, and every win has been by double-digits.
Tickets for Wednesday's quarterfinal can be purchased online here, or by stopping by the FGCU ticket office Monday through Wednesday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
A-SUN Quarterfinal Results
No. 5 North Florida 77, No. 4 Jacksonville 67 (OT)
No. 2 North Alabama 70, No. 7 Stetson 60
No. 3 Liberty 91, No. 6 Kennesaw State 86
No. 1 FGCU 105, No. 8 Lipscomb 71
A-SUN Semifinal Matchups
Wednesday, March 11
No. 1 FGCU vs No. 5 North Florida, 7 p.m.
No. 2 North Alabama vs No. 3 Liberty, 7 p.m.
Bracket Updates:
Two teams have punched in their tickets so far for the national tournament: Boise State (MWC) and Southeast Missouri State (OVC).
FGCU MBB @ NJIT Recap
A double-double by freshman Dakota Rivers alongside a hot-shooting first half paced the FGCU men's basketball team (9-20, 6-8 A-SUN) to a 55-39 road victory at NJIT (8-19, 5-9 A-SUN) on Saturday evening.
The win moved FGCU into a three-way tie for fifth-place in the ASUN standings. The Eagles are tied with both of next week's opponents - Jacksonville and North Alabama.
Rivers finished the game with 10 points and a career-high 13 rebounds – the most in a single-game this season for the Eagles and since RaySean Scott, Jr., had 14 against Florida International on Nov. 28, 2018. Rivers also added three blocked shots in his 23 minutes of playing time.
Sophomore Caleb Catto led the Eagles overall in scoring with 13 points, while junior Jalen Warren also notched 10 points alongside six rebounds and six assists. In just his second start of the year, freshman Cyrus Largie had eight points, six rebounds, two steals, an assist and a blocked shot.
"We fully believe if you keep working and give full effort, then good things will happen," said head coach Michael Fly. "I think all the work they've put in is starting to pay off and I'm happy to see Dakota and Cyrus get rewarded for the effort they gave tonight. We've had a lot of close games this year and had some good defensive performances, but have struggled shooting at points. We moved Tracy (Hector) into more of a play-maker spot because of his passing and that allowed us to keep more shooters in the game which I think really opened up the floor."
NJIT was led by Zach Cooks who scored 18 points and was the only Highlander to reach double figures.
The Eagles took a 35-24 lead into the intermission thanks to a 20-2 run spanning the latter half of the opening stanza. FGCU shot 14-of-28 from the field while holding the Highlanders to just 9-of-29 shooting. After NJIT scored 11 straight to go up 15-10, back-to-back triples from Rivers and Largie ignited the run for FGCU. Junior Sam Gagliardi's three-pointer at the 2:21 mark put the Eagles up 30-17 capping the 20-2 run which was the largest of the season. A quick five-point burst by NJIT after that closed the gap, but Catto added another triple with 16 seconds to go giving FGCU the 11 point lead at the break.
In the second half, FGCU was able to control a double-figure lead for most of the period. NJIT used a 5-to-2 spurt in the opening three minutes to cut its deficit to eight, 37-29, but back-to-back buckets by Rivers and Hardy put the Eagles back in control with the Highlanders unable to really push back down the stretch.
After a Hardy jumper with 4:16 left in the game, FGCU held NJIT scoreless for the balance while knocking down four straight free throws to give the final margin of victory.
Overall, FGCU held a 42-to-33 advantage in rebounding sparked by Rivers' performance. That limited the extra possessions for the Highlanders who scored their second fewest amount of points for a single game this season.
The first half shooting performance for the Eagles cooled in the second half to finish the game at 20-of-55 overall and 8-of-21 from deep, but defensively, FGCU held the Highlanders to just 25.5 percent (14-of-55) for the game including 5-of-26 after the intermission.
The win moved FGCU into a three-way tie for fifth-place in the ASUN standings. The Eagles are tied with both of next week's opponents - Jacksonville and North Alabama.
Rivers finished the game with 10 points and a career-high 13 rebounds – the most in a single-game this season for the Eagles and since RaySean Scott, Jr., had 14 against Florida International on Nov. 28, 2018. Rivers also added three blocked shots in his 23 minutes of playing time.
Sophomore Caleb Catto led the Eagles overall in scoring with 13 points, while junior Jalen Warren also notched 10 points alongside six rebounds and six assists. In just his second start of the year, freshman Cyrus Largie had eight points, six rebounds, two steals, an assist and a blocked shot.
"We fully believe if you keep working and give full effort, then good things will happen," said head coach Michael Fly. "I think all the work they've put in is starting to pay off and I'm happy to see Dakota and Cyrus get rewarded for the effort they gave tonight. We've had a lot of close games this year and had some good defensive performances, but have struggled shooting at points. We moved Tracy (Hector) into more of a play-maker spot because of his passing and that allowed us to keep more shooters in the game which I think really opened up the floor."
NJIT was led by Zach Cooks who scored 18 points and was the only Highlander to reach double figures.
The Eagles took a 35-24 lead into the intermission thanks to a 20-2 run spanning the latter half of the opening stanza. FGCU shot 14-of-28 from the field while holding the Highlanders to just 9-of-29 shooting. After NJIT scored 11 straight to go up 15-10, back-to-back triples from Rivers and Largie ignited the run for FGCU. Junior Sam Gagliardi's three-pointer at the 2:21 mark put the Eagles up 30-17 capping the 20-2 run which was the largest of the season. A quick five-point burst by NJIT after that closed the gap, but Catto added another triple with 16 seconds to go giving FGCU the 11 point lead at the break.
In the second half, FGCU was able to control a double-figure lead for most of the period. NJIT used a 5-to-2 spurt in the opening three minutes to cut its deficit to eight, 37-29, but back-to-back buckets by Rivers and Hardy put the Eagles back in control with the Highlanders unable to really push back down the stretch.
After a Hardy jumper with 4:16 left in the game, FGCU held NJIT scoreless for the balance while knocking down four straight free throws to give the final margin of victory.
Overall, FGCU held a 42-to-33 advantage in rebounding sparked by Rivers' performance. That limited the extra possessions for the Highlanders who scored their second fewest amount of points for a single game this season.
The first half shooting performance for the Eagles cooled in the second half to finish the game at 20-of-55 overall and 8-of-21 from deep, but defensively, FGCU held the Highlanders to just 25.5 percent (14-of-55) for the game including 5-of-26 after the intermission.
FGCU WBB @ NJIT Recap
The duo of redshirt senior Keri Jewett-Giles and redshirt junior Kerstie Phills led a balanced offensive attack as the No. 22 FGCU women's basketball team (27-2, 14-0) defeated NJIT 68-39 on the road in the Wellness and Events Center on Saturday for the program's 200th all-time regular season conference win.
"We had a lot of people contribute, which was nice," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "We got off to a good start and opened up a nice lead in the first quarter, which is how we want to come out and start the game. I thought a real bright spot today was Kerstie Phills, who got a number of steals and rebounded the ball. She was excellent."
Jewett-Giles led all players in scoring with 16 points while adding four rebounds, two assists and two steals. She tied redshirt junior Anja Marinkovic for the game-high in made 3-point field goals (4), as well. Marinkovic went 4-for-6 from long distance for 12 points to finish second on the team in scoring amidst a season-high 18 minutes off the bench. Phills chipped in 10 points, seven rebounds and a career-high six steals.
The victory represented FGCU's 200th all-time ASUN regular season victory in just its 216th game. They have won 16 straight overall as well as 42 in a row against conference competition, and they are 14-0 all-time against NJIT.
FGCU finished 18-for-51 from 3-point range, which was just one short of their season-high for makes as the Eagles produced 10 players with at least one make from long distance.
Senior Tytionia Adderly, who battled foul trouble against the Highlanders, had five rebounds to move into a tie for third place in ASUN history for career rebounds. The senior forward also passed Sarah Hansen (508, 2010-14) for the program's most career rebounds in A-SUN play.
For the second time this season, the fifth time against NJIT and the 21st time in program history, the Green and Blue held a conference opponent under 40 points.
With her 16-point performance, Jewett-Giles not only eclipsed 1,400 career points, but she moved within six points of becoming just the fourth player in the program's Division I era to produce a 500-point single-season, joining Kaneisha Atwater (569, 2015-16), Sarah Hansen (555, 2012-13) and Whitney Knight (504, 2014-15). She is also on pace to break the program's single-season scoring average record, and she eclipsed 900 points in her FGCU career alone, where she now sits at 903.
The Eagles have now made 350 3-pointers this season, which not only leads the nation, but allows them to become the 17th team in NCAA Division I history to reach that benchmark, which includes the fourth such instance from FGCU alone.
Up Next:
The Eagles, who have already clinched this year's regular season title and the top seed in the upcoming conference tournament, will conclude the regular season at home with games against North Alabama on Saturday and Jacksonville on Monday.
"We had a lot of people contribute, which was nice," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "We got off to a good start and opened up a nice lead in the first quarter, which is how we want to come out and start the game. I thought a real bright spot today was Kerstie Phills, who got a number of steals and rebounded the ball. She was excellent."
Jewett-Giles led all players in scoring with 16 points while adding four rebounds, two assists and two steals. She tied redshirt junior Anja Marinkovic for the game-high in made 3-point field goals (4), as well. Marinkovic went 4-for-6 from long distance for 12 points to finish second on the team in scoring amidst a season-high 18 minutes off the bench. Phills chipped in 10 points, seven rebounds and a career-high six steals.
The victory represented FGCU's 200th all-time ASUN regular season victory in just its 216th game. They have won 16 straight overall as well as 42 in a row against conference competition, and they are 14-0 all-time against NJIT.
FGCU finished 18-for-51 from 3-point range, which was just one short of their season-high for makes as the Eagles produced 10 players with at least one make from long distance.
Senior Tytionia Adderly, who battled foul trouble against the Highlanders, had five rebounds to move into a tie for third place in ASUN history for career rebounds. The senior forward also passed Sarah Hansen (508, 2010-14) for the program's most career rebounds in A-SUN play.
For the second time this season, the fifth time against NJIT and the 21st time in program history, the Green and Blue held a conference opponent under 40 points.
With her 16-point performance, Jewett-Giles not only eclipsed 1,400 career points, but she moved within six points of becoming just the fourth player in the program's Division I era to produce a 500-point single-season, joining Kaneisha Atwater (569, 2015-16), Sarah Hansen (555, 2012-13) and Whitney Knight (504, 2014-15). She is also on pace to break the program's single-season scoring average record, and she eclipsed 900 points in her FGCU career alone, where she now sits at 903.
The Eagles have now made 350 3-pointers this season, which not only leads the nation, but allows them to become the 17th team in NCAA Division I history to reach that benchmark, which includes the fourth such instance from FGCU alone.
Up Next:
The Eagles, who have already clinched this year's regular season title and the top seed in the upcoming conference tournament, will conclude the regular season at home with games against North Alabama on Saturday and Jacksonville on Monday.
FGCU WBB @ Kennesaw Recap
The duo of Keri Jewett-Giles and Davion Wingate registered a pair of 25-point performances to help lead the No. 22 FGCU women's basketball team (26-2, 13-0 A-SUN) to an 89-64 win over Kennesaw State (12-12, 5-7 A-SUN) on the road Monday. In doing so, the Eagles clinched the program's 10th ASUN regular season championship in outright fashion, which breaks a tie with FIU for the most in conference history, and the No. 1 seed in the A-SUN tournament.
"I thought we got off to a great start," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "We really moved the ball well and shot it exceptionally, which helped us get off to a good lead in the first quarter. Keri was exceptional, and Davion was very explosive offensively. Overall, it was a very good offensive performance."
"Give FGCU credit tonight. They shot the ball really well and came into the game prepared. They did not shoot well against Stetson in their last game and a good team is not going to shoot that poorly two games in a row," said Head Coach Agnus Berenato. "Gillian (Piccolino) played well again and I believe that she is a strong candidate for freshman of the week in the conference. I thought that she had some spots of brilliance tonight."
FGCU, which is now 19-2 all-time as a ranked Division I program (including 10-0 this year), became the first team nationally to reach 26 victories while stretching its overall win streak to 15, which is the seventh streak of at least that length in the program's Division I era. They have also won 41 straight against conference opponents, improved to 27-2 all-time against Kennesaw State and are now 135-4 against conference competition in the regular season since becoming a full-fledged Division I program in 2011-12.
In terms of championships, it is the program's third straight regular season title and 10th overall dating back to the first in 2009. Having also already clinched the program's 10th-consecutive season with at least 25 wins, the Green and Blue will host an A-SUN quarterfinal inside Alico Arena on March 7.
After scoring just 17 points combined in the previous two first quarters against Lipscomb and Stetson, the Eagles produced 3-pointers from Wingate and Nasrin Ulel on their first two possessions on Monday en route to opening up a 23-3 lead over the host Owls in the game's first six-and-a-half minutes. From there, FGCU cruised.
Playing in front of a hometown crowd, Wingate scored nine points in that opening quarter as FGCU shot 7-for-10 from 3-point range as a team over the first 10 minutes. She finished with 17 of her 25 in the first half alone, while moving past Kelsey Jacobson (1,263, 2008-12) for the eighth-most NCAA points scored by a player to wear the Green and Blue. In fact, she needs just 12 more to become the third player on this year's roster with 1,300 in a career.
Jewett-Giles recorded 16 of her points in the first half on 8-for-9 shooting. In fact, the Eagles went 21-for-31 (.677) from the field in the game's first 20 minutes and, with her first point of the game, Jewett-Giles surpassed Rosemarie Julien (862, 2016-18) for the most points by a two-year transfer in program history. She now has 887 in just under two seasons in Fort Myers, and she pushed her tally of 20-point performances in conference play up to seven this year.
In addition to their big offensive performances, Jewett-Giles and Wingate each added six rebounds while combining to shoot 21-for-32 from the field. Ulel chipped in 15 points on an efficient 5-for-9 finish from the field, while Kerstie Phills added 10 points.
Ulel moved into 11th and 12th-place, respectively, in conference history in 3-point field goals made and attempted on Monday. She is now tied with Kaneisha Atwater (1,312, 2013-16) for the third-most career points by an FGCU player in the Division I era.
Outside of those four, Tytionia Adderly tied her career-high with 10 assists while adding eight rebounds, six points and a game-high four steals. In doing so, she not only moved into third place on the program's career steals list, but she is now fourth in conference history in career rebounds with 1,122, and she became the first women's basketball player all-time in the A-SUN with 800 points, 1,000 rebounds, 300 assists and 200 steals in a career.
"Ty is just a really special player," Smesko said. "She's a good ball handler. She's a good passer, and she's one of the best rebounders in the country. She's just having an exceptional season."
Adderly needs six more rebounds to elevate into third place all-time in the A-SUN.
Notes:
With North Alabama's loss on Monday, FGCU sits five games ahead of everyone else in the conference, while there will be a highly-contested battle for the 2-7 seeds in the conference tournament.
