SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Trailing with less than six minutes to play Thursday night in a key Atlantic Sun Conference men's basketball road game, FGCU (13-7, 3-1 A-Sun) had its seniors produce 11 of the final 15 points as the Eagles earned a crucial 71-68 victory over USC Upstate (13-7, 1-3 A-Sun) to remain just a game out of first place in the league standings.
 
Redshirt junior Julian DeBose (Washington, D.C./St. John College HS/Rice) recorded a season-high 18 points, 14 of which came in the first half, to lead a quartet of FGCU double-figure scorers. Senior Bernard Thompson (Conyers, Ga./Rockdale County HS) added 14, including a vital 3-pointer to extend the Eagles' lead to six with a little more than a minute remaining.
 
After playing just six minutes in the first half due to having two fouls, senior Brett Comer (Winter Park, Fla./Winter Park HS) tallied 10 points – five of which came in the final 3:12 of the contest. Redshirt senior Jamail Jones (Atlanta, Ga./Montverde Academy/Marquette) also added 10, including a huge baseline 3-pointer to help set the stage for the final five minutes of the contest.
 
With the game tied, 59-59, at the 3:30 mark, Comer drove, was fouled and completed the traditional three-point lead to give FGCU a 62-59 lead. The two sides then traded buckets over the next couple of trips before Thompson knocked down the aforementioned triple along the baseline in front of the Eagles' bench to extend the edge to 67-61 with 1:15 left and force an Upstate timeout.
 
Upstate responded with a pair of Ty Greene free throws which were matched on the ensuing FGCU possession by DeBose. The Spartans got the deficit all the way down to two, 70-68, with Comer going to the line for two free throws and 12 seconds left. After missing the first, he hit the second and FGCU head coach Joe Dooley called for time. Upstate got the ball into the frontcourt with ease, but the Eagles' perimeter defense – which ranks sixth in the nation – locked in and forced Upstate into two difficult looks which weren't close as FGCU won its sixth-straight meeting over the Spartans.
 
"We made shots early and that always helps. But the big thing that happened was that our first-shot defense was really good but they grabbed 13 offensive rebounds in the first half," Dooley said. "In the second half they extended their defense and we were able to dribble penetrate a little bit more to get some points in the paint.
 
"We've been asking a lot from Julian from an offensive and defensive standpoint and he continues to be another key option for us," Dooley added of the guard's night.
 
With the win – just FGCU's second on the road this year – the Eagles remain one game back of North Florida and Lipscomb in the A-Sun standings as both teams won Thursday evening to move to 4-0 in the league. One of those two teams won't finish the weekend that way as the two square off in Nashville on Saturday at 5 p.m. EST.
 
FGCU is alone in second place with its 3-1 record, one game clear of 2-2 Northern Kentucky and two games ahead of a trio of 1-3 clubs, including the Eagles' opponent on Saturday, Kennesaw State.
 
Greene, who leads the A-Sun in scoring, increased his 17.4 points-per-game average as the senior poured in a game-high 26 points for the Spartans, who have now lost three in a row after opening the season 13-4. Josh Cuthbertson came off the bench to finish as Upstate's lone other double-figure scorer with 11 while also grabbing a team-high-tying six rebounds.
 
The loss for Upstate is just its third at home in A-Sun action over the past two years, and FGCU is responsible for two of them as the Eagles earned a hard-fought 84-80 decision last year in the Hodge Center – the smallest Division-I gym in the nation. That game was eerily similar to Thursday's, with FGCU racing out to a fast start before allowing Upstate back into the contest and then making more plays at the end of regulation to hold on for the victory. Four of the last five meetings between FGCU and Upstate have now been decided by four points or less.
 
DeBose appeared to set for the tone for the night for him and the Eagles by knocking down a baseline 3-pointer on the first possession of the game. A pair of Thompson 3-pointers later, followed by a Comer knock down from beyond the arc, gave FGCU its first double-digit lead of the night, 16-5, just five minutes in as the Eagles hit four of their first five shots from long range.
 
The lead remained at 11 when Comer picked up his second foul at the 12:33 mark and sat for the duration of the half. However, on the strength of seven different scorers in the opening stanza, the Green and Blue was able to maintain a nine-point edge, 37-28, heading into halftime break. Once the Eagles got that 11-point advantage, they never led by fewer than five points the rest of the half.
 
Upstate quickly erased that deficit and tied the game for the first time not even five minutes into the second half at 41-41. However, FGCU responded with a 5-0 run before Upstate answered right back with a 7-2 stretch to tie the game for the second time, 48-48 with less than 12 minutes remaining. The Eagles built their advantage back up to four, 53-49, before Upstate eventually took its first lead on a Greene and-1 fastbreak finish.
 
FGCU's two primary big men Thursday - Nate Hicks (Panama City Beach, Fla./J.R. Arnold HS/Georgia Tech) and Demetris Morant (Miami, Fla./Bishop Gorman HS/UNLV) – combined for 12 points and 15 rebounds as Hicks tallied five points and corralled a team-best eight caroms, while Morant scored all of his points in the second half while also adding six of his seven boards.
 
FGCU will conclude its first A-Sun weekend roadtrip when it travels to Georgia to face Kennesaw State (6-14, 1-3 A-Sun) on Saturday afternoon at 2 on ESPN3 and the WatchESPN app. The Owls got their first league win of the season Thursday night by defeating Stetson at home, 88-82.
 
GAME NOTES: Comer led FGCU in assists for the 112th time in his career by issuing five helpers … he played all but one minute in the second half, and his 10 points pushed his career total over 1,300 (1,301) … FGCU converted 16 offensive rebounds into 19 second-chance points as the Eagles now have produced 77 such points through their first four A-Sun contests … Marc-Eddy Norelia added five points off the bench for FGCU … the Eagles shot 41 percent from the floor (24-58), while Upstate shot 43 percent (26-61) … FGCU's 3-point defense, which entered allowing opponents to connect at just a 26.9-percent clip, limited the Spartans to 20 percent (5-25).
 
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.