The Matchup: Northern Colorado (6-4) @ FGCU (8-2)
When: Friday, Dec. 19 | 4:30 p.m.
Where: Alico Arena (4,333)
Tickets: Available online or at the Alico Arena Ticket Office
Promotion: Fans are encouraged to bring toy donations for Toys for Tots and wear holiday sweaters
Video: ESPN3 with Tom James and J. Webb Horton
Live Stats: via Statbroadcast
Hashtags: #WingsUp | #WeAreFGCU | #RainingThrees
Series History: First meeting
Game Notes: FGCU  |  Northern Colorado 
 
FORT MYERS, Fla. – As the year 2014 winds down, the FGCU women's basketball team will host Northern Colorado Friday afternoon in its final home contest of the calendar year. The Eagles welcome the Bears to Alico Arena for a 4:30 p.m. contest, which will be followed by the men's basketball team's game against Furman at 7:30 p.m.
 
Fans are encouraged to bring a new, unwrapped toy to the game as part of the Toys for Tots campaign. Boxes will be available immediately upon entry into Alico Arena at the marketing table. Both the men's and women's basketball programs will deliver the toys – which have been collected at all home December basketball games – to the Children's Hospital of Southwest Florida on Saturday, Dec. 20.
 
Additionally, fans are encouraged to wear their best holiday sweater as the FGCU Athletics marketing team will be handing out free candy canes for those in the best sweaters.
 
HOW TO FOLLOW
The game – presented by Pita Pit - can be viewed live on ESPN3 free of charge with Tom James and J. Webb Horton on the call.  Fans can also find live in-game updates on twitter (@FGCU_WBB) and through live stats available via StatBroadcast.
 
GAME DAY TWEETABLES
1. FGCU currently ranks second in the nation with 10.9 3-pointers made per game. The team sits behind only Sacramento State (13.3).
 
2. Three of the Eagles' five probable starters average 9.0 points per game or more with Dunson leading the team with 39 assists.
 
3. After setting a new FGCU DI record with 33 points against Providence, Kaneisha Atwater was named the #ASunWBB Player of the Week.
 
4. The Eagles currently average 1.12 points per possession to rank sixth in the nation behind just UConn, Baylor, Notre Dame, South Carolina & Washington.
 
5. With 109 made long-range buckets, 39.9 percent of the team's points come from beyond-the-arc.
 
THE GREEN AND BLUE
FGCU continues nonconference action with a record of 8-2 after going 2-1 in the U.S. Virgin Islands and picking up wins over Southern Mississippi, Providence and Bethune Cookman in the month of December. The team's two losses came in close contests with a three-point loss at Auburn and a double-overtime defeat at the hands of Ohio State, which has helped its RPI rise to the current mark of 48. The team's most recent victory came Wednesday night at Bethune-Cookman as all 12 players who saw action contributed to a 91-46 victory.
 
Backed by five-time Coach of the Year Karl Smesko, the Eagles returned two double-figure scorers in juniors Whitney Knight (Winston-Salem, N.C./R.J. Reynolds High School) and Stephanie Haas (Avon Lake, Ohio/Magnificat High School) for the 2014-15 slate. Knight and Haas joined senior Jenna Cobb (New Holland, Ohio/Miami Trace High School/Butler) as this season's Preseason All-Conference award winners with Knight voted as Preseason Player of the Year.
 
Junior Kaneisha Atwater (Fort Pierce, Fla./Fort Pierce Westover High School) and Knight have swapped time as the team's point leader with Knight currently pacing the team with 14.6 points per game. After setting a new FGCU Division I single-game program record with 33 points in the win over Providence Atwater is averaging 14.4 points per contest to rank second on the team. Haas is also contributing double figures with 12.0, while Cobb sits just behind the trio with 9.0 points per game in addition to her 31 assists and 21 steals.
 
Knight leads the squad all around with 20 blocks and 25 steals on the year, while DyTiesha Dunson (Albany, Ga./Westover High School) has dished out a team-high 39 assists in nine games so far.
 
Redshirt-freshman Taylor Gradinjan (Cudahy, Wisc./Cudahy High School) put up a career-high 23 points against Southern Miss. and is now averaging 6.3 points in 10 games. The technical newcomer earned her first A-Sun weekly honor for the performance following Knight's Player of the Week nod. Atwater conjoined the duo to make it three straight for the Eagles during the month of December.
 