"I thought we got off to a great start," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "We really moved the ball well and shot it exceptionally, which helped us get off to a good lead in the first quarter. Keri was exceptional, and Davion was very explosive offensively. Overall, it was a very good offensive performance."
"Give FGCU credit tonight. They shot the ball really well and came into the game prepared. They did not shoot well against Stetson in their last game and a good team is not going to shoot that poorly two games in a row," said Head Coach Agnus Berenato. "Gillian (Piccolino) played well again and I believe that she is a strong candidate for freshman of the week in the conference. I thought that she had some spots of brilliance tonight."
FGCU, which is now 19-2 all-time as a ranked Division I program (including 10-0 this year), became the first team nationally to reach 26 victories while stretching its overall win streak to 15, which is the seventh streak of at least that length in the program's Division I era. They have also won 41 straight against conference opponents, improved to 27-2 all-time against Kennesaw State and are now 135-4 against conference competition in the regular season since becoming a full-fledged Division I program in 2011-12.
In terms of championships, it is the program's third straight regular season title and 10th overall dating back to the first in 2009. Having also already clinched the program's 10th-consecutive season with at least 25 wins, the Green and Blue will host an A-SUN quarterfinal inside Alico Arena on March 7.
After scoring just 17 points combined in the previous two first quarters against Lipscomb and Stetson, the Eagles produced 3-pointers from Wingate and Nasrin Ulel on their first two possessions on Monday en route to opening up a 23-3 lead over the host Owls in the game's first six-and-a-half minutes. From there, FGCU cruised.
Playing in front of a hometown crowd, Wingate scored nine points in that opening quarter as FGCU shot 7-for-10 from 3-point range as a team over the first 10 minutes. She finished with 17 of her 25 in the first half alone, while moving past Kelsey Jacobson (1,263, 2008-12) for the eighth-most NCAA points scored by a player to wear the Green and Blue. In fact, she needs just 12 more to become the third player on this year's roster with 1,300 in a career.
Jewett-Giles recorded 16 of her points in the first half on 8-for-9 shooting. In fact, the Eagles went 21-for-31 (.677) from the field in the game's first 20 minutes and, with her first point of the game, Jewett-Giles surpassed Rosemarie Julien (862, 2016-18) for the most points by a two-year transfer in program history. She now has 887 in just under two seasons in Fort Myers, and she pushed her tally of 20-point performances in conference play up to seven this year.
In addition to their big offensive performances, Jewett-Giles and Wingate each added six rebounds while combining to shoot 21-for-32 from the field. Ulel chipped in 15 points on an efficient 5-for-9 finish from the field, while Kerstie Phills added 10 points.
Ulel moved into 11th and 12th-place, respectively, in conference history in 3-point field goals made and attempted on Monday. She is now tied with Kaneisha Atwater (1,312, 2013-16) for the third-most career points by an FGCU player in the Division I era.
Outside of those four, Tytionia Adderly tied her career-high with 10 assists while adding eight rebounds, six points and a game-high four steals. In doing so, she not only moved into third place on the program's career steals list, but she is now fourth in conference history in career rebounds with 1,122, and she became the first women's basketball player all-time in the A-SUN with 800 points, 1,000 rebounds, 300 assists and 200 steals in a career.
"Ty is just a really special player," Smesko said. "She's a good ball handler. She's a good passer, and she's one of the best rebounders in the country. She's just having an exceptional season."
Adderly needs six more rebounds to elevate into third place all-time in the A-SUN.
Notes:
With North Alabama's loss on Monday, FGCU sits five games ahead of everyone else in the conference, while there will be a highly-contested battle for the 2-7 seeds in the conference tournament.
FGCU MBB @ Lipscomb Recap
A total of 23 points for the Bison off 19 Eagles turnovers proved the difference maker on Saturday evening as Lipscomb (12-14, 7-6 A-SUN) defeated the FGCU men's basketball team (8-20, 5-8 A-SUN) 64-54 at Allen Arena.
"The turnovers tonight and the points Lipscomb scored off them were the name of the game," said head coach Michael Fly. "We actually defended pretty well holding them to 38-percent from the floor and, overall, I thought we shot pretty well. But you can't turn the ball over like we did and have them lead to points on the other end. We've got a week to regroup and to get ready for NJIT."
Sophomore Zach Scott led FGCU with 12 points, highlighted by four three pointers, while adding five rebounds. Junior Jalen Warren added 10 points, while freshman Cyrus Largie had career-highs in both points (9) and rebounds (8). Freshman Dakota Rivers also had nine points after hitting three second-half three points.
Lipscomb was led by Greg Jones who scored a game-high 24 points, while Ahsan Asadullah notched a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds. Miles Miller rounded out the top scorers with 11 points.
FGCU did secure a spot in the upcoming A-SUN Tournament field with a Kennesaw State loss earlier in the day. The Eagles now sit tied with North Alabama for sixth in the A-SUN standings while Lipscomb moved into fourth with the win.
Overall, the Bison held a plus-13 advantage in points off turnovers (23-to-10). Both teams hit 20 field goals in the game, but the free throw line also tilted in Lipscomb's favor. The Bison hit 17-of-21 from the charity stripe compared to 5-of-7 for FGCU.
The Eagles jumped out to an early 8-2 lead to start the game, but Lipscomb took advantage of FGCU turnovers to score 13 straight points. Eight of those came off turnovers putting the Bison up 15-8 at the 12 minute mark. A pair of three pointers from junior Sam Gagliardi and Scott pulled the Eagles within one, 15-14, three minutes later.
Lipscomb was able to stretch the lead back to seven twice after that but a jumper from Malik Hardy with 3:33 to go cut the deficit to 26-21. That proved the last field goal of the half for the Eagles. The Bison were held scoreless from the field, but did convert six free throw attempts over that stretch taking a 32-21 lead into the intermission.
In the second half, FGCU was able to trim the deficit to eight on a Scott three pointer in the first 90 seconds of play, but Lipscomb pushed the lead to 20 over the next seven minutes. The Eagles shaved seven points off the Bison lead to trail 50-37 at the 8:53 mark, but could not get any closer until a Largie lay-up with one second to go gave the final score.
"The turnovers tonight and the points Lipscomb scored off them were the name of the game," said head coach Michael Fly. "We actually defended pretty well holding them to 38-percent from the floor and, overall, I thought we shot pretty well. But you can't turn the ball over like we did and have them lead to points on the other end. We've got a week to regroup and to get ready for NJIT."
Sophomore Zach Scott led FGCU with 12 points, highlighted by four three pointers, while adding five rebounds. Junior Jalen Warren added 10 points, while freshman Cyrus Largie had career-highs in both points (9) and rebounds (8). Freshman Dakota Rivers also had nine points after hitting three second-half three points.
Lipscomb was led by Greg Jones who scored a game-high 24 points, while Ahsan Asadullah notched a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds. Miles Miller rounded out the top scorers with 11 points.
FGCU did secure a spot in the upcoming A-SUN Tournament field with a Kennesaw State loss earlier in the day. The Eagles now sit tied with North Alabama for sixth in the A-SUN standings while Lipscomb moved into fourth with the win.
Overall, the Bison held a plus-13 advantage in points off turnovers (23-to-10). Both teams hit 20 field goals in the game, but the free throw line also tilted in Lipscomb's favor. The Bison hit 17-of-21 from the charity stripe compared to 5-of-7 for FGCU.
The Eagles jumped out to an early 8-2 lead to start the game, but Lipscomb took advantage of FGCU turnovers to score 13 straight points. Eight of those came off turnovers putting the Bison up 15-8 at the 12 minute mark. A pair of three pointers from junior Sam Gagliardi and Scott pulled the Eagles within one, 15-14, three minutes later.
Lipscomb was able to stretch the lead back to seven twice after that but a jumper from Malik Hardy with 3:33 to go cut the deficit to 26-21. That proved the last field goal of the half for the Eagles. The Bison were held scoreless from the field, but did convert six free throw attempts over that stretch taking a 32-21 lead into the intermission.
In the second half, FGCU was able to trim the deficit to eight on a Scott three pointer in the first 90 seconds of play, but Lipscomb pushed the lead to 20 over the next seven minutes. The Eagles shaved seven points off the Bison lead to trail 50-37 at the 8:53 mark, but could not get any closer until a Largie lay-up with one second to go gave the final score.
FGCU WBB @ Lipscomb Recap
Senior Tytionia Adderly registered a season-high 28 points on a career-high seven 3-pointers to lead the No. 22 FGCU women's basketball team (25-2, 12-0 A-SUN) to a come-from-behind 78-45 win over Lipscomb (5-20, 2-10 A-SUN) on the road Saturday.
"I thought Lipscomb came out and played a great first half," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "Their pace was really good. We made defensive mistakes, and they made us pay for all of them. It made us play at a different level in the second half. I'm glad that we raised our energy and execution levels, and we were able to play the second half the way we are capable of playing."
With the victory, the Eagles clinched at least a share of their third consecutive A-SUN regular season championship. FGCU has won 14 straight overall and 40 in a row against conference opponents, and they'll get their first chance to win the regular season title outright and claim the top seed in the A-SUN tournament on the road Monday at Kennesaw State.
Furthermore, the Green and Blue also clinched the program's 10th-straight season with at least 25 wins, and they improved to 27-0 all-time against Lipscomb.
Adderly began to resuscitate an offense that started the game 1-for-14 from the field and trailed 17-5 by splashing a 3-pointer from the right wing with 13 seconds left in the opening quarter. She went on to add eight more to open the second quarter en route to 11 straight points all by herself to pull the Eagles within one.
After Lipscomb pushed its lead back up to six, senior Nasrin Ulel hit a 3-pointer and Adderly scored five more to help FGCU take a 30-29 lead into the half.
The Eagles, who outscored the Bisons 22-12 on 5-for-10 shooting from long distance in the second quarter, produced a 13-2 advantage in points off turnovers in the half. Adderly finished with 17 points and etched a new career-high in made 3-pointers in the first 20 minutes alone.
The Green and Blue proceeded to open the second half with 16 consecutive points, highlighted by seven from redshirt senior Davion Wingate, and pushed their lead to as many as 18 in the quarter on a 3-pointer from redshirt sophomore Tyra Cox in the final seconds.
In the final frame, FGCU tacked on six of the team's 17 3-pointers as redshirt sophomore Emma List, redshirt junior Anja Marinkovic and sophomore Tanner Bryant all joined the action from long distance.
In addition to her 28 points, Adderly also added a team-high eight rebounds, while redshirt senior Keri Jewett-Giles had 13 points, four assists and three steals. Ulel chipped in a game-high five assists, and Cox had a game-high four steals in 15 minutes off the bench.
Notes:
Ulel tied her current assistant coach Shannon Murphy (219, 2007-11) for 12th-place on the A-SUN's career list in Saturday's win. It also represents the fourth-most in program history.
With her eight rebounds, Adderly moved up to sixth-place on the A-SUN's all-time list with 1,114. She passed Sametria Gideon (Kennesaw State, 1,111, 2009-13), Felecia Autry (Campbell, 1994-98, 1,112) and April Cromartie (Campbell, 1998-2002, 1,113) on Saturday. She now needs six more to move up to fourth place.
The Eagles extended their streak of consecutive seasons with at least 12 wins in conference play to 13, which includes every season they've been in the A-SUN. In fact, over that span, all other members who have been in the conference since then have tallied a total of seven combined such seasons.
By clinching at least a share of the A-SUN regular season championship, FGCU becomes the first team in A-SUN women's basketball history (past or present) to win 10 regular season conference titles. They were previously tied with FIU at nine, and they can make it 10-for-10 in outright championships on Monday at Kennesaw State.
Wingate's seven points against Lipscomb allowed her to tie Kelsey Jacobson (1,263, 2008-12) for the eighth-most NCAA points scored by a player to wear the Green and Blue. Ulel needs three more to reach 1,300 and become the fourth player in the program's Division I era to reach that milestone.
Jewett-Giles, who remains in fifth-place on the aforementioned list with 1,369 points, tied Rosemarie Julien (862, 2016-18) for the most points ever scored by a two-year transfer in program history. She produced her 25th double-digit scoring effort of the season against Lipscomb.
Adderly's 20-plus point effort was the fifth of her career, including her second this year. She needs two more steals to surpass Courtney Chihil (199, 2008-12) for third-place on the program's career list.
FGCU 14-game winning streak ties the 2010-11 team for the seventh-longest in the program's Division I er
"I thought Lipscomb came out and played a great first half," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "Their pace was really good. We made defensive mistakes, and they made us pay for all of them. It made us play at a different level in the second half. I'm glad that we raised our energy and execution levels, and we were able to play the second half the way we are capable of playing."
With the victory, the Eagles clinched at least a share of their third consecutive A-SUN regular season championship. FGCU has won 14 straight overall and 40 in a row against conference opponents, and they'll get their first chance to win the regular season title outright and claim the top seed in the A-SUN tournament on the road Monday at Kennesaw State.
Furthermore, the Green and Blue also clinched the program's 10th-straight season with at least 25 wins, and they improved to 27-0 all-time against Lipscomb.
Adderly began to resuscitate an offense that started the game 1-for-14 from the field and trailed 17-5 by splashing a 3-pointer from the right wing with 13 seconds left in the opening quarter. She went on to add eight more to open the second quarter en route to 11 straight points all by herself to pull the Eagles within one.
After Lipscomb pushed its lead back up to six, senior Nasrin Ulel hit a 3-pointer and Adderly scored five more to help FGCU take a 30-29 lead into the half.
The Eagles, who outscored the Bisons 22-12 on 5-for-10 shooting from long distance in the second quarter, produced a 13-2 advantage in points off turnovers in the half. Adderly finished with 17 points and etched a new career-high in made 3-pointers in the first 20 minutes alone.
The Green and Blue proceeded to open the second half with 16 consecutive points, highlighted by seven from redshirt senior Davion Wingate, and pushed their lead to as many as 18 in the quarter on a 3-pointer from redshirt sophomore Tyra Cox in the final seconds.
In the final frame, FGCU tacked on six of the team's 17 3-pointers as redshirt sophomore Emma List, redshirt junior Anja Marinkovic and sophomore Tanner Bryant all joined the action from long distance.
In addition to her 28 points, Adderly also added a team-high eight rebounds, while redshirt senior Keri Jewett-Giles had 13 points, four assists and three steals. Ulel chipped in a game-high five assists, and Cox had a game-high four steals in 15 minutes off the bench.
Notes:
Ulel tied her current assistant coach Shannon Murphy (219, 2007-11) for 12th-place on the A-SUN's career list in Saturday's win. It also represents the fourth-most in program history.
With her eight rebounds, Adderly moved up to sixth-place on the A-SUN's all-time list with 1,114. She passed Sametria Gideon (Kennesaw State, 1,111, 2009-13), Felecia Autry (Campbell, 1994-98, 1,112) and April Cromartie (Campbell, 1998-2002, 1,113) on Saturday. She now needs six more to move up to fourth place.
