MACON, Ga. – On the eve of the Atlantic Sun Conference Men's Basketball Championship beginning, FGCU's Marc-Eddy Norelia and Zach Johnson were recognized for standout seasons as Norelia was named to the A-Sun First Team, while Johnson was tabbed as an A-Sun All-Freshmen Team member on Monday in voting conducted by the league's eight head coaches.
 
Norelia (Orlando, Fla./Tulane/Olympia HS) leads FGCU in nearly every offensive category as he ranks 6th in the A-Sun in scoring at 17.1 points per game, 2nd in rebounding at 9 per game and 5th in field-goal percentage at .535. The redshirt junior has been named A-Sun Player of the Week on three occasions this year, and it marks the 4th-straight year FGCU has had at least one representative on the A-Sun First Team – the longest such streak in the conference.
 
Johnson (Miami, Fla./Norland HS) came on strong in league action as he finished the year by reaching double-figure points in 14 of the last 17 games, closing the campaign by averaging 10.7 points per game en route to being a unanimous selection to the All-Freshmen Team. The redshirt point guard finished the year tied with his fellow freshman backcourt mate Reggie Reid (Harlem, Ga./Harlem HS) for the most assists in the A-Sun by a freshman with 97.
 
"The recognition for Marc-Eddy and Zach is extremely well-deserved," commented FGCU 3rd-year head coach Joe Dooley. "Marc-Eddy has put together one of the best years in program history and has been at the top of his game since the season started. Zach really came on strong as the year went along and accelerated his game during conference season."
 
A complete list of A-Sun postseason award winners can be found attached and below. North Florida's Dallas Moore was named A-Sun Player of the Year as he and teammate Beau Beech made up two of the First Team's five members. Jacksonville's Kori Babineaux and NJIT's Damon Lynn were also named to the First Team as every player on the First Team and Second Team were either juniors or seniors.
 
The 6-8 Norelia finished the year by posting six 20-point games in the final eight outings, and in A-Sun games his scoring average increased to 18.5 (6th in the league) and his rebound average to 9.4 (2nd in the conference). Norelia finished the year with an incredible 12 double-doubles, separating himself as the program's all-time single-season leader as the previous record was nine by Robinson Tisme in the inaugural 2002-03 campaign.
 
Norelia's 17.1 points-per-game average would be the best in Division-I program history (since 2007-08). His 514 points are 4th on the program's all-time single-season list, just 15 shy of moving into 3rd place and 67 shy of overtaking the record of 580 held by Ryan Hopkins in 2002-03.
 
Additionally, Norelia needs just five more rebounds to break the program's all-time single-season record for rebounds which is 274 held by Adam Liddell in 2006-07. Norelia's average or 9 per game would shatter the best single-season mark all-time in program history as only one other player (Liddell, 8.3 in '06-'07) has ever even averaged 8 per game in a season.
 
Johnson, meanwhile, was named A-Sun Newcomer of the Week twice during conference play and finished 3rd on the team in scoring for the year and 2nd on the club in league games as he averaged 13.4 – 3rd-most among all first-year players in the conference. With 322 points entering postseason play, Johnson has totaled the 4th-most points in single-season program history by a freshman, trailing only Christophe Varidel (345 in 2010-11), Bernard Thompson (368 in 2011-12) and Anthony Banks (374 in 2009-10).
 
After scoring 18 total points in the first four games of the year, Johnson exploded for 26 against Bowling Green on Nov. 23, shooting 11-13 from the floor to rank as the 6th-best shooting performance (84.6 percent) in single-game program history. Johnson steadily increased his scoring and assist averages throughout A-Sun action, and vastly improved his long-range shooting as he finished the conference slate with the highest 3-point percentage in the league at .471 (16-34).
 
Johnson's 49 assists in league games were 10 more than any other freshman in the conference. The 6-2 guard also put his strong frame to use particularly late in the year to get to the free-throw line as in three of the final four games of the season he combined to shoot 18-23, with the 18 makes representing nearly 30 percent of his conversions from the stripe on the year.
 
Johnson, Norelia and the rest of their teammates open the A-Sun Championship at home Tuesday night at 7:05 against 5th-seeded Kennesaw State (11-19, 7-7 A-Sun). The Eagles, who finished tied for 2nd in the A-Sun with an 8-6 record, received the 4th seed as a result of a three-team tiebreaker. FGCU is 17-13 on the year, and in each of its first four years of postseason eligibility have reached the tournament semifinals every single year and the final game in three of four years.
 
Tickets are still available ranging from $15-25 and can be purchased at FGCUTickets.com, by visiting the Alico Arena Ticket Office or by calling 239-590-7145.
 
2015-16 A-Sun Postseason Honors & Awards
Player of the Year: Dallas Moore, North Florida
Defensive Player of the Year: Demarcus Daniels, North Florida
*Newcomer of the Year: Kendrick Ray, Kennesaw State*
Freshman of the Year: Derick Newton, Stetson
Coaching Staff of the Year: North Florida (Matthew Driscoll)

A-Sun First Team All-Conference

Pos.	Name	School	Cl.	Hometown
*G	Dallas Moore	North Florida	Jr.	St. Petersburg, Fla.
F	Marc-Eddy Norelia	FGCU	Jr.	Orlando, Fla.
G	Kori Babineaux	Jacksonville	Sr.	Folsom, Calif.
G	Damon Lynn	NJIT	Jr.	Hillside, N.J.
F/G	Beau Beech	North Florida	Sr.	Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.

* Denotes Unanimous Selection

A-Sun Second Team All-Conference

Pos.	Name	School	Cl.	Hometown
G	Kendrick Ray	Kennesaw State	Jr.	Middletown, N.Y.
G	Yonel Brown	Kennesaw State	Sr.	Lawrenceville, Ga.
G	J.C. Hampton	Lipscomb	Jr.	Gainesville, Ga.
C	Michael Buchanan	USC Upstate	Jr.	Las Vegas, Nev.
F	Brian Pegg	Stetson	Jr.	Clearwater, Fla.

A-Sun All-Freshmen Team

Pos.	Name	School	Hometown
*F	Derick Newton	Stetson	Beverly Hills, Calif.
*G	Garrison Mathews	Lipscomb	Franklin, Tenn.
*G	Zach Johnson	FGCU	Miami, Fla.
F	Eli Pepper	Lipscomb	Princeton, Ky.
G	Deion Holmes	USC Upstate	Chesnee, S.C.

 
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COACH DOOLEY 
FGCU is led by head coach Joe Dooley, who is in his 3rd year with the Eagles in 2015-16 and has coached eight all-conference selections. He guided FGCU to its first Atlantic Sun Conference Regular-Season Championship and first trip to the NIT in 2014, and in 2015 he led the Eagles to their 3rd-straight 20-win season and 3rd-straight postseason appearance with a berth in the CIT. Prior to arriving in SWFL, Dooley spent 10 seasons as an assistant at Kansas under head coach Bill Self. During those 10 seasons, Kansas produced 300 wins, nine-straight Big 12 regular-season titles, six Big 12 Tournament championships, six NCAA Sweet 16s, five NCAA Elite Eight appearances and two Final Fours, including the 2008 National Championship. Dooley is in his 7th season overall as a head coach and has a record of 118-89 (.570), and in his 2+ years with FGCU is 61-37 (.622).
 
SUPPORT THE CAUSE 
FGCU Athletics sponsors events throughout the year to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry) and the Harry Chapin Food Bank (www.harrychapinfoodbank.org), FGCU Athletics' charities of choice. For more information, including how to make a contribution, please visit www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.