DUNK CITY, Fla. – The FGCU men's basketball team (6-5) continues an extremely challenging stretch on Tuesday at 7 p.m. when the Eagles welcome Louisiana Tech (9-2) to Alico Arena. The contest with the Bulldogs will conclude FGCU's pre-Christmas schedule and will also represent the middle of a three-game stretch of top-100 RPI opponents.
 
OPENING TIP
FGCU is coming off a disappointing 56-52 loss to South Dakota State on Saturday night in a game which the Eagles limited the Jackrabbits to just 30.9-percent shooting, but shot just 37 percent themselves. SDSU is now ranked 41st in the official RPI, while LA Tech enters for its first meeting against FGCU with an RPI of 73. After a brief Christmas break, FGCU – which is ranked 161 in the RPI – travels to face RPI 94 South Dakota on Dec. 28.
 
WHAT TO KNOW
Tickets are still available and can be secured by logging on to FGCUAthletics.com/Tickets or by visiting the Alico Arena Ticket Office. For those not able to make it to The Nest, the game – like all FGCU home contests – will be broadcast on ESPN3 and via the WatchESPN app with David Moulton and J. Webb Horton on the call.
 
HOLIDAY PUNCH PASS
Tuesday represents the second time a special holiday punch pass can be utilized, which provides fans the opportunity to see both the men's and women's teams at a discounted rate during the holiday season. The holiday punch pass allows fans to see three games – one men's contest and two women's contests – for just $15, representing a 50-percent savings. Fans will receive a pass, and upon entry into Alico Arena it will be punched. The punch pass can be used at three of the following games (one men's, two women's):
 
Dec. 22 | 7 PM | Men vs. Louisiana Tech
Dec. 28 | 7 PM | Women vs. Quinnipiac
Dec. 30 | 7 PM | Women vs. Auburn
Jan. 2 | 4 PM | Men vs. Eckerd*
Jan. 2 | 7 PM | Women vs. Hartford*
* The games are separately ticketed (would count as two of the three punches)
 
To secure a punch pass, or for more information, visit the Alico Arena Ticket Office Monday-Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., call the office at 239-590-7145 or log on to FGCUAthletics.com/Tickets.
 
TOYS FOR TOTS
Fans are encouraged to bring new, unwrapped toys to Tuesday's contest as part of the Toys for Tots program. Boxes will be available immediately upon entry into Alico Arena at the marketing tables for the toys to be placed. On Thursday, Dec. 17, the men's basketball team delivered previously-donated toys to the Golisano Children's Hospital of Southwest Florida.
 
TWEETABLES
1) FGCU held South Dakota State to 30.9-percent shooting, the lowest in a loss since Jan. 16, 2011, when it held Mercer to 30.5 percent in a 50-47 setback.
2) Marc-Eddy Norelia has five double-doubles on the year; the program's Division-I single-season record is seven by Chase Fieler in 2013-14.
3) The Eagles had a 47-46 lead on SDSU with 5 minutes to play but lost for just the fifth time (45-5) under Joe Dooley when holding a lead with 5 minutes left.
4) Norelia (+7.6) and Christian Terrell (+10.4) have both drastically increased their scoring averages so far this year compared with last season.
5) LA Tech is averaging 83 points per game; FGCU has only allowed one opponent to score at least 83 in regulation this year (Ohio: 85 in the season opener).
 
SCOUTING LOUISIANA TECH
^ The Bulldogs went 27-9 last year and were considered by many an NCAA Tournament snub. LA Tech's 9-2 record so far this year includes a win at Ohio State – which on Saturday defeated Kentucky – and a victory over a very strong UT Arlington team which has already claimed wins at Ohio State and Memphis, and its only other loss is at Texas in overtime. LA Tech's only two losses have come at Memphis and Ole Miss.
^ Erik McCree is averaging 17.5 points per game, while Alex Hamilton averages 17.2 for the Bulldogs, who like to push the tempo under first-year head coach Eric Konkel.
^ Konkel replaced Michael White, who is in his first year at Florida – where FGCU held a halftime lead earlier this year before falling, 70-50. Konkel was previously an assistant coach at Miami for four seasons, and is the second former UM assistant (Bowling Green's Michael Huger) to visit Alico Arena this year. Both Konkel and Huger were assistant coaches on the eventual ACC Championship Miami team that lost at FGCU, 63-51, during the 2012-13 campaign.
 
NATIONAL RANKS
FGCU ranks 3rd in the nation in 3-point percentage defense at .256, one year after finishing 5th in the same category. FGCU also ranks 20th in the country in rebounds per game at 43.1.
 
DOMINATING PERFORMANCES
Redshirt junior Norelia (Orlando, Fla./Tulane/Olympia HS) is coming off his fifth double-double of the year with 26 points and 11 rebounds opposite South Dakota State. In addition to the aforementioned scoring increase from last year, Norelia has also increased his rebounding from 5.2 last year to a league-leading 8.9 this year. Norelia has already scored 20 or more points in a game four times this year, including the last two contests. Furthermore, five of his seven career double-digit rebounding performances have already come this season as well.
 
INCREASE IN SCORING
Several new rules were put into place this year to help increase scoring in men's college basketball, and so far that has been the case. FGCU is averaging 75.7 points per game through its first 11 games of the season, an increase of 8.3 per outing from 2014-15 when it averaged 67.4 for the year. The Eagles aren't alone, either. Entering games this week, every single team in the A-Sun had a higher scoring average so far this year than last season.
 
FOLLOWING IN THE FOOTSTEPS?
True freshman Reggie Reid (Harlem, Ga./Harlem HS) ranks 15th in the nation in assist rate at 38.9 percent – the percentage of field goals made by a team that a player assists on while he is in the game. Reid is the only freshman in the top 45 in the country on the list. Last year, Brett Comer – who graduated ranking 24th on the all-time NCAA career assist list with 845 – finished the season ranking 2nd in the same category at 45.9 percent.
 
HOME SUCCESS
FGCU is 48-9 at Alico Arena since 2012-13. Three of those nine losses occurred in the final four games of last season, with the nine setbacks overall coming to Lipscomb, Iona, Mercer, FIU, North Florida, USC Upstate, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, Bowling Green and South Dakota State. FGCU is 5-2 at home this year, was 13-4 last year, went 15-2 in 2013-14 and 15-1 in 2012-13.
 
YOUNG, TALENTED AND DEEP
FGCU has just two seniors on its roster, and so far this year 84 percent of its scoring, 86 percent of its rebounding (excluding team rebounds) and 87 percent of its assists have come from non-seniors.
 
Not only are the Eagles young and talented, but they are deep as already this year 10 different players have reached double-figure points in a game. The only team in the nation with more is Georgia Southern with 11. Additionally, FGCU had four different leading scorers through its first six games.
 
Below is a list of players who have already scored 10 or more points in a game, their season high and how many times they've led the team in scoring.
 
R-Jr. Norelia (5): 34
R-Fr. Zach Johnson (1): 26
So. Terrell (4): 24
R-Sr. Filip Cvjeticanin (1): 18
Fr. Reid: 18
R-Sr. Julian DeBose: 16
Fr. Rayjon Tucker: 15
R-So. Antravious Simmons: 13
R-So. Kevin Mickle: 12
R-Jr. Demetris Morant: 11
 
NEXT UP
FGCU will play its third opponent from the Dakotas in the non-conference when it travels to Sioux Falls to face the University of South Dakota (7-5) at the Sanford Pentagon at 7 p.m. local and 8 p.m. Eastern on Monday, Dec. 28.
 
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 107-81 (.569), and in his 2+ years with FGCU is 50-29 (.633).
 
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.