The Eagles extended their streak of consecutive seasons with at least 12 wins in conference play to 13, which includes every season they've been in the A-SUN. In fact, over that span, all other members who have been in the conference since then have tallied a total of seven combined such seasons.
By clinching at least a share of the A-SUN regular season championship, FGCU becomes the first team in A-SUN women's basketball history (past or present) to win 10 regular season conference titles. They were previously tied with FIU at nine, and they can make it 10-for-10 in outright championships on Monday at Kennesaw State.
Wingate's seven points against Lipscomb allowed her to tie Kelsey Jacobson (1,263, 2008-12) for the eighth-most NCAA points scored by a player to wear the Green and Blue. Ulel needs three more to reach 1,300 and become the fourth player in the program's Division I era to reach that milestone.
Jewett-Giles, who remains in fifth-place on the aforementioned list with 1,369 points, tied Rosemarie Julien (862, 2016-18) for the most points ever scored by a two-year transfer in program history. She produced her 25th double-digit scoring effort of the season against Lipscomb.
Adderly's 20-plus point effort was the fifth of her career, including her second this year. She needs two more steals to surpass Courtney Chihil (199, 2008-12) for third-place on the program's career list.
FGCU 14-game winning streak ties the 2010-11 team for the seventh-longest in the program's Division I er
FGCU WBB vs Stetson Recap
Redshirt junior Anja Marinkovic provided 16 big points off the bench, while senior Tytionia Adderly pulled down a single-game record 21 rebounds as the No. 24 FGCU women's basketball team (24-2, 11-0 A-SUN) pulled out a come-from-behind 67-54 win over Stetson (10-13, 4-6 A-SUN) inside Alico Arena on Monday night.
"We got off to a really slow start, especially offensively," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "I thought when we brought Anja in was the big spark. She hit a bunch of threes in a short period of time. She was running the floor hard, creating space for people. She got an opportunity tonight and made the most of it. She was huge for us. Other than that, we didn't shoot it great tonight, but Ty played great defense and was an exceptional rebounder, so we got some extra possessions and some extra shots. We just didn't shoot it very well."
As a team, FGCU missed the first nine shots from the field before redshirt senior Keri Jewett-Giles made a 3-pointer with 5:25 left, but the drought resumed as the Eagles finished 2-for-20 from the field and trailed 15-9 through the first 10 minutes.
Enter Marinkovic, who made three consecutive shots from long distance over a two-minute stretch to highlight a 14-0 run that gave the Green and Blue a 23-17 lead with 4:22 left in the half. She added a steal and a fast break layup a short time later to make it 27-21, and after Stetson trimmed its deficit to just two with less than 10 seconds left, the junior guard buried a fast break 3-pointer to give FGCU a 30-25 lead at the break.
The Eagles scored the first three points of the second half, but Stetson answered with a 10-0 run, capped by a 3-pointer from Kimia Carter, to take a 35-33 lead with 5:33 left in the third. Jewett-Giles immediately responded with a layup on the next possession, and Marinkovic tacked on a reverse layup for the lead.
The Hatters took the lead back (40-39) with 2:31 left in the quarter on a Jamiya Turner layup, but redshirt sophomore Tyra Cox hit a pair of clutch 3-pointers, including one at the buzzer, sandwiched around a second-chance layup by Adderly, as the Eagles took a 47-42 lead into the final quarter.
After falling behind by one on the Turner layup, FGCU completed an 18-2 run that allowed them to open up a 57-42 lead with 6:21 left. From there, the Eagles never led by fewer than double-digits and pushed its lead to as many as 16 following a free throw from redshirt sophomore Emma List in the final minute.
Jewett-Giles finished with a game-high 21 points while finishing 7-for-7 from the foul line and adding three rebounds, two assists and two steals. It was her sixth 20-point effort in conference play, her 10th such performance of the season and the 17th of her career.
Marinkovic tallied 16 on 6-for-7 shooting, including 4-for-5 from long distance, over 15 minutes off the bench, while senior Nasrin Ulel tacked on 14 points, seven rebounds and two assists.
FGCU, which snapped Stetson's three-game winning streak and became the first team nationally to reach 24 wins, pushed its overall winning streak to 13 straight and has won 39 consecutive games against conference teams. They are 27-4 all-time against Stetson, which is the Green and Blue's most wins against any A-SUN team.
The Eagles now need either one more win or another loss by either Jacksonville, North Florida or Liberty to clinch a top four seed and a home quarterfinal game in the A-SUN tournament.
Notes:
Jewett-Giles now has 849 career points, surpassing Chelsea Lyles (839, 2008-10) for the second-most by a two-year transfer in program history. The only player left ahead of her is Rosemarie Julien, who had 862 from 2016-18.
Adderly joined redshirt junior Kerstie Phills, who had one 20-rebound game in her time at Wagner, as one of two players on this year's roster with at least one such performance in her career.
The Eagles, behind a 10-for-35 performance from long distance on Monday, reached 300 3-pointers on the season exactly. It is the program's 11th consecutive season reaching that benchmark.
The team's 13-game winning streak is one shy of tying for the program's seventh-longest in the Division I era. Monday's victory was their 200th Division I victory inside Alico Arena.
Ulel surpassed Kaneisha Atwater (457, 2013-16) for the third-most career field goals in program history on Monday. She has 458, while she only needs eight more points to become the fourth player in program history to reach 1,300. On top of that, she needs just two more 3-pointers to pass Shannon Murphy (219, 2007-11) for the fourth-most 3-pointers in program history.
Adderly passed Albena Branzova (FIU, 1991-95, 1,092) for ninth place on the A-SUN's career rebounds list. She now has 1,106, and she's just 36 shy of jumping all the way up to second place as only 30 rebounds separate second through eighth place.
"We got off to a really slow start, especially offensively," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "I thought when we brought Anja in was the big spark. She hit a bunch of threes in a short period of time. She was running the floor hard, creating space for people. She got an opportunity tonight and made the most of it. She was huge for us. Other than that, we didn't shoot it great tonight, but Ty played great defense and was an exceptional rebounder, so we got some extra possessions and some extra shots. We just didn't shoot it very well."
As a team, FGCU missed the first nine shots from the field before redshirt senior Keri Jewett-Giles made a 3-pointer with 5:25 left, but the drought resumed as the Eagles finished 2-for-20 from the field and trailed 15-9 through the first 10 minutes.
Enter Marinkovic, who made three consecutive shots from long distance over a two-minute stretch to highlight a 14-0 run that gave the Green and Blue a 23-17 lead with 4:22 left in the half. She added a steal and a fast break layup a short time later to make it 27-21, and after Stetson trimmed its deficit to just two with less than 10 seconds left, the junior guard buried a fast break 3-pointer to give FGCU a 30-25 lead at the break.
The Eagles scored the first three points of the second half, but Stetson answered with a 10-0 run, capped by a 3-pointer from Kimia Carter, to take a 35-33 lead with 5:33 left in the third. Jewett-Giles immediately responded with a layup on the next possession, and Marinkovic tacked on a reverse layup for the lead.
The Hatters took the lead back (40-39) with 2:31 left in the quarter on a Jamiya Turner layup, but redshirt sophomore Tyra Cox hit a pair of clutch 3-pointers, including one at the buzzer, sandwiched around a second-chance layup by Adderly, as the Eagles took a 47-42 lead into the final quarter.
After falling behind by one on the Turner layup, FGCU completed an 18-2 run that allowed them to open up a 57-42 lead with 6:21 left. From there, the Eagles never led by fewer than double-digits and pushed its lead to as many as 16 following a free throw from redshirt sophomore Emma List in the final minute.
Jewett-Giles finished with a game-high 21 points while finishing 7-for-7 from the foul line and adding three rebounds, two assists and two steals. It was her sixth 20-point effort in conference play, her 10th such performance of the season and the 17th of her career.
Marinkovic tallied 16 on 6-for-7 shooting, including 4-for-5 from long distance, over 15 minutes off the bench, while senior Nasrin Ulel tacked on 14 points, seven rebounds and two assists.
FGCU, which snapped Stetson's three-game winning streak and became the first team nationally to reach 24 wins, pushed its overall winning streak to 13 straight and has won 39 consecutive games against conference teams. They are 27-4 all-time against Stetson, which is the Green and Blue's most wins against any A-SUN team.
The Eagles now need either one more win or another loss by either Jacksonville, North Florida or Liberty to clinch a top four seed and a home quarterfinal game in the A-SUN tournament.
Notes:
Jewett-Giles now has 849 career points, surpassing Chelsea Lyles (839, 2008-10) for the second-most by a two-year transfer in program history. The only player left ahead of her is Rosemarie Julien, who had 862 from 2016-18.
Adderly joined redshirt junior Kerstie Phills, who had one 20-rebound game in her time at Wagner, as one of two players on this year's roster with at least one such performance in her career.
The Eagles, behind a 10-for-35 performance from long distance on Monday, reached 300 3-pointers on the season exactly. It is the program's 11th consecutive season reaching that benchmark.
The team's 13-game winning streak is one shy of tying for the program's seventh-longest in the Division I era. Monday's victory was their 200th Division I victory inside Alico Arena.
Ulel surpassed Kaneisha Atwater (457, 2013-16) for the third-most career field goals in program history on Monday. She has 458, while she only needs eight more points to become the fourth player in program history to reach 1,300. On top of that, she needs just two more 3-pointers to pass Shannon Murphy (219, 2007-11) for the fourth-most 3-pointers in program history.
Adderly passed Albena Branzova (FIU, 1991-95, 1,092) for ninth place on the A-SUN's career rebounds list. She now has 1,106, and she's just 36 shy of jumping all the way up to second place as only 30 rebounds separate second through eighth place.
FGCU WBB @ JU Recap
Senior Nasrin Ulel produced a career-high 36 points to tie the program's single-game scoring record and lead the No. 24 FGCU women's basketball team (22-2, 9-0 A-SUN) to an 81-68 win over Jacksonville (13-9, 5-4 A-SUN) on the road in Historic Swisher Gymnasium on Monday.
The Green and Blue pushed their winning streak to 11 straight overall and 37 in a row in conference play. They are 26-3 all-time against Jacksonville and 15-2 as a ranked Division I team.
"We beat a really good team," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "Jacksonville is really aggressive and forces a lot of turnovers. They're hard to guard off the dribble, and they have some quick, athletic kids. I thought in the first half, we moved the ball really well. We got a lot of good shots, which gave us a good lead. We didn't finish very strong in the fourth quarter, but give Jacksonville credit for fighting all the way to the end."
Ulel finished 11-for-16 from the field, including 5-for-9 from the 3-point line. She also made 9-of-10 from the foul line while adding seven rebounds, two blocks and one steal. In the first half alone, she had 22 points, and she had 34 through three quarters. In doing so, she tied Rosemarie Julien's single-game record of 36 set at Stetson on Jan. 7, 2017.
"Nas had it going," Smesko said. "She got hot. We didn't hit many threes in the first half or shoot a very good percentage, but she had several. Then, she was able to get to the rim, and she was able to get to the foul line. They had good defenders on her, but she was just really, really good tonight."
The Eagles jumped out to 12-0 lead while holding Jacksonville scoreless for the game's first four and a half minutes. Ulel and Ashli O'Neal each had nine points in the opening quarter, while a trio of players drew charges over the first 13 minutes.
Despite struggling from 3-point range, FGCU shot 14-for-19 from inside long distance in the first half as both teams shot above 50 percent from the field. Ulel capped an 8-0 run early in the second quarter with a 3-pointer that gave the Eagles a 39-21 lead with 7:34 left in the half. Toward the end of the third quarter, she took an inbound pass from Tytionia Adderly and finished a layup to push her point total to 34.
In the final quarter, FGCU shot just 2-for-10 and had only five points after scoring at least 24 in each of the first three quarters. Despite that, Ulel made a layup with 1:50 left in the game on her only shot attempt of the quarter, and she added four key rebounds in the frame.
Outside of Ulel, Keri Jewett-Giles added 16 points, five steals, four rebounds and four assists on 7-for-16 shooting. O'Neal added 11 points over 25 minutes, while Adderly had a game-high 11 rebounds (six offensive) along with five assists, four points and two blocks.
FGCU will be back home on Saturday against North Florida at 4 p.m.
Notes:
Ulel is the third Eagle to score at least 30 points in a game this year, joining Jewett-Giles and Davion Wingate. Furthermore, with her five 3-pointers, she pushed her career total to 210 and sits in 13th-place on the A-SUN's all-time career list after surpassing three players on Monday.
The Green and Blue pushed their winning streak to 11 straight overall and 37 in a row in conference play. They are 26-3 all-time against Jacksonville and 15-2 as a ranked Division I team.
"We beat a really good team," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "Jacksonville is really aggressive and forces a lot of turnovers. They're hard to guard off the dribble, and they have some quick, athletic kids. I thought in the first half, we moved the ball really well. We got a lot of good shots, which gave us a good lead. We didn't finish very strong in the fourth quarter, but give Jacksonville credit for fighting all the way to the end."
Ulel finished 11-for-16 from the field, including 5-for-9 from the 3-point line. She also made 9-of-10 from the foul line while adding seven rebounds, two blocks and one steal. In the first half alone, she had 22 points, and she had 34 through three quarters. In doing so, she tied Rosemarie Julien's single-game record of 36 set at Stetson on Jan. 7, 2017.
"Nas had it going," Smesko said. "She got hot. We didn't hit many threes in the first half or shoot a very good percentage, but she had several. Then, she was able to get to the rim, and she was able to get to the foul line. They had good defenders on her, but she was just really, really good tonight."
The Eagles jumped out to 12-0 lead while holding Jacksonville scoreless for the game's first four and a half minutes. Ulel and Ashli O'Neal each had nine points in the opening quarter, while a trio of players drew charges over the first 13 minutes.
Despite struggling from 3-point range, FGCU shot 14-for-19 from inside long distance in the first half as both teams shot above 50 percent from the field. Ulel capped an 8-0 run early in the second quarter with a 3-pointer that gave the Eagles a 39-21 lead with 7:34 left in the half. Toward the end of the third quarter, she took an inbound pass from Tytionia Adderly and finished a layup to push her point total to 34.
In the final quarter, FGCU shot just 2-for-10 and had only five points after scoring at least 24 in each of the first three quarters. Despite that, Ulel made a layup with 1:50 left in the game on her only shot attempt of the quarter, and she added four key rebounds in the frame.
Outside of Ulel, Keri Jewett-Giles added 16 points, five steals, four rebounds and four assists on 7-for-16 shooting. O'Neal added 11 points over 25 minutes, while Adderly had a game-high 11 rebounds (six offensive) along with five assists, four points and two blocks.
FGCU will be back home on Saturday against North Florida at 4 p.m.
