FGCU (6-3) vs St. Thomas (2-5)FGCU Head Coach: Karl Smesko | Walsh '97 | 14
th Season at FGCU: 351-70 (83.4%) | 17
th Season as Head Coach: 412-97 (80.8%)
St. Thomas Head Coach: Albrey Grimsley | Miami '08 | 3rd Season at STU: 46-22 (67.6%)
When: Tuesday, Dec. 15 | 7 p.m.
Where: Alico Arena | Fort Myers, Fla.
Watch: ESPN3 with David Moulton and J. Webb Horton on the call
Stats: via
StatbroadcastGame Series: First Meeting
FORT MYERS, Fla. – As the winners of three-straight games, the FGCU women's basketball team returns to the friendly confines of Alico Arena for a Tuesday night tilt against St. Thomas University. Tipoff against the NAIA foe from the Miami area is set for 7 p.m.
The Eagles continue the 2015-16 slate with a record of 6-3 after picking up another road win at Providence on Saturday afternoon. The team is 5-0 in road games so far with a 1-2 mark at Alico Arena.
Kaneisha Atwater (Fort Pierce, Fla./Fort Pierce Westwood High School/VCU) leads the team with an average of 16.8 points per game through the season's nine games. Atwater is also pacing the team with 6.3 rebounds per contest and 14 total steals. Atwater scored 27 points in the win over Harvard last week and was named the Atlantic Sun Player of the Week.
Sophomores
Haley Laughter (Asheville, N.C./Carolina Day) and
Taylor Gradinjan (Cudahy, Wisc./Cudahy High School) have also contributed heavily on offense for the Green and Blue with 11.4 and 9.7 points per game, respectively. Laughter and Gradinjan have combined for 43 of the team's 3-point shots with Gradinjan topping the team with a 44.2 percent success rate from beyond-the-arc.
Senior captain
DyTiesha Dunson (Albany, Ga./Westover High School) has dished out a team-high 40 assists and has added 6.6 points in a team-high 35.1 minutes per game. Dunson has turned the ball over just 20 times and has grabbed 13 steals so far this season.
In her return from injury, senior
Whitney Knight (Winston-Salem, N.C./R.J. Reynolds High School) produced her 12th career double double with 16 points and 10 rebounds in just 19 minutes. As she continues to recover from the foot injury, Knight's minutes will increase but her presence on the court has been evident immediately.
As a team, the Green and Blue have averaged 63.4 points per game through the early season with a 39.7 percent clip from the field. The team has made 80 3-pointers, at a rate of 8.9 per game and has been narrowly outrebounded by opponents 35.1 to 39.2 boards per game.
QUICK HITS: TWEETABLES• FGCU is averaging 8.9 3-pointers per game with a 31.1 percent clip from beyond-the-arc #RainingThrees
• Reigning #ASunWBB Player of the Year
Whitney Knight is cleared to play after missing the first eight games of the season with a foot injury
• Georgia transfer
Sydnei McCaskill became eligible for competition Saturday after sitting out for two semesters at FGCU
• Despite a heavy height advantage for the Friars, FGCU outrebounded PC 42-36 in Saturday's win
• The 50 points scored at PC stands as the lowest in a win this season
GAME DAY INFORMATIONTickets are still available and can be purchased by visiting FGCUAthletics.com/tickets, calling the Ticket Office at 239-590-7145 or by visiting the Alico Arena Ticket Office.
All FGCU home games will be streamed live via ESPN3 this season with David Moulton and J. Webb Horton on the call Saturday night. Live stats will be available through FGCUStats.com, while fans can also find live, in-game updates on Twitter by following @FGCU_WBB.
Fans are encouraged to bring new, unwrapped toys 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. On Thursday, Dec. 17, the team join the men's basketball program to deliver all the donated toys to a local children's hospital.
SHE'S BACKKnight returns to play after missing the first eight games with a foot injury. Although cleared for competition, her minutes are likely to be limited as she continues recovery and gets back to game speed. She played 19 minutes in the win at Providence this weekend but let all players with 16 points and added 10 rebounds with two blocked shots.
Knight stands as the team's top returner from last season as she averaged 14.8 points per game with 6.4 rebounds per contest. As a junior, she also led the team with 66 steals, 87 blocks and 91 3-pointers. She finished the season as the A-Sun Player of the Year and was the nation's only player to lead a league in both blocks and 3-pointers.
