ESTERO, Fla. – After falling behind 15-0 to start the game, the FGCU men's basketball team (5-1) was unable to overcome Green Bay (4-1) in the Gulf Coast Showcase final at Germain Arena Wednesday night as the Eagles fell to the Phoenix, 59-45.
 
Bernard Thompson (Conyers, Ga./Rockdale County HS) led FGCU for the second night in a row with 14 points, while fellow backcourt mate Brett Comer (Winter Park, Fla./Winter Park HS) added 10 as the only Green and Blue players in double-figure scoring.
 
Green Bay, which returns four starters from a 24-win team a season ago, raced out to that 15-0 start in the first seven minutes and held FGCU without a point until the 12:28 mark when Brian Greene Jr. (Chicago, Ill./Thornton Township HS/IMG Academy/Auburn) knocked down a pair of free throws. That spearheaded a 7-0 response from the Eagles, who eventually were able to get the deficit down to as little as five before trailing by only six at halftime, 26-20, despite shooting 25 percent from the field (7-28).
 
FGCU had started slow in each of its first two Gulf Coast Showcase games, but overcame those with quick second-half starts. However, that wasn't the case Wednesday as it was the Phoenix who opened the stanza on a 6-0 run to push their lead back to double figures, 32-20, and from there FGCU was never able to get closer than nine the rest of the night.
 
"Give credit to Green Bay. They were excellent on the backboard and when (Keifer) Sykes was in I thought he controlled the game," said FGCU head coach Joe Dooley. "I'm disappointed with the way we responded a few times and we'll have some things to work on."
 
Sykes, a John R. Wooden Award Preseason team selection, tallied a game-high 19 points to lead Green Bay en route to also being named Tournament MVP. Greg Mays scored 15 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to finish with a double-double as the Phoenix shot 45.1 percent from the floor (23-51) – a season-high for an FGCU opponent as the Eagles came in with the nation's 16th-best field-goal percentage defense at just .336.
 
Redshirt senior Marcus Blake (Miami, Fla./Heritage HS) – who had played just nine minutes all year, grabbed only three rebounds and hadn't scored – provided a spark off the FGCU bench as he tied his career high with four points and grabbed five rebounds in 17 minutes of action. Blake also issued a career-best three assists while not turning the ball over and going 2-2 from the free-throw line.
 
The 45 points for FGCU are the fewest in game since the Eagles also scored 45 against Campbell during the 2009-10 season. Additionally, the .273 percentage from the field (15-55) is the worst since going 25.4 percent at Arkansas in the 2010-11 campaign.
 
Green Bay was the fourth opponent in the last five games for FGCU which had won at least 20 games last season. All four of those teams finished last year with an RPI better than 110, and three were in the top-85 and played in postseason tournaments (Green Bay: 69/NIT).
 
The Eagles were again without the services of leading rebounding and second-leading scorer Jamail Jones (Atlanta, Ga./Montverde Academy) as the Marquette transfer served the final game of a three-game suspension for a violation of team rules. Jones entered the contest averaging 14 points and 9 rebounds per game. Additionally, FGCU was without highly-regarded redshirt freshman Logan Hovey (Orlando, Fla./Paul J. Hagerty HS) as the forward is day-to-day with an injury. Jones will make his return on Sunday, while the Eagles are anticipating having Hovey, giving FGCU a full complement of players for the first time this year.
 
That Sunday contest will take place against South Dakota State in Sioux Falls at the Sanford Pentagon. The Jackrabbits are 2-2 on the season after winning 19 contests a season ago. The game will be televised on FOX Sports North and tipoff is scheduled for 5 p.m. Eastern (4 p.m. local).
 
GAME NOTES: Comer and Thompson were both named to the All-Tournament Team … Thompson is now just six points shy of 1,500 for his career … Julian DeBose added seven points for FGCU … Comer issued five assists and now has 50 for the season … Green Bay outrebounded the Eagles, 41-33 … the Eagles were out-scored in second-chance points, 15-9, and trailed at one juncture, 13-0 … the attendance of 3,867 was a tournament record … Alec Lembecker and his grandfather, Dick, were honorary coaches for the game.
 
FOLLOW ALONG
General-admission tickets for all FGCU men's basketball games at Alico Arena are still available and can be purchased by logging on to FGCUAthletics.com/Tickets, in person at the Alico Arena Ticket Office or over the phone at 239-590-7145. For up-to-the-minute information and behind-the-scenes access to the men's basketball program, follow @FGCU_MBB on Twitter and Instagram, and "Like" us on Facebook at /FGCUMBB.
 
COACH DOOLEY 
FGCU is led by second-year head coach Joe Dooley, who coached three all-conference selections during his first season and guided FGCU to its first Atlantic Sun Conference Regular-Season Championship and first trip to the NIT. 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.
 
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 visitwww.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.