Notes:
Ulel is the third Eagle to score at least 30 points in a game this year, joining Jewett-Giles and Davion Wingate. Furthermore, with her five 3-pointers, she pushed her career total to 210 and sits in 13th-place on the A-SUN's all-time career list after surpassing three players on Monday.
FGCU MBB @ JU Recap
Junior Jalen Warren's floater with three seconds to go proved the game-winner as the FGCU men's basketball team (7-16, 4-4 A-SUN) picked up a key road win, 63-61, at Jacksonville (10-13, 3-5 A-SUN) on Thursday night at Swisher Gymnasium. The win places FGCU in a tie for fifth alongside NJIT in the A-SUN standings.
For Warren, the game-winner was his second of the season as he tallied 18 points in the game. His first game-winning shot of the season came against FAU at Alico Arena in overtime and was the No. 1 Play of the Day on ESPN's SportsCenter. The guard was particularly effective in the second half where he scored 12 of his points including the first five for FGCU out of the break.
Sophomore Caleb Catto led all scorers with 20 points for his third-straight game with 20-or-more. That marked the first time since Brandon Goodwin, now with the Atlanta Hawks, did so during the 2017-18 season (2/15, 2/17, 2/22). Catto notched 23 points at North Alabama and 21 points against NJIT bring his scoring average in A-SUN games this season up to 16.0 per contest.
"I thought tonight was a really gutsy and gritty game by our guys," said head coach Michael Fly. "Jacksonville is a tough, tough team and hard to beat when the fans in Swisher Gym get going. I was proud of the guys for continuing to fight after JU cut down our 10 point lead. Those were games we hadn't won recently. We are certainly seeing positive signs here and, as we all know, if you can play the right way at the right time of year, special things can happen."
In addition to Warren and Catto, sophomore Zach Scott scored 11 points in his first start in eight games. Junior Brian Thomas led all players with a season-high nine rebounds, while senior Tracey Hector added eight boards.
Overall, the Eagles hit 23-of-59 field goals including 10-of-28 from beyond the arc. Both Catto and Scott had three triples each. The Dolphins hit 23-of-57 going 8-of-21 from long range.
Jacksonville was led by 19 points from Destin Barnes and 10 points from David Bell.
The Eagles took a 32-28 lead into intermission after Warren hit a floater with six seconds left in the first half – part of a five-point swing to close the stanza.
In the second half, FGCU extended its lead to as many as 10, 52-42, at the 8:42 mark on a Catto triple. The Dolphins then scored 11-straight in a two-minute spurt to regain the lead. A Catto jumper followed by a Warren three and another Catto score in the paint re-extended the Eagles lead to 59-53 with 2:45 to go.
Jacksonville pulled back even to tie the game 61-61 with 17 seconds remaining. Warren's floater in the paint on the ensuing possession put the Eagles back on top. The Dolphins had a chance to win at the buzzer, but Deanthony McCallum's three-point shot from the wing was just off the mark as the Eagles took the 63-61 win.
Up Next:
The Eagles will stay on the road this weekend with a Saturday trip to Liberty which is tied for the league lead. Tip-off against the Flames is set for 7 PM and the game will be streamed live on ESPN+.
For Warren, the game-winner was his second of the season as he tallied 18 points in the game. His first game-winning shot of the season came against FAU at Alico Arena in overtime and was the No. 1 Play of the Day on ESPN's SportsCenter. The guard was particularly effective in the second half where he scored 12 of his points including the first five for FGCU out of the break.
Sophomore Caleb Catto led all scorers with 20 points for his third-straight game with 20-or-more. That marked the first time since Brandon Goodwin, now with the Atlanta Hawks, did so during the 2017-18 season (2/15, 2/17, 2/22). Catto notched 23 points at North Alabama and 21 points against NJIT bring his scoring average in A-SUN games this season up to 16.0 per contest.
"I thought tonight was a really gutsy and gritty game by our guys," said head coach Michael Fly. "Jacksonville is a tough, tough team and hard to beat when the fans in Swisher Gym get going. I was proud of the guys for continuing to fight after JU cut down our 10 point lead. Those were games we hadn't won recently. We are certainly seeing positive signs here and, as we all know, if you can play the right way at the right time of year, special things can happen."
In addition to Warren and Catto, sophomore Zach Scott scored 11 points in his first start in eight games. Junior Brian Thomas led all players with a season-high nine rebounds, while senior Tracey Hector added eight boards.
Overall, the Eagles hit 23-of-59 field goals including 10-of-28 from beyond the arc. Both Catto and Scott had three triples each. The Dolphins hit 23-of-57 going 8-of-21 from long range.
Jacksonville was led by 19 points from Destin Barnes and 10 points from David Bell.
The Eagles took a 32-28 lead into intermission after Warren hit a floater with six seconds left in the first half – part of a five-point swing to close the stanza.
In the second half, FGCU extended its lead to as many as 10, 52-42, at the 8:42 mark on a Catto triple. The Dolphins then scored 11-straight in a two-minute spurt to regain the lead. A Catto jumper followed by a Warren three and another Catto score in the paint re-extended the Eagles lead to 59-53 with 2:45 to go.
Jacksonville pulled back even to tie the game 61-61 with 17 seconds remaining. Warren's floater in the paint on the ensuing possession put the Eagles back on top. The Dolphins had a chance to win at the buzzer, but Deanthony McCallum's three-point shot from the wing was just off the mark as the Eagles took the 63-61 win.
Up Next:
The Eagles will stay on the road this weekend with a Saturday trip to Liberty which is tied for the league lead. Tip-off against the Flames is set for 7 PM and the game will be streamed live on ESPN+.
FGCU WBB vs NJIT Recap
Redshirt senior Keri Jewett-Giles led all scorers with 22 points as the No. 28 FGCU women's basketball team (20-2, 7-0 A-SUN) defeated NJIT (3-16, 0-6 A-SUN) on Saturday inside Alico Arena. The Eagles have won nine straight overall and pushed the nation's third-longest conference winning streak to 35 straight.
"I was really pleased with our defensive intensity in the first quarter," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "We definitely picked it up a notch and made a lot of defensive plays. We didn't give up very many good looks at the basket. We're trying to increase how long we're able to keep that type of intensity going, but that was a step in the right direction."
The Eagles not only forced a season-high in turnovers against a Division I opponent this year with 27, but they held an A-SUN opponent under 40 points for the 20th time since joining the conference in 2007-08. Three of the past four such performances have come against NJIT. Furthermore, the team's three points allowed in the first quarter is tied for the fifth-fewest allowed in any quarter in program history, and it was the second fewest given up in an opening quarter.
With the victory, FGCU clinched its 16th-straight season with at least 20 victories. Now, they'll look to extend their streak of seasons with at least 25 victories to 10 straight.
Jewett-Giles finished with 22 points on 9-for-14 shooting while adding four rebounds, four assists and four steals. It was her eighth 20-point effort of the season and the 15th of her career. She now has 1,277 points in her NCAA career, which moves her past Kelsey Jacobson (1,263, 2008-12) for sixth-most by a player to wear the Green and Blue.
Redshirt senior Davion Wingate added 14 points on 6-for-9 shooting off the bench. Similar to Jewett-Giles, she also moved up the NCAA scoring list among players to wear the Green and Blue, reaching 1,241 and surpassing Taylor Gradinjan (1,234, 2012-18) for eighth-place.
Redshirt junior Kerstie Phills and redshirt sophomore Emma List added nine and eight points, respectively. For List, it was the most points she has scored in an FGCU uniform. Senior Tytionia Adderly tied List for the team-high in rebounds with five and added four steals. She also made her 112th career start, breaking a tie for third-most in program history with Courtney Chihil (111, 2008-12).
After the first 10 minutes in which FGCU outscored NJIT 18-3, the Green and Blue took a 20-point lead for the first time following a three-point play from Wingate with 50 seconds left in the half. A 51-24 game through three, the two teams combined for 46 points in the final frame.
That late scoring surge allowed 12 players to reach the scoring column, and the Green and Blue finished 11-for-36 from 3-point range, which was the team's 14th game with double-digit makes this year.
FGCU produced a new-look starting lineup as redshirt senior Ashli O'Neal and redshirt sophomore Tyra Cox made their first starts of the season. O'Neal scored five points and contributed a pair of steals as the Eagles improved to 10-1 in Alico Arena this year, improving their all-time record at home to 276-20 since 2002-03.
The Eagles will now have a week to prepare for a tough road matchup against Liberty next Saturday at 2 p.m.
"I was really pleased with our defensive intensity in the first quarter," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "We definitely picked it up a notch and made a lot of defensive plays. We didn't give up very many good looks at the basket. We're trying to increase how long we're able to keep that type of intensity going, but that was a step in the right direction."
The Eagles not only forced a season-high in turnovers against a Division I opponent this year with 27, but they held an A-SUN opponent under 40 points for the 20th time since joining the conference in 2007-08. Three of the past four such performances have come against NJIT. Furthermore, the team's three points allowed in the first quarter is tied for the fifth-fewest allowed in any quarter in program history, and it was the second fewest given up in an opening quarter.
With the victory, FGCU clinched its 16th-straight season with at least 20 victories. Now, they'll look to extend their streak of seasons with at least 25 victories to 10 straight.
Jewett-Giles finished with 22 points on 9-for-14 shooting while adding four rebounds, four assists and four steals. It was her eighth 20-point effort of the season and the 15th of her career. She now has 1,277 points in her NCAA career, which moves her past Kelsey Jacobson (1,263, 2008-12) for sixth-most by a player to wear the Green and Blue.
Redshirt senior Davion Wingate added 14 points on 6-for-9 shooting off the bench. Similar to Jewett-Giles, she also moved up the NCAA scoring list among players to wear the Green and Blue, reaching 1,241 and surpassing Taylor Gradinjan (1,234, 2012-18) for eighth-place.
Redshirt junior Kerstie Phills and redshirt sophomore Emma List added nine and eight points, respectively. For List, it was the most points she has scored in an FGCU uniform. Senior Tytionia Adderly tied List for the team-high in rebounds with five and added four steals. She also made her 112th career start, breaking a tie for third-most in program history with Courtney Chihil (111, 2008-12).
After the first 10 minutes in which FGCU outscored NJIT 18-3, the Green and Blue took a 20-point lead for the first time following a three-point play from Wingate with 50 seconds left in the half. A 51-24 game through three, the two teams combined for 46 points in the final frame.
That late scoring surge allowed 12 players to reach the scoring column, and the Green and Blue finished 11-for-36 from 3-point range, which was the team's 14th game with double-digit makes this year.
FGCU produced a new-look starting lineup as redshirt senior Ashli O'Neal and redshirt sophomore Tyra Cox made their first starts of the season. O'Neal scored five points and contributed a pair of steals as the Eagles improved to 10-1 in Alico Arena this year, improving their all-time record at home to 276-20 since 2002-03.
The Eagles will now have a week to prepare for a tough road matchup against Liberty next Saturday at 2 p.m.
FGCU WBB vs Kennesaw State Recap
Redshirt senior Keri Jewett-Giles produced her second-straight 20-point effort to lead the FGCU women's basketball team (19-2, 6-0 A-SUN) to an 80-63 win over Kennesaw State (8-8, 2-3 A-SUN) inside Alico Arena on Monday.
With the win, the Eagles became the first team nationally to reach 19 wins, stretched its overall winning streak to eight and have won 34 consecutive games against A-SUN competition. They are now 26-2 all-time against Kennesaw State with wins in 20 straight. FGCU will be back in action Saturday at home against NJIT.
"We got off to a good start," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "When we were moving the ball and sharing it, we were getting really good shots and everyone was contributing on the offensive end. I thought our defense in the first quarter and a half was really good. We were helping one another and playing with a lot of intensity. The second half, I give Kennesaw credit. They kept fighting, and I didn't feel like we responded quite as well, but it was a good win, and I was happy to see Ashli get her 1,000th point."
On the same night her teammate senior Tytionia Adderly was honored prior to the game for becoming the first player in program history to reach 1,000 career rebounds, redshirt senior Ashli O'Neal became the 18th player to reach 1,000 points while wearing the Green and Blue with a left-handed layup just minutes into the second quarter. She finished with eight points and four assists as the Eagles are now the only team in the nation with four 1,000-point guards. FGCU also joined Oregon as one of only two teams nationally with four at any position.
Jewett-Giles, meanwhile, recorded a team-high 20 points, a game-high seven assists, a team-high three steals and three rebounds while producing her third 20-point effort over six conference games this year. Redshirt senior Davion Wingate added 14 points, four assists and two rebounds on 6-for-8 shooting over 22 minutes, while senior Nasrin Ulel chipped in 11 points and two steals on 3-for-6 shooting from long distance.
Two others also tallied nine points apiece as Adderly registered nine points, nine rebounds and three assists, while redshirt junior Kerstie Phills had nine points, seven rebounds and two steals. For Adderly, it was the fifth time this year she fell just short of double-digits with nine rebounds.
After shooting just 13-for-46 from long distance as a team over the past two games combined, nine different Eagles registered a make as the team finished 13-for-29 for a season-best .448 percentage from 3-point range. It was FGCU's 13th game this year with at least 10 makes.
The Eagles scored the game's first nine points via four different players and jumped out to a 20-4 lead through seven minutes following back-to-back baskets from Wingate. A layup from Jewett-Giles stretched the margin to 20 with 7:56 left in the half, and a 3-pointer from Wingate gave the Green and Blue its largest lead of the half, 24, with 1:33 left.
Kennesaw State closed the game by scoring 23 of the final 32 points after O'Neal's 3-pointer with 8:02 left gave FGCU its largest lead, 71-40.
Notes:
Earlier in the day, FGCU was once again seeded eighth in the latest version of Bracketology by Charlie Crème, projected to open the NCAA Tournament against No. 9 Oklahoma with a potential second round matchup against No. 1 Louisville.
Jewett-Giles surpassed China Dow (749, 2016-18) for the third-most points by a two-year transfer in program history. She has 755, trailing only Rosemarie Julien (862, 2016-18) and Chelsea Lyles (839, 2008-10). Meanwhile, Wingate moved up to fifth on the same list, pushing her total to 593.
The 20-point effort from Jewett-Giles was her seventh such performance of the season, including the 14th of her career. It was also her 60th career double-digit scoring game, joining Wingate in the exclusive club. Ulel is also one shy of joining them after tallying her 59th on Monday.
FGCU is now 275-20 all-time in Alico Arena, including 102-2 in A-SUN regular season games.
Adderly tied Courtney Chihil (111, 2008-12) for the third-most starts in program history, and she also surpassed Chihil for sole possession of 10th place on the program's games played list with 121.