During her senior campaign, Knight will continue to climb the FGCU and A-Sun record books. She currently holds all FGCU program records in blocks with nine in a single game, 93 in a single season and 233 and counting in her career. The senior also became FGCU's fourth player ever to record 1,000 career points and 500 career rebounds last year and now ranks fifth all-time with 1,166 career points and fifth with 516 rebounds. The block mark also ranks fifth among the A-Sun career record books.
| FGCU POINTS RECORD | | FGCU REBOUND RECORD | A-SUN BLOCK RECORD | |
| PLAYER | PTS | | PLAYER | REB | | PLAYER | BLOCKS |
| 1.Sarah Hansen | 1,895 | | 1.Sarah Hansen | 882 | | 1.Jessica Bobbitt (Belmont 05-09) | 309 |
| 2.Adrianne McNally | 1,415 | | 2.Adrianne McNally | 658 | | 2.Katie Beth Pate (Lipscomb 03-07) | 254 |
| 3.Kelsey Jacobson | 1,251 | | 3.Robyn Swain | 640 | | 3.Albena Branzova (FIU 91-95) | 250 |
| 4.Shannon Murphy | 1,185 | | 4.Courtney Chihil | 601 | | 4. Denise Hogue (CoC 91-93) | 248 |
| 5.Whitney Knight | 1,182 | | 5. Whitney Knight | 526 | | 5. Whitney Knight | 233 |
THE MATCHUP: ST. THOMASAfter five-straight contests against NCAA Division I opponents from the 2014-15 season, the Green and Blue hosts NAIA foe St. Thomas. Tuesday marks the team's first-ever meeting.
SCOUTING THE BOBCATS• St. Thomas enters Tuesday's game with a record of 2-5 this season. The Bobcats fell in their first five games before rebounding with wins over Puerto Rico-Mayaguez and Keiser University.
• In her third year, Albrey Grimsley has led STU to a 46-22 record, including a 27-5 mark last season.
• Senior Desanta' Frankin-Jordan leads STU with 10.3 points and 4.1 rebounds per game, while rookie Wilisha Griener has shot 54.8 percent from the floor to add 7.7 points per game.
• As a team, STU averaged 55.5 points per game compared to its opponents 67.3 points per outing. The Bobcats shoot 40.8 percent from the field with a 32.5 percent clip from 3-point range.
• STU has pulled down 29.6 rebounds per game with 18.7 turnovers and 9.3 steals per contest.
UP NEXT The Eagles travel to San Juan later this week for a three-game series as part of the Puerto Rico Classic. The Green and Blue will face Mississippi State, Arizona and Western Michigan between Dec. 19 and 21.
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. TICKET SALESSeason tickets for the 2015-16 season are still available but selling quickly. Ticket packages range from $133 for general admission to $366 for club-level seating. A complete breakdown is below. Fans can secure their season tickets by calling the FGCU Ticket Office at 239-590-7145 Monday-Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. or by emailing tickets@fgcu.edu. For reserved seating, membership to the Eagles Club may be required depending on priority level. The Eagles Club is the official booster organization for FGCU Athletics which provides financial support for each of the Eagles' 15 Division-I programs. For a detailed seating map and additional ticket information, visit FGCUAthletics.com/Tickets. Priority 1: $266Priority 2: $166General Admission: $133 Faculty and staff members as well as alumni association members interested in season tickets receive a 20 percent discount on packages. Combination packages with the FGCU men's basketball team are also available through the Ticket Office. Single-game tickets for all FGCU women's basketball games are not on sale. Fans can purchase tickets online at FGCUAthletics.com, over the phone at 239-590-7145 or in person at the Alico Arena Box Office. SMESKOHead coach Karl Smesko earned his fifth-consecutive Atlantic Sun Coach of the Year award after a successful 2014-15 campaign. Under his direction, the team compiled with a Division I program best record of 31-3, including a 14-0 mark in conference action and earned its first-ever national ranking. The team earned its third NCAA Tournament appearance as a seven seed and won its first ever DI NCAA Tournament gave against No. 10 Oklahoma State. With 31 wins in the 2014-15 season, Smesko has guided the Eagles to 11-straight 20+ win seasons. He maintains a record of 351-70 at FGCU for a win percentage of 83.4 with a mark of 130-13 (91 W%) in Atlantic Sun contests and has led the team to a 67-1 record in conference play in the last four seasons. The six-time Atlantic Sun Coach of the Year earned his 400th career win this season in just 493 career games, two games faster than UConn's Geno Auriemma and holds a career record of 412-97 (80.8 W%). Smesko ranks among an elite list of just four active Division I coaches with a career win percentage of .800 or higher, joining Auriemma, Baylor's Kim Mulkey and Stanford's Tara VanDerveer in the esteemed group. 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.