As a unit, the Eagles average 81.8 points per game, while holding foes to 60.2 points per contest. The team holds a shooting percentage of .475 with a 3-point percentage of .402 so far this year. The Eagles rank second in the NCAA and first among the Atlantic Sun with 10.9 shots made from the perimeter. Defensively, the Green and Blue have been narrowly outrebounded, 35.0 to 35.7 per game this year but hold an advantage in turnovers, 12.4 to 19.3 and steals, 10.4 to 6.1.
 
The Eagles currently lead the Atlantic Sun Conference in points per game, scoring margin, field-goal percentage, 3-point percentage, assists, turnover margin, assist to turnover ratio, rebounding defense and steals per game.
 
LAST TIME OUT
In the team's second true road game of the season, the FGCU women's basketball team defeated Bethune-Cookman 91-46 Wednesday night at Moore Gymnasium in Daytona Beach. With contributions from all 12 players, the Eagles improved to 8-2 on the season, while the Wildcats fell to 3-8.
 
The Eagles used an 11-0 run early in the first half to take hold of a double-figure lead and never let go of the advantage. After possessing a 41-25 lead at halftime, the Green and Blue constructed an 18-0 streak to start the second half and break open the game. FGCU increased its advantage to a game high 49 points late in the contest and ultimately earned its eighth win of the season at 91-46.
 
As a team, the Eagles shot 54 percent from the field with a 45 percent success rate from 3-point range, while holding the home team to just 34 percent. The Green and Blue converted 14-of-17 shots from the free-throw line and outrebounded BCU 37-29. FGCU forced 19 turnovers with 14 steals and recorded just six miscues on the night.
 
Individually, Haas and Knight led the team with 17 points each, while Atwater added nine for the Eagles. Anthi Chatzigiakoumi (Athens, Greece/General Senior High School of Kallithea) paced the team's rebounding effort with six with Knight adding five. Knight also led the team and matched her career high with six steals.
 
ALL-TIME MEETINGS WITH THE BEARS
FGCU and Northern Colorado meet for the first time ever Friday evening in Fort Myers. In total, the Bears are the Eagle's 140th foe through 13 years as a program with FGCU holding a record of 103-36 all time in first-time meetings. This season, FGCU stands at 4-2 against new opponents.
 
SCOUTING THE VISITORS
- After being selected to finish fourth in the Big Sky in the preseason coaches' poll, the Northern Colorado Bears travel to Fort Myers with a record of 6-4 on the season. The team opened the year with four-straight wins but has fallen in four of its last six games, including a recent 84-43 loss at South Florida. The Bears are 3-3 on the road and 2-3 in the month of December. With the strong start, the Bears have picked up votes in the recent CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 but they currently hold an RPI rating of 178.
 
-As a team, the Bears average 61.2 points per game, while holding opponents to just 55 points per game for the best defensive mark in the Big Sky. UNC maintains a success rate of just 39 percent from the field but has stifled its opponents to a mark of 35 percent. The team makes 5.8 shots from beyond-the-arc per game and has narrowly outrebounded foes 38.5 to 38.3 per game. The Bears average 14.5 assists and 7.9 steals per contest with 13.9 turnovers.  They best opponents in all three categories.
 
-Individually, UNC is led by a duo of senior scorers. Stephanie Lee and D'Shara Strange average 16.5 and 12.6 points per game, respectively, to combine for 45 percent of the team's scoring. Strange also leads the team's rebounding efforts at 7.0 per game and paces the team with 28 steals.  Lee leads the team with 24 blocks and has shot 47 percent from the field this year.  Senior Lindsay Mallon has dished out 36 assists this season to facilitate the offense, while juniors Kyleigh Hiser and Rebecca Howell stand as the team's most efficient shooters.
 
-Head coach Kamie Ethridge is in her first season at the helm of Northern Colorado after serving as the associate head coach at Kansas State for the last 18 seasons. Ethridge's assistants, Deb Patterson, Kelly Moylan and Shalee Lehning also have ties to K-State.
 
HOME COURT ADVANTAGE
The Eagles currently holds a perfect 5-0 mark in games played at Alico Arena and is riding a 17-game win streak that dates back to last season.  In all, the team is 106-8 in all-time Division I games played at home.
 