Ulel, who made three 3-point field goals against Kennesaw State, became the fifth player in the program's Division I era with 200 made 3-point field goals, joining Kelsey Jacobson (330), Taylor Gradinjan (299), Whitney Knight (294) and Shannon Murphy (219). She now has 202 over 600 attempts, while also surpassing Gradinjan (424, 2012-18) on the era's career field goals made list, pushing that total to 425. On top of all that, she jumped Adrianne McNally (1,181, 2007-10) and Shannon Murphy (1,185, 2007-11) for the sixth-most career points in the Green and Blue.
Kennesaw's senior Carlotta Gianolla reached 1,000 career points.
With the win, the Eagles became the first team nationally to reach 19 wins, stretched its overall winning streak to eight and have won 34 consecutive games against A-SUN competition. They are now 26-2 all-time against Kennesaw State with wins in 20 straight. FGCU will be back in action Saturday at home against NJIT.
"We got off to a good start," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "When we were moving the ball and sharing it, we were getting really good shots and everyone was contributing on the offensive end. I thought our defense in the first quarter and a half was really good. We were helping one another and playing with a lot of intensity. The second half, I give Kennesaw credit. They kept fighting, and I didn't feel like we responded quite as well, but it was a good win, and I was happy to see Ashli get her 1,000th point."
On the same night her teammate senior Tytionia Adderly was honored prior to the game for becoming the first player in program history to reach 1,000 career rebounds, redshirt senior Ashli O'Neal became the 18th player to reach 1,000 points while wearing the Green and Blue with a left-handed layup just minutes into the second quarter. She finished with eight points and four assists as the Eagles are now the only team in the nation with four 1,000-point guards. FGCU also joined Oregon as one of only two teams nationally with four at any position.
Jewett-Giles, meanwhile, recorded a team-high 20 points, a game-high seven assists, a team-high three steals and three rebounds while producing her third 20-point effort over six conference games this year. Redshirt senior Davion Wingate added 14 points, four assists and two rebounds on 6-for-8 shooting over 22 minutes, while senior Nasrin Ulel chipped in 11 points and two steals on 3-for-6 shooting from long distance.
Two others also tallied nine points apiece as Adderly registered nine points, nine rebounds and three assists, while redshirt junior Kerstie Phills had nine points, seven rebounds and two steals. For Adderly, it was the fifth time this year she fell just short of double-digits with nine rebounds.
After shooting just 13-for-46 from long distance as a team over the past two games combined, nine different Eagles registered a make as the team finished 13-for-29 for a season-best .448 percentage from 3-point range. It was FGCU's 13th game this year with at least 10 makes.
The Eagles scored the game's first nine points via four different players and jumped out to a 20-4 lead through seven minutes following back-to-back baskets from Wingate. A layup from Jewett-Giles stretched the margin to 20 with 7:56 left in the half, and a 3-pointer from Wingate gave the Green and Blue its largest lead of the half, 24, with 1:33 left.
Kennesaw State closed the game by scoring 23 of the final 32 points after O'Neal's 3-pointer with 8:02 left gave FGCU its largest lead, 71-40.
Notes:
Earlier in the day, FGCU was once again seeded eighth in the latest version of Bracketology by Charlie Crème, projected to open the NCAA Tournament against No. 9 Oklahoma with a potential second round matchup against No. 1 Louisville.
Jewett-Giles surpassed China Dow (749, 2016-18) for the third-most points by a two-year transfer in program history. She has 755, trailing only Rosemarie Julien (862, 2016-18) and Chelsea Lyles (839, 2008-10). Meanwhile, Wingate moved up to fifth on the same list, pushing her total to 593.
The 20-point effort from Jewett-Giles was her seventh such performance of the season, including the 14th of her career. It was also her 60th career double-digit scoring game, joining Wingate in the exclusive club. Ulel is also one shy of joining them after tallying her 59th on Monday.
FGCU is now 275-20 all-time in Alico Arena, including 102-2 in A-SUN regular season games.
Adderly tied Courtney Chihil (111, 2008-12) for the third-most starts in program history, and she also surpassed Chihil for sole possession of 10th place on the program's games played list with 121.
Ulel, who made three 3-point field goals against Kennesaw State, became the fifth player in the program's Division I era with 200 made 3-point field goals, joining Kelsey Jacobson (330), Taylor Gradinjan (299), Whitney Knight (294) and Shannon Murphy (219). She now has 202 over 600 attempts, while also surpassing Gradinjan (424, 2012-18) on the era's career field goals made list, pushing that total to 425. On top of all that, she jumped Adrianne McNally (1,181, 2007-10) and Shannon Murphy (1,185, 2007-11) for the sixth-most career points in the Green and Blue.
Kennesaw's senior Carlotta Gianolla reached 1,000 career points.
FGCU WBB @ North Alabama Recap
In a game that featured six of the NCAA's all-time 1,000 point scorers, redshirt Keri Jewett-Giles poured in a game-high 25 points - including 13 in the fourth quarter alone, to lead the FGCU women's basketball team (18-2, 5-0 A-SUN) to a 74-63 win over North Alabama (13-4, 4-1 A-SUN) on the road in Flowers Hall on Saturday. With the win, the Eagles became the first team nationally to reach 18 wins while pushing the nation's third-longest conference winning streak to 33 straight. Overall, they've now won seven straight, while conversely snapping North Alabama's streak at four. Furthermore, the Green and Blue now own sole possession of first place in the conference standings heading into Monday's 7 p.m. home game against Kennesaw State.
"This was a very difficult game," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "North Alabama is a really good team. It was just good to see us be able to come together and come from behind in the second half and find a way to win. Keri was exceptional. Nas played great defense. Everyone who got out there made a positive contribution, so that was a positive step."
After a first half that saw six ties and 11 lead changes, North Alabama scored five straight to open up a 42-36 lead with 4:23 left in the third quarter. However, the trio of redshirt seniors Davion Wingate, Jewett-Giles and Ashli O'Neal combined for six straight points in just over a minute to tie the game, and the surge continued as the Eagles closed the quarter on a 12-0 run. Six of those points came from Wingate, while four came from Jewett-Giles.
Then, with her team up 55-49 and 5:35 remaining, Jewett-Giles scored FGCU's next 13 points, including a pair of free throws with 1:15 left that gave the Eagles an 11-point lead.
Jewett-Giles finished 10-for-23 from the field en route to her game-high 25 points while adding three rebounds and two assists. It was the most field goal attempts by an Eagle all-time against an A-SUN opponent in the regular season. Wingate (14) chipped in 14 points, three steals, three rebounds and two assists, while senior Nasrin Ulel had 11 points, four rebounds and two steals.
With her nine points, O'Neal is now two shy of reaching 1,000 in her NCAA career. She added five rebounds and went 4-for-4 from the foul line.
Meanwhile, senior Tytionia Adderly produced six points along with team-highs in rebounds (9), assists (5) and steals (3). Aside from Wingate, redshirt sophomore Tyra Cox also tied Adderly for the team-high in steals.
FGCU's 12-for-12 performance from the free throw line represented the third time they've attempted double-digits without a miss against a conference team in the regular season.
North Alabama's Emma Wallen, who came in averaging over 13 points per game, was held scoreless over 37 minutes on 0-for-5 shooting. Her sister, Ivy, joined Olivia Noah with a team-high 17 points for the Lions. Ansley Eubank (13) and Kenysha Coulson (12) also scored in double-figures.
Notes:
Adderly is now one start away from tying Courtney Chihil (111, 2008-12) for the third-most in the program's Division I era. She also moved into a tie with Chihil (120) for the 10th-most games played. Furthermore, she has 1,035 career rebounds, which moves her past Kayla Gordon (Jacksonville, 1,031, 2014-18) for 10th place on the A-SUN career list.
With her two steals, Ulel has 115 in her career, which moves her past Taylor Gradinjan (114, 2012-18) for ninth-most in the program's Division I era. She also pushed her career scoring total to 1,177, which is five shy of surpassing Adrianne McNally (1,181, 2007-10) for seventh-most in the same era, and she tied USC Upstate's Tee'Ara Copney (199, 2009-13) for 16th-most 3-point field goals made in A-SUN history.
The Eagles improved to 6-0 all-time against North Alabama.
Saturday's performance was the second 25-plus point effort of the season for Jewett-Giles, and it was the third of her career. She also surpassed Wingate with her season-high sixth game with at least 20 points, while pushing her career total to 13.
Furthermore, Jewett-Giles now has 1,237 career points, which moves her past Taylor Gradinjan (1,234, 2012-18) for the seventh-most scored in an NCAA career by a player to wear the Green and Blue.
Meanwhile, Wingate produced her 60th career game with at least 10 points.
"This was a very difficult game," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "North Alabama is a really good team. It was just good to see us be able to come together and come from behind in the second half and find a way to win. Keri was exceptional. Nas played great defense. Everyone who got out there made a positive contribution, so that was a positive step."
After a first half that saw six ties and 11 lead changes, North Alabama scored five straight to open up a 42-36 lead with 4:23 left in the third quarter. However, the trio of redshirt seniors Davion Wingate, Jewett-Giles and Ashli O'Neal combined for six straight points in just over a minute to tie the game, and the surge continued as the Eagles closed the quarter on a 12-0 run. Six of those points came from Wingate, while four came from Jewett-Giles.
Then, with her team up 55-49 and 5:35 remaining, Jewett-Giles scored FGCU's next 13 points, including a pair of free throws with 1:15 left that gave the Eagles an 11-point lead.
Jewett-Giles finished 10-for-23 from the field en route to her game-high 25 points while adding three rebounds and two assists. It was the most field goal attempts by an Eagle all-time against an A-SUN opponent in the regular season. Wingate (14) chipped in 14 points, three steals, three rebounds and two assists, while senior Nasrin Ulel had 11 points, four rebounds and two steals.
With her nine points, O'Neal is now two shy of reaching 1,000 in her NCAA career. She added five rebounds and went 4-for-4 from the foul line.
Meanwhile, senior Tytionia Adderly produced six points along with team-highs in rebounds (9), assists (5) and steals (3). Aside from Wingate, redshirt sophomore Tyra Cox also tied Adderly for the team-high in steals.
FGCU's 12-for-12 performance from the free throw line represented the third time they've attempted double-digits without a miss against a conference team in the regular season.
North Alabama's Emma Wallen, who came in averaging over 13 points per game, was held scoreless over 37 minutes on 0-for-5 shooting. Her sister, Ivy, joined Olivia Noah with a team-high 17 points for the Lions. Ansley Eubank (13) and Kenysha Coulson (12) also scored in double-figures.
Notes:
Adderly is now one start away from tying Courtney Chihil (111, 2008-12) for the third-most in the program's Division I era. She also moved into a tie with Chihil (120) for the 10th-most games played. Furthermore, she has 1,035 career rebounds, which moves her past Kayla Gordon (Jacksonville, 1,031, 2014-18) for 10th place on the A-SUN career list.
With her two steals, Ulel has 115 in her career, which moves her past Taylor Gradinjan (114, 2012-18) for ninth-most in the program's Division I era. She also pushed her career scoring total to 1,177, which is five shy of surpassing Adrianne McNally (1,181, 2007-10) for seventh-most in the same era, and she tied USC Upstate's Tee'Ara Copney (199, 2009-13) for 16th-most 3-point field goals made in A-SUN history.
The Eagles improved to 6-0 all-time against North Alabama.
Saturday's performance was the second 25-plus point effort of the season for Jewett-Giles, and it was the third of her career. She also surpassed Wingate with her season-high sixth game with at least 20 points, while pushing her career total to 13.
Furthermore, Jewett-Giles now has 1,237 career points, which moves her past Taylor Gradinjan (1,234, 2012-18) for the seventh-most scored in an NCAA career by a player to wear the Green and Blue.
Meanwhile, Wingate produced her 60th career game with at least 10 points.
FGCU MBB vs Kennesaw Recap
After a record-setting first half where the Eagles allowed just seven points, the FGCU men's basketball team (6-14, 3-2 A-SUN) cruised to a 73-51 win over Kennesaw State (1-16, 0-4 A-SUN) at Alico Arena on Thursday night. The win was the third in the last four outings for the Eagles and the second straight.
The seven points allowed in the first half were a program record and the fewest allowed in the first half of an NCAA Division I game this year. The Owls were just 1-of-25 from the floor which nearly matched the NCAA record for lowest field goal percentage in the shot clock era which was set by Northern Illinois (1-of-31, 3.2%) on Jan. 26, 2013. The one made field goal tied the NCAA record for fewest made alongside NIU and Savannah State (at Kansas State, 2008). Overall the NCAA record for fewest points (since 1986 according to the NCAA record book) in a first half of a Division I game was 5 by California against Notre Dame on Nov. 26, 2010. In the NIU/EMU game, the Huskies were held to just four points, while Eastern Michigan also managed just four points in 2018 against Rutgers.
"We're happy to get the win tonight and to continue to see progression over the last few weeks," said head coach Michael Fly. "Now we have to turn our focus to a very quick turnaround as we face a very good North Alabama team. KSU is obviously in a rebuilding mode with some young guys who are still figuring out their chemistry - somewhat similar to some of the struggles we've faced.I thought our defense did a good job overall, but part of it was KSU just missed some shots and had some good looks just not go in."
The Eagles carried a 34-7 lead into halftime with Kennesaw State's only field goal coming on a three-pointer by Jamie Lewis at the 8:42 mark of the opening stanza. FGCU had scored nine straight before that and then finished the half on an 18-to-4 run.
The lead grew to as many as 39, 60-21, midway through the second half after a free throw by junior Sam Gagliardi. The Owls were able to cut into the lead as the Eagles began to mix-and-match line-ups. KSU strung together a 17-to-3 run to cut the deficit to 63-37 with 5:56 remaining in the game.
FGCU was led by 11 points from sophomores Caleb Catto and Zach Scott in what was a balanced overall offensive effort. Junior Jalen Warren had a game-high 11 rebounds with nine points and five assists. Junior Justus Rainwater and Cyrus Largie each added nine points.
Lewis led all scorers with 20 points for the Owls, while Tyler Hooker was the only other KSU player in double figures.
The Eagles finished the game shooting 45.3 percent (29-of-64), while Kennesaw State hit 14-of-67 (20.9%). The 20.9 percent shooting percentage was also a record low allowed by FGCU. The previous best field goal defense mark was 22.7 percent by East Tennessee State on Feb. 7, 2013.
FGCU also held a 53-to-39 advantage in rebounding which was the second time this season to break the 50-rebound plateau.
Up Next:
Following tonight's action, the Eagles return to action with a road trip this Saturday afternoon at North Alabama as part of a double-header with the women's team. Both games will be streamed on ESPN+.
The seven points allowed in the first half were a program record and the fewest allowed in the first half of an NCAA Division I game this year. The Owls were just 1-of-25 from the floor which nearly matched the NCAA record for lowest field goal percentage in the shot clock era which was set by Northern Illinois (1-of-31, 3.2%) on Jan. 26, 2013. The one made field goal tied the NCAA record for fewest made alongside NIU and Savannah State (at Kansas State, 2008). Overall the NCAA record for fewest points (since 1986 according to the NCAA record book) in a first half of a Division I game was 5 by California against Notre Dame on Nov. 26, 2010. In the NIU/EMU game, the Huskies were held to just four points, while Eastern Michigan also managed just four points in 2018 against Rutgers.
