COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The FGCU men's basketball team (4-4) out-shot, nearly out-rebounded and played No. 18 Texas A&M (7-1) even in the second half, but an uncharacteristic 21 turnovers hurt the Eagles as they fell short against the Aggies Wednesday night, 75-65.
 
Sophomore Christian Terrell (Jacksonville, Fla./Providence HS) led FGCU in scoring for the third-straight game with 14 points, while redshirt freshman Zach Johnson (Miami, Fla./Norland HS) tallied 13 for the Eagles, who shot 47.2 percent (25-53) from the floor against an A&M team which knocked off then-No. 10 Gonzaga last week.
 
The Eagles nearly out-rebounded the SEC member, 38-37, but the Aggies finished the contest with a 21-5 edge in points off turnovers, a 12-6 advantage in second-chance points and a 17-6 differential in fastbreak points. Those three key areas proved to be too much for the young Eagles – who only received five total points from their seniors – to overcome despite holding the Aggies to 40.6 percent (26-64) from the floor.
 
As was the case with FGCU's game at Florida last Friday, the Eagles' big men and upperclassmen got into first-half foul trouble. That prompted head coach Joe Dooley to once again go to his deep, but young, bench as FGCU ended the opening stanza with three freshmen and two sophomores on the floor and faced a 39-29 deficit.
 
The comeback was made even harder in the second half when redshirt senior Julian DeBose (Washington, D.C./Rice/St. John College HS) re-aggravated an ankle injury while fouling a 3-point shooter in the opening minute and did not return. DeBose – who sat out the final eight minutes of the first half after picking up two fouls – finished with just two points in 11 minutes, while fellow redshirt senior Filip Cvjeticanin (Zagreb, Croatia/American School of Madrid) netted just three points on 1-5 from beyond the arc.
 
"We dug ourselves too big of a hole in the first half," commented Dooley. "The difference in the game was points off turnovers, second-chance points and fastbreak points, and you can't spot a good team like Texas A&M opportunities like that and expect to win. We made some uncharacteristic turnovers, but hopefully our young guys are able to learn from those mistakes."
 
Texas A&M was the first nationally-ranked opponent FGCU had faced since its historical run to the Sweet Sixteen as a 15 seed in 2013. The Aggies were coming off a loss to Syracuse in the championship game of the Battle 4 Atlantis, but had started the season 6-0, including victories over Texas, fellow Atlantic Sun Conference member USC Upstate, 104-64, and aforementioned Gonzaga.
 
Redshirt junior Demetris Morant (Miami, Fla./UNLV/Bishop Gorman HS) just missed a double-double with eight points and a season-high-tying nine rebounds for the second-straight game. Freshman Reggie Reid (Harlem, Ga./Harlem HS) added eight points, while redshirt sophomore Antravious Simmons (Miami, Fla./VCU/South Miami HS) had nine. Leading scorer and rebounder Marc-Eddy Norelia (Orlando, Fla./Tulane/Olympia HS) struggled and tallied just four points and one rebound in 20 minutes.
 
The 21 turnovers are tied for the most in the Dooley era, which is now early in its third season. The Eagles also committed 21 giveaways during the 2013-14 season at Mississippi State. Combined with the UF game last Friday, FGCU was out-scored off turnovers by a total of 47-11 against the two SEC members.
 
The Aggies were led by 22 points and seven rebounds from Jalen Jones and 15 points from Preseason All-SEC First Team member Danuel House. FGCU limited A&M to just 17.6 percent (3-17) from beyond the 3-point line, but the Aggies held a 40-32 edge in the paint.
 
FGCU played Texas A&M nearly even in the second half as each side scored 36 points, the points in the paint were equal at 20-20 and the points off turnover differential was just -4 for the Eagles, 7-3.
 
FGCU will remain on the road to face cross-state foe FIU on Sunday afternoon at 3:30. The Panthers are 4-3 on the year and will face Elon on Friday before entertaining the Eagles in a contest that will be broadcast on the American Sports Network. Fellow A-Sun member Stetson won at FIU Monday night, 81-75.
 
TICKET INFORMATION
Single-game tickets are currently on sale for all remaining home contests. For the latest ticket information, log on to FGCUAthletics.com or call the Alico Arena Ticket Office at 239-590-7145.

SOCIAL CENTRAL
For up-to-the-minute information and behind-the-scenes access to the men's basketball program, follow @FGCU_MBB on Twitter and Instagram, Like us on Facebook at /FGCUMBB and watch us on Snapchat at FGCU_MBB.
 
COACH DOOLEY 
FGCU is led by head coach Joe Dooley, who is in his third year with the Eagles in 2015-16 and coached six all-conference selections during his first two seasons. 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 third-straight 20-win season and third-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 seventh season overall as a head coach and has a record of 105-80 (.568), and in his 2+ years with FGCU is 48-28 (.632).

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.