POINTS PER POSSESSION
With a mark of 1.12 points scored per possession, FGCU currently ranks tied for sixth in the nation in points per possession. The Eagles sit behind only UConn, Baylor, Notre Dame, South Carolina and Washington and are tied with Iowa State. The team's mark of 1.47 points per possession against FIU stands at the strongest performance of the season.
 
PRESEASON PREDICTIONS
On the heels of four-consecutive regular season championships and the team's second Atlantic Sun Championship in three years, the Eagles were once against picked to win the Atlantic Sun in the annual preseason coaches' poll.
 
With 62 points and six first-place votes, the Eagles finished four points ahead of in-state rival Stetson University.  The Hatters garnered two first-place votes to finish second in the poll with 58 points. The Green and Blue picked up 11 first-place votes in the media poll for 123 total points, with Stetson earning four top nods and 104 total points.
 
The 2013-14 defending Atlantic Sun Champions earned three wins over the Hatters last season, including the regular season finale and the Atlantic Sun Conference Championship Final. With help from those wins, the Eagles finished with their fourth-straight regular season title and earned their second tournament championship title in three seasons.
 
In addition to the team's predicted success, three individuals also garnered preseason All-Conference accolades.  As a former First Team All-Conference member, Knight picked up the Player of the Year nod, while Cobb and Haas also earned spots on the 10-member Preseason All-Conference team.
 
MID-MAJOR MADNESS
After concluding the 2013-14 season ranked at no. 10 in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top-25, the Eagles opened the season at no. 11. Since then, the Green and Blue jumped to no. 5, behind only James Madison, Green Bay, Princeton and Chattanooga. Of the team's opponents this season, four rank among the top-25 – Wichita State (6), Quinnipiac (16), Stetson (18), Cal-State Northridge (19), while Arkansas State, Harvard and Northern Colorado are also receiving votes.
 
1. James Madison       6. Wichita State
2. Green Bay              7. Gonzaga
3. Princeton                8. UALR
4. Chattanooga           9. BYU
5. FGCU                    10. South Dakota State
 
SMESKO'S PREPERATION
Smesko's game preparation is one of the most crucial factors in the Eagles' all-time success.  Last season, the team went 14-2 in games when they had four or more days to prepare.  In 13 seasons, Smesko holds a record of 111-20 in games with that much time for preparing for a win percentage of 84 percent. 
 
FOR MORE INFO
For all the details on the matchup check out:
 
UP NEXT
Following Friday's contest, the Eagles will hit the road to ring in the New Year. FGCU will face Arkansas State in Jonesboro, Ark. On Monday, Dec. 22 and will reconvene in Philadelphia for the Saint Joseph's Hawk Classic Dec. 28 and 29. Following the two-game tournament, the team will wrap up nonconference action with a game at Harvard Jan. 2.
 
Single-game tickets for all FGCU women's basketball games are on sale online at FGCUAthletics.com, over the phone at 239-590-7145 or in person at the Alico Arena Box Office.
 
Group sales for women's basketball games are available for parties of 20 or more at a discounted rate.  Beginning this season, groups will receive the opportunity for to upgrade their package to include chairback seats, a PA announcement and a special FGCU group T-Shirt at a cost of $10.
 
For up-to-the minute information on the FGCU women's basketball team, stay tuned to FGCUAthletics.com and follow the official Twitter of FGCU women's basketball at @FGCU_WBB.
 
Head coach Karl Smesko earned his fourth-consecutive Atlantic Sun Coach of the Year award after a successful 2013-14 campaign. Under his direction, the team completed the season with a record of 26-8, including a 17-1 mark in conference action and won the program's 300th win in January. Smesko guided the Eagles to their fourth-consecutive regular season championship and went undefeated in the A-Sun Conference tournament to win their second Tournament Championship in three seasons.  The 2013-14 season marked the 10th-consecutive season in which a Smesko coached team won at least 20 games.  He has recorded 322 wins at FGCU with 117 Atlantic Sun victories.  The five-time Atlantic Sun Coach of the Year ranks among an elite list of just four active Division I coaches with a career win percentage of .800 or higher.  Smesko joins Connecticut's Geno Auriemma, Baylor's Kim Mulkey and Stanford's Tara VanDerveer in the esteemed group.