"We're happy to get the win tonight and to continue to see progression over the last few weeks," said head coach Michael Fly. "Now we have to turn our focus to a very quick turnaround as we face a very good North Alabama team. KSU is obviously in a rebuilding mode with some young guys who are still figuring out their chemistry - somewhat similar to some of the struggles we've faced.I thought our defense did a good job overall, but part of it was KSU just missed some shots and had some good looks just not go in."
The Eagles carried a 34-7 lead into halftime with Kennesaw State's only field goal coming on a three-pointer by Jamie Lewis at the 8:42 mark of the opening stanza. FGCU had scored nine straight before that and then finished the half on an 18-to-4 run.
The lead grew to as many as 39, 60-21, midway through the second half after a free throw by junior Sam Gagliardi. The Owls were able to cut into the lead as the Eagles began to mix-and-match line-ups. KSU strung together a 17-to-3 run to cut the deficit to 63-37 with 5:56 remaining in the game.
FGCU was led by 11 points from sophomores Caleb Catto and Zach Scott in what was a balanced overall offensive effort. Junior Jalen Warren had a game-high 11 rebounds with nine points and five assists. Junior Justus Rainwater and Cyrus Largie each added nine points.
Lewis led all scorers with 20 points for the Owls, while Tyler Hooker was the only other KSU player in double figures.
The Eagles finished the game shooting 45.3 percent (29-of-64), while Kennesaw State hit 14-of-67 (20.9%). The 20.9 percent shooting percentage was also a record low allowed by FGCU. The previous best field goal defense mark was 22.7 percent by East Tennessee State on Feb. 7, 2013.
FGCU also held a 53-to-39 advantage in rebounding which was the second time this season to break the 50-rebound plateau.
Up Next:
Following tonight's action, the Eagles return to action with a road trip this Saturday afternoon at North Alabama as part of a double-header with the women's team. Both games will be streamed on ESPN+.
FGCU WBB @ UNF Recap
Senior Nasrin Ulel led four players in double-figures with 16 points as the No. 25 FGCU women's basketball team (17-2, 4-0 A-SUN) defeated North Florida (9-8, 2-2 A-SUN) on Monday in UNF Arena for the team's sixth-straight win. With the victory, the Eagles become the first team to reach 17 wins nationally and pushed the program's A-SUN winning streak to 32 in a row, which is the third-longest in the nation. They also improve to 13-2 as a ranked Division I team and 25-3 in the all-time series with the Ospreys.
"That was an important win," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "We had a very good first quarter, which allowed us to set the tone, and we did a good job taking care of the ball."
Ulel, who scored seven of her 10 first quarter points in the final three minutes as the Eagles closed the frame on an 11-0 run, finished 6-for-12 from the field for her game-high scoring total. She added six rebounds, a game-high four assists and a steal.
With her two 3-pointers, the Golden State native is now two shy of becoming just the fifth player in the program's Division I era to produce 200 in a career, and she surpassed Stephanie Haas (414, 2012-16) for the fifth-most overall field goals made in a career on Monday, pushing her total to 417.
Before Ulel's offensive output, redshirt senior Ashli O'Neal provided a spark off the bench for FGCU in the opening quarter. She drew a charge shortly after entering before finishing with seven points, two assists, two rebounds and two steals during a 21-4 run to close the quarter. O'Neal is now 11 points shy of reaching 1,000 career points.
After starting 0-for-3 from the field, redshirt senior Davion Wingate produced a steal with 1:36 left in the first half, which sparked her offensively as the senior scored seven points in the final 90 seconds to give FGCU an 18-point lead at the break after North Florida had trimmed its deficit to single digits with 2:34 left.
Wingate wound up finishing second on the team in scoring with 14, while adding four rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block. She made 6-of-11 from the field, including 2-of-4 from long distance.
FGCU held a 20-0 advantage in points off turnovers and scored 26 of the game's 28 points in the paint over the first 20 minutes. The Eagles also held UNF's second-leading scorer, Jazz Bond, scoreless with an 0-for-4 start from the field and just four rebounds in 17 minutes of action during the half. Meanwhile, the Green and Blue produced points from seven different players.
The Ospreys opened the second half on a 7-3 run and trimmed the deficit to 14 over the first 3:30 while FGCU went 1-for-5 from the field and tallied the first of only five turnovers for the whole game during that stretch.
Ulel would help her team come out of the funk in a big way, though, as the senior guard connected on a pair of free throws to start a 21-0 run. Sophomore Tanner Bryant followed with a driving layup on the left side, redshirt junior Kerstie Phills converted back-to-back 3-pointers and Wingate scored five straight.
redshirt senior Keri Jewett-Giles, who finished with 11 points, then made a jumper with 24 seconds left in the quarter to complete the run and give the Eagles a 65-30 lead as FGCU emptied the bench and cruised to the win. Phills chipped in 10 points overall while shooting 4-for-6 from the field and making two of her three attempts from long distance.
Jewett-Giles added eight rebounds (two shy of her career-high), two assists and one steal. It was her fifth-straight game with at least five boards, and she's averaging eight over the past three outings. Furthermore, she eclipsed 700 points in her FGCU career on Monday and now has 710.
Senior Tytionia Adderly, who was limited to just 15 minutes due to foul trouble and the scoring margin, registered five points, three rebounds, three steals and two assists. She is just six rebounds shy of passing Kayla Gordon (Jacksonville, 1,031, 2014-18) for 10th place on the A-SUN's all-time rebounding list.
Up Next:
With the win, FGCU is now set up for a first-place showdown with North Alabama (13-3, 4-0) on the road Saturday in Florence, Ala. at 2 p.m. ET. The Eagles will then return home for a pair of games.
"That was an important win," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "We had a very good first quarter, which allowed us to set the tone, and we did a good job taking care of the ball."
Ulel, who scored seven of her 10 first quarter points in the final three minutes as the Eagles closed the frame on an 11-0 run, finished 6-for-12 from the field for her game-high scoring total. She added six rebounds, a game-high four assists and a steal.
With her two 3-pointers, the Golden State native is now two shy of becoming just the fifth player in the program's Division I era to produce 200 in a career, and she surpassed Stephanie Haas (414, 2012-16) for the fifth-most overall field goals made in a career on Monday, pushing her total to 417.
Before Ulel's offensive output, redshirt senior Ashli O'Neal provided a spark off the bench for FGCU in the opening quarter. She drew a charge shortly after entering before finishing with seven points, two assists, two rebounds and two steals during a 21-4 run to close the quarter. O'Neal is now 11 points shy of reaching 1,000 career points.
After starting 0-for-3 from the field, redshirt senior Davion Wingate produced a steal with 1:36 left in the first half, which sparked her offensively as the senior scored seven points in the final 90 seconds to give FGCU an 18-point lead at the break after North Florida had trimmed its deficit to single digits with 2:34 left.
Wingate wound up finishing second on the team in scoring with 14, while adding four rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block. She made 6-of-11 from the field, including 2-of-4 from long distance.
FGCU held a 20-0 advantage in points off turnovers and scored 26 of the game's 28 points in the paint over the first 20 minutes. The Eagles also held UNF's second-leading scorer, Jazz Bond, scoreless with an 0-for-4 start from the field and just four rebounds in 17 minutes of action during the half. Meanwhile, the Green and Blue produced points from seven different players.
The Ospreys opened the second half on a 7-3 run and trimmed the deficit to 14 over the first 3:30 while FGCU went 1-for-5 from the field and tallied the first of only five turnovers for the whole game during that stretch.
Ulel would help her team come out of the funk in a big way, though, as the senior guard connected on a pair of free throws to start a 21-0 run. Sophomore Tanner Bryant followed with a driving layup on the left side, redshirt junior Kerstie Phills converted back-to-back 3-pointers and Wingate scored five straight.
redshirt senior Keri Jewett-Giles, who finished with 11 points, then made a jumper with 24 seconds left in the quarter to complete the run and give the Eagles a 65-30 lead as FGCU emptied the bench and cruised to the win. Phills chipped in 10 points overall while shooting 4-for-6 from the field and making two of her three attempts from long distance.
Jewett-Giles added eight rebounds (two shy of her career-high), two assists and one steal. It was her fifth-straight game with at least five boards, and she's averaging eight over the past three outings. Furthermore, she eclipsed 700 points in her FGCU career on Monday and now has 710.
Senior Tytionia Adderly, who was limited to just 15 minutes due to foul trouble and the scoring margin, registered five points, three rebounds, three steals and two assists. She is just six rebounds shy of passing Kayla Gordon (Jacksonville, 1,031, 2014-18) for 10th place on the A-SUN's all-time rebounding list.
Up Next:
With the win, FGCU is now set up for a first-place showdown with North Alabama (13-3, 4-0) on the road Saturday in Florence, Ala. at 2 p.m. ET. The Eagles will then return home for a pair of games.
FGCU Basketball vs Stetson Recap
The FGCU men's and #25 women's basketball teams pulled away with a sweep in their doubleheader at Stetson. The women (16-2, 3-0 A-SUN) defeated the Lady Hatters (7-9, 1-2 A-SUN) 89-47, while the men (5-14, 2-2 A-SUN) defeated Stetson's men's team (7-11, 1-2 A-SUN) 66-62 in overtime. With the wins, the women are now 26-4 against Stetson while the men are 21-8.
"We played much better today," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "We were better defensively, and we moved the ball quicker on offense. Most of our players played really well, too, and I loved the energy from (Kerstie) Phills."
"I thought that was as gritty of a road win as we've had since I've been here; it was a great team effort and we really had some guys step up tonight," said FGCU head coach Michael Fly. "We challenged them tonight to limit Stetson on the offensive glass and to hold them to zero second chance points was a really huge accomplishment. I'm really proud of the fight and resolve that the team had especially when we were down some late."
FGCU WBB:
With the win, the Eagles extended the nation's third-longest conference winning streak to 31 straight and are now 26-4 all-time against the Hatters, including wins in six straight and 15 of the past 16. The 42-point victory was the largest winning margin in series history, and FGCU is also tied with Stony Brook as the only two teams with 16 wins nationally.
Senior Nasrin Ulel and redshirt senior Davion Wingate, who both had 19 points each, combined to shoot 13-for-28 from the field, including a 9-for-18 performance from long distance. The duo made half of FGCU's 18 3-point field goals.
Meanwhile, redshirt senior Keri Jewett-Giles tallied 15 points, seven assists, five rebounds and three steals. Senior Tytionia Adderly added 14 points and eight rebounds, while redshirt junior Kerstie Phills had 11 points and five boards. Redshirt junior Anja Marinkovic added eight points in seven minutes off the bench in the second half, while redshirt senior Ashli O'Neal produced five assists and four rebounds over 16 minutes.
After a slow start offensively, FGCU scored 19 points over the final 5:22 of the opening quarter. Ulel and Jewett-Giles combined for 17 of those 19 points, while Ulel had 10 points in the frame alone.
After closing the first on a 9-2 run, the Eagles opened the second on a 12-2 run, highlighted by a trio of 3-pointers along with a three-point play from Adderly. With FGCU holding a 34-18 lead, Wingate scored 13 straight for her team over a three-minute stretch to push the advantage to 22 with 4:49 left in the half.
Phills and Ulel combined for the final six points of the half as FGCU took a 27-point lead into the break. Marinkovic then helped the Eagles overcome a 12-point third with an eight-point fourth quarter to help ice the game.
Notes:
FGCU's 18 3-point field goals fell one shy of their season-high that was set against FIU (Nov. 5) and Temple (Dec. 22). In fact, those two outings remain the only two games with 19 by a Division I team against a Division I team this year.
O'Neal remains 18 points shy of 1,000 in her career.
FGCU is now 12-2 all-time as a ranked Division I team.
With her 19 points, Ulel passed Stephanie Haas (1,138, 2012-16) for eighth-place on the program's Division I era career scoring list. She now has 1,150, which is 32 shy of Adrianne McNally (1,181, 2007-10) for seventh.
FGCU MBB:
Sophomore Caleb Catto scored a career-high 19 points and junior Jalen Warren scored eight of his 16 points in the overtime win for the Eagles.
FGCU carried a 27-26 lead into halftime, but needed Catto's career-best fifth three-pointer of the day with 17 seconds left in regulation to force the extra stanza. Stetson took an early lead in overtime, but Warren's performance helped lift the Eagles to their second overtime and first road victory of the season.
Catto finished the day going 5-of-7 from three-point range and 7-of-13 overall while adding six rebounds. Warren's 16 points included a 4-of-4 free throw performance with two of them coming in the final 25 seconds of overtime pushing the FGCU lead to four. Rounding out the Eagles' top scorers was sophomore Zach Scott who had 10 points, while senior Tracy Hector tied his career-high with 7 assists to go with five rebounds and three steals.
Stetson led by as many as seven midway through the first half, but a 10-to-2 run for FGCU put the Eagles back ahead, 19-18, at the 7:43 mark. The teams traded leads three more times after that before Warren found freshman Dakota Rivers for the go-ahead dunk just prior to the intermission.
The second half saw both teams trading buckets as the stanza featured 10 lead changes and six ties. With 1:23 to go, Mahamadou Diawara hit a lay-up putting the Hatters up three. Both teams missed jumpers on the ensuing possessions before Catto tied the game, 54-54, with 17 seconds to go. Jahlil Rawley was able to get a shot off just before the buzzer but it was off target sending the game to overtime.
The Hatters scored first in overtime with a triple from Rob Perry and kept the lead for nearly three minutes until a pair of free throws by junior Justus Rainwater tied the game at 60-60.
A running jumper by Warren followed by two free throws put the Eagles up 64-60 with 25 seconds to go. Stetson pulled back within two, but, with 12 seconds to go, Scott hit a pair of free throws to extend the lead to four, 66-62. After a timeout, Perry was able to get off another three-point attempt with two seconds to go, but was just off the mark with Catto clearing the rebound to preserve the win.
Perry finished the night with a game-high 27 points for Stetson as he hit 10-of-18 from the floor and was 5-of-9 from deep. Christiaan Jones rounded out the Hatters' top scorers with 13 points.
Overall, FGCU hit 21-of-48 from the floor and went 18-of-20 from the free throw line for one of its best performances of the year. The Hatters shot 25-of-54 and were limited to just 6-of-10 at the line.
Defensively, the Eagles were able to corral 23 defensive rebounds and did not allow a single second-chance point for the Hatters in the game.
Up Next:
The men will return to action this Thursday, Jan. 16 when Kennesaw State visits Alico Arena. Tip-off is set for 7 PM and the game will be streamed live on ESPN+.
The women will stay on the road to face top-75 RPI North Florida (9-7, 2-1) on Monday at 7 p.m. The Ospreys are the last team to defeat the Eagles in conference play (Feb. 1, 2018, 75-73), which coincidentally also came when FGCU was ranked, although the Eagles were without the services of Adderly in that game.
"We played much better today," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "We were better defensively, and we moved the ball quicker on offense. Most of our players played really well, too, and I loved the energy from (Kerstie) Phills."
"I thought that was as gritty of a road win as we've had since I've been here; it was a great team effort and we really had some guys step up tonight," said FGCU head coach Michael Fly. "We challenged them tonight to limit Stetson on the offensive glass and to hold them to zero second chance points was a really huge accomplishment. I'm really proud of the fight and resolve that the team had especially when we were down some late."
FGCU WBB:
With the win, the Eagles extended the nation's third-longest conference winning streak to 31 straight and are now 26-4 all-time against the Hatters, including wins in six straight and 15 of the past 16. The 42-point victory was the largest winning margin in series history, and FGCU is also tied with Stony Brook as the only two teams with 16 wins nationally.
Senior Nasrin Ulel and redshirt senior Davion Wingate, who both had 19 points each, combined to shoot 13-for-28 from the field, including a 9-for-18 performance from long distance. The duo made half of FGCU's 18 3-point field goals.
Meanwhile, redshirt senior Keri Jewett-Giles tallied 15 points, seven assists, five rebounds and three steals. Senior Tytionia Adderly added 14 points and eight rebounds, while redshirt junior Kerstie Phills had 11 points and five boards. Redshirt junior Anja Marinkovic added eight points in seven minutes off the bench in the second half, while redshirt senior Ashli O'Neal produced five assists and four rebounds over 16 minutes.
After a slow start offensively, FGCU scored 19 points over the final 5:22 of the opening quarter. Ulel and Jewett-Giles combined for 17 of those 19 points, while Ulel had 10 points in the frame alone.
After closing the first on a 9-2 run, the Eagles opened the second on a 12-2 run, highlighted by a trio of 3-pointers along with a three-point play from Adderly. With FGCU holding a 34-18 lead, Wingate scored 13 straight for her team over a three-minute stretch to push the advantage to 22 with 4:49 left in the half.
Phills and Ulel combined for the final six points of the half as FGCU took a 27-point lead into the break. Marinkovic then helped the Eagles overcome a 12-point third with an eight-point fourth quarter to help ice the game.
Notes:
FGCU's 18 3-point field goals fell one shy of their season-high that was set against FIU (Nov. 5) and Temple (Dec. 22). In fact, those two outings remain the only two games with 19 by a Division I team against a Division I team this year.
O'Neal remains 18 points shy of 1,000 in her career.
FGCU is now 12-2 all-time as a ranked Division I team.
With her 19 points, Ulel passed Stephanie Haas (1,138, 2012-16) for eighth-place on the program's Division I era career scoring list. She now has 1,150, which is 32 shy of Adrianne McNally (1,181, 2007-10) for seventh.
FGCU MBB:
Sophomore Caleb Catto scored a career-high 19 points and junior Jalen Warren scored eight of his 16 points in the overtime win for the Eagles.
FGCU carried a 27-26 lead into halftime, but needed Catto's career-best fifth three-pointer of the day with 17 seconds left in regulation to force the extra stanza. Stetson took an early lead in overtime, but Warren's performance helped lift the Eagles to their second overtime and first road victory of the season.
Catto finished the day going 5-of-7 from three-point range and 7-of-13 overall while adding six rebounds. Warren's 16 points included a 4-of-4 free throw performance with two of them coming in the final 25 seconds of overtime pushing the FGCU lead to four. Rounding out the Eagles' top scorers was sophomore Zach Scott who had 10 points, while senior Tracy Hector tied his career-high with 7 assists to go with five rebounds and three steals.
Stetson led by as many as seven midway through the first half, but a 10-to-2 run for FGCU put the Eagles back ahead, 19-18, at the 7:43 mark. The teams traded leads three more times after that before Warren found freshman Dakota Rivers for the go-ahead dunk just prior to the intermission.
The second half saw both teams trading buckets as the stanza featured 10 lead changes and six ties. With 1:23 to go, Mahamadou Diawara hit a lay-up putting the Hatters up three. Both teams missed jumpers on the ensuing possessions before Catto tied the game, 54-54, with 17 seconds to go. Jahlil Rawley was able to get a shot off just before the buzzer but it was off target sending the game to overtime.
The Hatters scored first in overtime with a triple from Rob Perry and kept the lead for nearly three minutes until a pair of free throws by junior Justus Rainwater tied the game at 60-60.
A running jumper by Warren followed by two free throws put the Eagles up 64-60 with 25 seconds to go. Stetson pulled back within two, but, with 12 seconds to go, Scott hit a pair of free throws to extend the lead to four, 66-62. After a timeout, Perry was able to get off another three-point attempt with two seconds to go, but was just off the mark with Catto clearing the rebound to preserve the win.
Perry finished the night with a game-high 27 points for Stetson as he hit 10-of-18 from the floor and was 5-of-9 from deep. Christiaan Jones rounded out the Hatters' top scorers with 13 points.
Overall, FGCU hit 21-of-48 from the floor and went 18-of-20 from the free throw line for one of its best performances of the year. The Hatters shot 25-of-54 and were limited to just 6-of-10 at the line.
Defensively, the Eagles were able to corral 23 defensive rebounds and did not allow a single second-chance point for the Hatters in the game.
Up Next:
The men will return to action this Thursday, Jan. 16 when Kennesaw State visits Alico Arena. Tip-off is set for 7 PM and the game will be streamed live on ESPN+.
The women will stay on the road to face top-75 RPI North Florida (9-7, 2-1) on Monday at 7 p.m. The Ospreys are the last team to defeat the Eagles in conference play (Feb. 1, 2018, 75-73), which coincidentally also came when FGCU was ranked, although the Eagles were without the services of Adderly in that game.
FGCU MBB vs Lipscomb Recap
The FGCU men's basketball team (4-13, 1-1 A-SUN) never trailed through 40 minutes of play as it earned a 68-61 victory over Lipscomb (6-9, 1-1 A-SUN) on Saturday night at Alico Arena. The team shot a season-best 54.2 percent from the floor as it claimed its first conference win of the year over the Bisons' squad that advanced to last year's NIT final.
"Our postgame speech was an emphatic 'Great WIN' to the team – we needed that one and it was great to see the confidence which I think will grow from here," said head coach Michael Fly. "I think we're continuing to learn and grow; it's stressful to go through that, but it will make us better in the long term. The players were really locked in today and really did a great job executing the game plan throughout the night."
The Eagles opened up the game with their best start of the 2019-20 season, using an 19-2 run to stun the Bisons. Junior Sam Gagliardi led the early scoring for the home team as he shot 3-for-4 from beyond the arc in the opening four minutes. At the first media timeout, FGCU led Lipscomb 19-4 just 4 minutes, 12 seconds into the game.
As the Bisons started to develop their rhythm on offense, the team threatened to cut FGCU's lead into single digits when Carson Cary capitalized on an Eagle turnover. Freshman Cyrus Largie responded to the push with a trey that re-extended the lead to 26-13 with just under 12 minutes to go.
For the first time all night, Lipscomb did trim the lead down to single digits thanks to a three-ball from Andrew Fleming that brought the Bisons within seven around the five-minute mark. Sophomores Caleb Catto and Zach Scott combined for six points in the final minutes of play, allowing the home team to take a 38-27 edge into the locker room.
In the opening 20 minutes, the Eagles shot 55.2 percent from the floor and 50 percent from long range. While the teams were evenly matched with 16 points apiece in the paint, FGCU held a 7-2 advantage in second-chance points, as well as a 9-2 edge in bench points.
The teams were fairly evenly matched coming out of the break, as both sides responded to one another on offense. Eventually, the Bisons were able to string together back-to-back plays that brought them as close as seven with just over 13 minutes to go in the game, the closest that they had gotten to the home team all night.
Throughout the final minutes of play, Lipscomb held FGCU's lead to single digits. The team used a 6-0 run over a span of a little more than two minutes to make it a 65-69 game with just under two minutes left in the game. Finally, senior Tracy Hector Jr. broke the seal for the Green and Blue by capitalizing on a trip to the charity stripe. He then went on to draw a crucial charge on the other end of the court that kept the Bisons at bay.
Catto put the game away with a pair of free throws in the final seconds as the Eagles eventually held on for the win.
The FGCU bench proved to be the one of the key difference-makers in the victory, as they outshot the opposition 21-4. Gagliardi led the offense, finishing the night with 14 points and was joined in the double-digit scoring by both Catto (13) and Scott (12).
Up Next:
The Eagles will hit the road for a two-game conference swing that will feature matchups against UNF (Jan. 9) and Stetson (Jan. 11). The game against the Ospreys (9-8, 2-0 A-SUN) is set for a 7 p.m. start and will be streamed on ESPN +. FGCU and the Hatters (7-10, 1-1 A-SUN) will face off in a 4 p.m. game that will also be shown on ESPN +.
"Our postgame speech was an emphatic 'Great WIN' to the team – we needed that one and it was great to see the confidence which I think will grow from here," said head coach Michael Fly. "I think we're continuing to learn and grow; it's stressful to go through that, but it will make us better in the long term. The players were really locked in today and really did a great job executing the game plan throughout the night."
The Eagles opened up the game with their best start of the 2019-20 season, using an 19-2 run to stun the Bisons. Junior Sam Gagliardi led the early scoring for the home team as he shot 3-for-4 from beyond the arc in the opening four minutes. At the first media timeout, FGCU led Lipscomb 19-4 just 4 minutes, 12 seconds into the game.
As the Bisons started to develop their rhythm on offense, the team threatened to cut FGCU's lead into single digits when Carson Cary capitalized on an Eagle turnover. Freshman Cyrus Largie responded to the push with a trey that re-extended the lead to 26-13 with just under 12 minutes to go.
For the first time all night, Lipscomb did trim the lead down to single digits thanks to a three-ball from Andrew Fleming that brought the Bisons within seven around the five-minute mark. Sophomores Caleb Catto and Zach Scott combined for six points in the final minutes of play, allowing the home team to take a 38-27 edge into the locker room.
In the opening 20 minutes, the Eagles shot 55.2 percent from the floor and 50 percent from long range. While the teams were evenly matched with 16 points apiece in the paint, FGCU held a 7-2 advantage in second-chance points, as well as a 9-2 edge in bench points.
The teams were fairly evenly matched coming out of the break, as both sides responded to one another on offense. Eventually, the Bisons were able to string together back-to-back plays that brought them as close as seven with just over 13 minutes to go in the game, the closest that they had gotten to the home team all night.
Throughout the final minutes of play, Lipscomb held FGCU's lead to single digits. The team used a 6-0 run over a span of a little more than two minutes to make it a 65-69 game with just under two minutes left in the game. Finally, senior Tracy Hector Jr. broke the seal for the Green and Blue by capitalizing on a trip to the charity stripe. He then went on to draw a crucial charge on the other end of the court that kept the Bisons at bay.
Catto put the game away with a pair of free throws in the final seconds as the Eagles eventually held on for the win.
The FGCU bench proved to be the one of the key difference-makers in the victory, as they outshot the opposition 21-4. Gagliardi led the offense, finishing the night with 14 points and was joined in the double-digit scoring by both Catto (13) and Scott (12).
Up Next:
The Eagles will hit the road for a two-game conference swing that will feature matchups against UNF (Jan. 9) and Stetson (Jan. 11). The game against the Ospreys (9-8, 2-0 A-SUN) is set for a 7 p.m. start and will be streamed on ESPN +. FGCU and the Hatters (7-10, 1-1 A-SUN) will face off in a 4 p.m. game that will also be shown on ESPN +.
FGCU WBB vs Lipscomb Recap
Senior Tytionia Adderly secured her place in program history as the No. 25 FGCU women's basketball team (14-2, 1-0 A-SUN) pulled away in the second half to secure an 82-56 win over Lipscomb (3-11, 0-1 A-SUN) in the conference opener for both teams on Saturday in Alico Arena.
With a defensive rebound just under three minutes into the second half, Adderly became the first player in program history, and just the 12th in A-SUN history, to achieve 1,000 career rebounds. She entered the game nine rebounds shy of the milestone, finished the game with 1,002 and is now just four shy of moving past Brandi Miller (Belmont, 2001-05) for the 11th-most in conference history.
"To get 1,000 rebounds in a career is remarkable," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "It's a lot rarer than 1,000-point scorers. She just defends and rebounds. I was really happy today that she was looking for points and chances to shoot a three or attack the basket because that's a dimension she has."
In addition to all that, Adderly led all scorers with a season-high 21 points to go along with her 11 rebounds, four assists and two steals in the win over the Bisons. She finished with a season-best nine made field goals over 20 attempts and even made a career-high three from long distance.
"I talk about it all the time," Ulel said of Adderly post game. "To get a 1,000 rebounds, or even 500, that's hard. A 1,000 points for me is two or three points. She's individually getting one rebound at a time, and that's disgusting. She does everything. She's the heart of our team. I don't think she realizes like when she plays well, we're just so excited for her."
The win, which improved the Eagles to 10-2 all-time as a ranked Division I program, was the 100th for the program in Alico Arena in regular season conference play, and they've done it in just 102 games. On top of that, they extended the nation's fifth-longest conference winning streak to 29 straight.
"It's extremely fun," Ulel said of FGCU's home court advantage, which was north of 2,000 fans on Saturday. "It's something we can always count on. Even if our shooting isn't good, we know our fans are always going to be loyal. I can have a horrible game and our fans are going to come up to me and tell me I played so good. It's really exciting having a crowd to play for. We go to other schools, bigger schools, and their crowd isn't as big. It's really exciting to have committed fans like that."
In addition to Adderly, FGCU received 44 points combined from the trio of senior Nasrin Ulel (18), redshirt senior Keri Jewett-Giles (16) and and redshirt junior Kerstie Phills (10).
Redshirt senior Davion Wingate also added nine points, while Jewett-Giles finished second on the team with five rebounds and led the way with three steals. Phills also added four rebounds and did her damage in just 21 minutes.
Ulel, who had five double-digit scoring performances over the season's first 11 games, now has four such outings over the past five, which included a season-high 27 in a win over Duke on Dec. 29. Over the recent streak, she is averaging 17.8 per contest.
"She's someone who hurt her finger, and I couldn't get her to sit out," Smesko said of Ulel. "She was playing through it even though she couldn't really catch the ball because she wanted to be out there and help her teammates. Now, her hand feels good and her shot feels better. And you can see it's opening up some other things. She's able to drive to the basket and shot fake and step through or get all the way to the rim. It's good to see her progression."
Over the game's first 20 minutes, FGCU struggled to get going as a team, shooting just 4-for-23 from long distance, including 1-for-10 in the opening quarter. Adderly and Jewett-Giles each had eight points during that stretch as the Eagles used strong defense to hold Lipscomb to a 7-for-22 first-half performance from the field, which allowed the Green and Blue to open up a 32-23 lead.
The third frame saw Adderly finish 6-for-10 from the field for 13 points and four rebounds as the Eagles stretched their margin to 13. They produced 10 points off turnovers in the quarter alone and shot 10-for-18 from the field as a team, which was just three fewer field goals made than they had the entire first half.
FGCU continued to ramp it up in the final quarter, shooting 8-for-13 and outscoring Lipscomb 24-11 in the frame as Ulel had nine points in just over seven minutes on 4-for-5 shooting.
Overall, the Eagles outscored Lipscomb 30-4 in points off turnovers and held advantages in paint points (40-22), second-chance points (13-2), fast break points (8-2) and bench points (8-2).
FGCU will be back in action Monday against Liberty (8-6, 1-0) at 7 p.m. inside Alico Arena in a rematch of last year's A-SUN title game.
Notes:
With the win, FGCU remains tied for the most in the nation with 14.
In addition to her program and conference recognition, Adderly also ranks third among active NCAA Division I players in career rebounds.
In Charlie Creme's latest NCAA bracketology, FGCU is slotted as a No. 8 seed with a predicted first-round matchup against No. 9 Creighton in Corvallis.
The Eagles are now 26-0 all-time against Lipscomb, having won every game by double-digits.
With a defensive rebound just under three minutes into the second half, Adderly became the first player in program history, and just the 12th in A-SUN history, to achieve 1,000 career rebounds. She entered the game nine rebounds shy of the milestone, finished the game with 1,002 and is now just four shy of moving past Brandi Miller (Belmont, 2001-05) for the 11th-most in conference history.
"To get 1,000 rebounds in a career is remarkable," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "It's a lot rarer than 1,000-point scorers. She just defends and rebounds. I was really happy today that she was looking for points and chances to shoot a three or attack the basket because that's a dimension she has."
In addition to all that, Adderly led all scorers with a season-high 21 points to go along with her 11 rebounds, four assists and two steals in the win over the Bisons. She finished with a season-best nine made field goals over 20 attempts and even made a career-high three from long distance.
"I talk about it all the time," Ulel said of Adderly post game. "To get a 1,000 rebounds, or even 500, that's hard. A 1,000 points for me is two or three points. She's individually getting one rebound at a time, and that's disgusting. She does everything. She's the heart of our team. I don't think she realizes like when she plays well, we're just so excited for her."
The win, which improved the Eagles to 10-2 all-time as a ranked Division I program, was the 100th for the program in Alico Arena in regular season conference play, and they've done it in just 102 games. On top of that, they extended the nation's fifth-longest conference winning streak to 29 straight.
"It's extremely fun," Ulel said of FGCU's home court advantage, which was north of 2,000 fans on Saturday. "It's something we can always count on. Even if our shooting isn't good, we know our fans are always going to be loyal. I can have a horrible game and our fans are going to come up to me and tell me I played so good. It's really exciting having a crowd to play for. We go to other schools, bigger schools, and their crowd isn't as big. It's really exciting to have committed fans like that."
In addition to Adderly, FGCU received 44 points combined from the trio of senior Nasrin Ulel (18), redshirt senior Keri Jewett-Giles (16) and and redshirt junior Kerstie Phills (10).
Redshirt senior Davion Wingate also added nine points, while Jewett-Giles finished second on the team with five rebounds and led the way with three steals. Phills also added four rebounds and did her damage in just 21 minutes.
Ulel, who had five double-digit scoring performances over the season's first 11 games, now has four such outings over the past five, which included a season-high 27 in a win over Duke on Dec. 29. Over the recent streak, she is averaging 17.8 per contest.
"She's someone who hurt her finger, and I couldn't get her to sit out," Smesko said of Ulel. "She was playing through it even though she couldn't really catch the ball because she wanted to be out there and help her teammates. Now, her hand feels good and her shot feels better. And you can see it's opening up some other things. She's able to drive to the basket and shot fake and step through or get all the way to the rim. It's good to see her progression."
Over the game's first 20 minutes, FGCU struggled to get going as a team, shooting just 4-for-23 from long distance, including 1-for-10 in the opening quarter. Adderly and Jewett-Giles each had eight points during that stretch as the Eagles used strong defense to hold Lipscomb to a 7-for-22 first-half performance from the field, which allowed the Green and Blue to open up a 32-23 lead.
The third frame saw Adderly finish 6-for-10 from the field for 13 points and four rebounds as the Eagles stretched their margin to 13. They produced 10 points off turnovers in the quarter alone and shot 10-for-18 from the field as a team, which was just three fewer field goals made than they had the entire first half.
FGCU continued to ramp it up in the final quarter, shooting 8-for-13 and outscoring Lipscomb 24-11 in the frame as Ulel had nine points in just over seven minutes on 4-for-5 shooting.
Overall, the Eagles outscored Lipscomb 30-4 in points off turnovers and held advantages in paint points (40-22), second-chance points (13-2), fast break points (8-2) and bench points (8-2).
FGCU will be back in action Monday against Liberty (8-6, 1-0) at 7 p.m. inside Alico Arena in a rematch of last year's A-SUN title game.
Notes:
With the win, FGCU remains tied for the most in the nation with 14.
In addition to her program and conference recognition, Adderly also ranks third among active NCAA Division I players in career rebounds.
In Charlie Creme's latest NCAA bracketology, FGCU is slotted as a No. 8 seed with a predicted first-round matchup against No. 9 Creighton in Corvallis.
The Eagles are now 26-0 all-time against Lipscomb, having won every game by double-digits.
FGCU WBB vs Duke Recap
The duo of Davion Wingate (30) and Nasrin Ulel (27) combined to outscore the entire opposition as the FGCU women's basketball team (13-2) produced a decisive 78-56 win over Duke (7-5) inside Alico Arena on Sunday to conclude the non-conference portion of the schedule.
"We're excited to get a big win over a good team," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "I thought their length and athleticism had us a little out of sorts early. We did a better job of moving the ball and attacking once the second quarter came. I thought the biggest part of the game was the beginning of the third quarter when we came out and made a bunch of plays. Davion went off, hit a bunch of threes, and we did a good job finding her when she was open. It was a great team effort."
In addition to Wingate and Ulel, Ashli O'Neal added 12 points along with a season and game-high four steals as the trio combined for 69 of FGCU's 78 points. Tytionia Adderly had a career-high 10 assists to go along with nine rebounds. O'Neal, who missed the team's win over Temple, returned to register her fourth double-figure scoring output of the season. Her previous season-high in steals was three against Johnson and Wales.
Wingate became the first player in program history to record back-to-back games with at least 30 points. She made 10 field goals for the second consecutive game and increased her 3-point field goal percentage on the season to .507 (37-for-73), which ranks among the top five in the nation.
Meanwhile, Ulel continued a hot stretch that has seen her produce two 20-plus point performances over the past four games. She finished 9-for-14 overall from the field, including 4-for-7 from 3-point range, and is now averaging 17.8 points since Dec. 17.
Duke's Haley Gorecki (19) and Kyra Lambert (10), who combined for 29 points, each made a 3-pointer as the Blue Devils jumped out to 8-3 and 10-6 leads to open the game. Following that hot start, though, FGCU's defense held them to a 1-for-15 finish from 3-point range over the game's final 37 minutes.
Meanwhile, after opening 3-for-15 from the field as a team over the first 10 minutes, FGCU went 18-for-30 combined over the next two quarters as the duo of Ulel and Wingate took over.
Ulel shot 5-for-5 from the field, including 3-for-3 from 3-point range, while scoring 17 of her 20 first-half points in the second quarter alone. O'Neal also scored seven of her 12 points in the frame. Wingate then scored 16 points on 6-for-9 shooting (4-for-7 from 3-point range) in the third quarter to help FGCU stretch a seven-point halftime lead to 17 entering the fourth.
Notes:
FGCU is now 7-10 all-time against the ACC, which signifies their most wins against any Power 5 conference.
Following her nine rebounds, Adderly is now nine shy of becoming the first player in program history, including just the third active NCAA Division I player, to record 1,000 in her career.
Wingate now has 56 career double-digit scoring games, which the most among any player on the roster, and she also tallied her 15th career-game with 20 or more points, which is also a team-best. Impressively, it was also her fifth such performance of the season, including her third with 25 or more.
As a team, the Eagles made 11 3-pointers, which increased their nation-best total to 190. It was the team's 10th game this year with double-digits.
"We're excited to get a big win over a good team," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "I thought their length and athleticism had us a little out of sorts early. We did a better job of moving the ball and attacking once the second quarter came. I thought the biggest part of the game was the beginning of the third quarter when we came out and made a bunch of plays. Davion went off, hit a bunch of threes, and we did a good job finding her when she was open. It was a great team effort."
In addition to Wingate and Ulel, Ashli O'Neal added 12 points along with a season and game-high four steals as the trio combined for 69 of FGCU's 78 points. Tytionia Adderly had a career-high 10 assists to go along with nine rebounds. O'Neal, who missed the team's win over Temple, returned to register her fourth double-figure scoring output of the season. Her previous season-high in steals was three against Johnson and Wales.
Wingate became the first player in program history to record back-to-back games with at least 30 points. She made 10 field goals for the second consecutive game and increased her 3-point field goal percentage on the season to .507 (37-for-73), which ranks among the top five in the nation.
Meanwhile, Ulel continued a hot stretch that has seen her produce two 20-plus point performances over the past four games. She finished 9-for-14 overall from the field, including 4-for-7 from 3-point range, and is now averaging 17.8 points since Dec. 17.
Duke's Haley Gorecki (19) and Kyra Lambert (10), who combined for 29 points, each made a 3-pointer as the Blue Devils jumped out to 8-3 and 10-6 leads to open the game. Following that hot start, though, FGCU's defense held them to a 1-for-15 finish from 3-point range over the game's final 37 minutes.
Meanwhile, after opening 3-for-15 from the field as a team over the first 10 minutes, FGCU went 18-for-30 combined over the next two quarters as the duo of Ulel and Wingate took over.
Ulel shot 5-for-5 from the field, including 3-for-3 from 3-point range, while scoring 17 of her 20 first-half points in the second quarter alone. O'Neal also scored seven of her 12 points in the frame. Wingate then scored 16 points on 6-for-9 shooting (4-for-7 from 3-point range) in the third quarter to help FGCU stretch a seven-point halftime lead to 17 entering the fourth.
Notes:
FGCU is now 7-10 all-time against the ACC, which signifies their most wins against any Power 5 conference.
Following her nine rebounds, Adderly is now nine shy of becoming the first player in program history, including just the third active NCAA Division I player, to record 1,000 in her career.
Wingate now has 56 career double-digit scoring games, which the most among any player on the roster, and she also tallied her 15th career-game with 20 or more points, which is also a team-best. Impressively, it was also her fifth such performance of the season, including her third with 25 or more.
As a team, the Eagles made 11 3-pointers, which increased their nation-best total to 190. It was the team's 10th game this year with double-digits.
Up Next:
The Eagles, who are currently tied with Florida State (13-0) for the most victories in the nation, will open A-SUN play next Saturday at 4 p.m. against Lipscomb in Alico Arena. It was the team's second win over an ACC opponent this year (Notre Dame), and FGCU improved to 2-1 against Power 5 teams on the season.
FGCU WBB vs Duke Preview
The FGCU women's basketball team (12-2), which is currently tied with Florida State and South Carolina for the most wins in the nation, will conclude its non-conference slate against one of the most recognizable names in collegiate athletics when the Eagles square off against Duke (7-4) at 2 p.m. on Sunday.
The Green and Blue, who are looking to avenge last year's 57-41 loss to the Blue Devils, are coming off one of the team's best performances of the season with a 93-67 win over Temple on the road. In that game, Davion Wingate registered a career-high 31 points and joined Keri Jewett-Giles (35 points vs LSU) as the first set of FGCU teammates to combine for back-to-back 30-point performances in program history.
Wingate finished 10-for-15 from the field, including 6-for-8 from long distance, while making all five of her foul shots in topping her previous career-high of 29 set earlier this year against UCF.
Jewett-Giles added 20 points against Temple to conclude a week that saw her average 23 points, five assists, 3.7 rebounds and 3.3 rebounds over three games. In doing so, she was selected as the A-SUN player of the week for the fifth time in her career, which ties her with Sarah Hansen for the second-most such awards in program history behind Whitney Knight (7).
Previewing Duke:
The Blue Devils are coming off an 89-46 loss to No. 5 South Carolina on the road Dec. 19. Sophomore Miela Goodchild, who is close to becoming the quickest player in Duke women's basketball history to reach 100 career 3-pointers, led the team with 11 points as the Blue Devils were hurt by a season-high 30 turnovers that led to 41 points for the Gamecocks.
Duke's four losses, aside from South Carolina, have come against Texas A&M (79-58 on Nov. 10), Northwestern (63-42 on Nov. 17) and Nebraska (83-79 on Dec. 4).
Livestats Link: http://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=280889
Livestream Link: https://www.espn.com/watch?id=8c604002-15a9-416f-840e-e81b41f4bcdf
Audio Livestream: https://goduke.com/watch/?Archive=2140&type=Archive
The Green and Blue, who are looking to avenge last year's 57-41 loss to the Blue Devils, are coming off one of the team's best performances of the season with a 93-67 win over Temple on the road. In that game, Davion Wingate registered a career-high 31 points and joined Keri Jewett-Giles (35 points vs LSU) as the first set of FGCU teammates to combine for back-to-back 30-point performances in program history.
Wingate finished 10-for-15 from the field, including 6-for-8 from long distance, while making all five of her foul shots in topping her previous career-high of 29 set earlier this year against UCF.
Jewett-Giles added 20 points against Temple to conclude a week that saw her average 23 points, five assists, 3.7 rebounds and 3.3 rebounds over three games. In doing so, she was selected as the A-SUN player of the week for the fifth time in her career, which ties her with Sarah Hansen for the second-most such awards in program history behind Whitney Knight (7).
Previewing Duke:
The Blue Devils are coming off an 89-46 loss to No. 5 South Carolina on the road Dec. 19. Sophomore Miela Goodchild, who is close to becoming the quickest player in Duke women's basketball history to reach 100 career 3-pointers, led the team with 11 points as the Blue Devils were hurt by a season-high 30 turnovers that led to 41 points for the Gamecocks.
Duke's four losses, aside from South Carolina, have come against Texas A&M (79-58 on Nov. 10), Northwestern (63-42 on Nov. 17) and Nebraska (83-79 on Dec. 4).
Livestats Link: http://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=280889
Livestream Link: https://www.espn.com/watch?id=8c604002-15a9-416f-840e-e81b41f4bcdf
Audio Livestream: https://goduke.com/watch/?Archive=2140&type=Archive
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