NASHVILLE – Looking for the best start to an Atlantic Sun Conference season in program history, the FGCU men's basketball team (13-7, 4-0 A-Sun) will seek its eighth-straight win Sunday afternoon in snowy Music City when the Eagles face Lipscomb (5-16, 1-3 A-Sun) at 2 p.m. Eastern (1 p.m. local time).
 
OPENING TIP
With a win, the Eagles will start an A-Sun season 5-0 for the first time in program history. FGCU began the 2013-14 season 4-0 – the only other time it was unbeaten through its first four league games. The Eagles started last year 11-1 in the A-Sun before dropping their final two games.
 
A victory will also give FGCU the second-longest winning streak in Division-I program history. The current seven-game winning streak is tied for the second longest with a pair of runs by the 2012-13 Sweet Sixteen team, and bested only by a 10-game run in conference play last season.
 
While the FGCU men are on a seven-game winning streak, the FGCU women – who play Lipscomb in the first game of Saturday's doubleheader – have won eight in a row. FGCU is the only school in the nation that has both its men's and women's basketball teams riding winning streaks of at least seven straight.
 
A-SUN STANDINGS
North Florida: 5-0
FGCU: 4-0
NJIT: 2-2
Jacksonville: 2-2
USC Upstate: 1-3
Kennesaw State: 1-3
Lipscomb: 1-3
Stetson: 1-4
 
WHAT TO KNOW
The game – like all A-Sun contests – will be broadcast on ESPN3 and via the WatchESPN app. Additionally, live stats are available, and a multitude of social media platforms can also be accessed at the top of this release for fans to keep up with the action and behind-the-scenes coverage.
 
TWEETABLES
1) Rayjon Tucker is coming off a career-high 19-point outing at Kennesaw State, becoming the sixth different player to lead FGCU in scoring this year.
2) The Eagles have shot at least 55 percent from the floor and had a double-figure lead in the first half of every A-Sun game so far this year.
3) FGCU has shot at least 52 percent from the field in three of its four A-Sun contests.
4) Zach Johnson has scored in double figures seven games in a row and enters the contest as FGCU's third-leading scorer at 10.1 per outing.
5) Antravious Simmons has posted three-straight games of exactly 10 points, the first time in his career reaching double-figure points in three-consecutive contests.
 
3-POINT EMPHASIS
Defending the 3-point line will likely be a deciding factor in the outcome of the game. Lipscomb enters the game ranked 2nd in the nation in 3-pointers made with 225 (North Florida is 1st with 270). FGCU, meanwhile, ranks 3rd in the country in defending the 3-point line, allowing opponents to connect at just a 27.2-percent clip. Kennesaw State shot 47.1 percent (8-17) from 3-point range on Thursday – the highest percentage the Eagles have allowed an opponent to shoot from beyond the arc this year. Only one opponent (La Salle, 10) has made double-figure 3-pointers in a regulation game against the Eagles this year.
 
SERIES HISTORY
Lipscomb leads the all-time series, 9-6, but over the past eight games FGCU holds a 5-3 edge. The contests have typically been high scoring as in 13 of the 15 meetings FGCU has tallied more than 70 points, and in 10 of the 15 matchups both teams have recorded more than 70 points.
 
SCOUTING LIPSCOMB
^ Lipscomb was tabbed for a 4th-place finish in the A-Sun Preseason Poll, but a rash of injuries have the Bisons off to a slower-than-expected start.
^ Junior guard Josh Williams – who reached 1,000 career points in November already – sustained a torn left ACL in December. He joins senior Talbot Denny (arm), and redshirt junior Dylan Greene (heel) as members of the team sidelined due to injury.
^ Junior guard J.C. Hampton – also a 1,000-point scorer already in his career – leads the Bisons at 16 points per game. Nathan Moran is Lipscomb's most lethal 3-point threat as he's connecting at a 39.8-percent rate from distance and is one of five players on the roster who have made at least 30 3-pointers this year.
^ Lipscomb snapped an eight-game losing streak with a 92-87 win over Stetson at home on Thursday night. The Bisons have yet to post consecutive wins this year and are scoring 77 points per game while giving up 81 per outing.
^ Head coach Casey Alexander is in his third year at the helm of the Bisons after spending two years in charge of Stetson.
 
POINTS IN THE PAINT
While Lipscomb gets a large chunk of its points from the 3-point line, FGCU has been getting a lot of its points in the paint. The Eagles are averaging 38.6 points per game in the paint and have scored at least 30 in every single game this year except one (Florida, 26). Against Kennesaw State, the Green and Blue finished with a 48-28 edge in the paint. Dating back to 2011-12, FGCU is now 34-1 when finishing with at least a +15 margin in the paint.
 
RE-TWEETS
1) FGCU has already played four overtime games, setting a single-season program record. In its entire pre-D-I history (2002-06), FGCU played three total OT contests.
2) Seven times this year FGCU has had a game decided by five points or less. The Eagles are 4-3 in such games, and 7-6 in games decided by 10 points or less.
3) FGCU had a season-low four turnovers vs. USC Upstate, the sixth single-digit turnover game of the year. The single-season program record is eight set last year.
4) The Eagles have posted 10 or fewer turnovers in all four of their A-Sun games to start the year.
5) Demetris Morant was a late scratch last Thursday (right leg). X-rays last Friday were negative, he missed the last three games and is a game-time decision vs. Lipscomb.
 
LOW-POST PRESENCE
If the lengthy 6-9 Morant (Miami, Fla./UNLV/Bishop Gorman HS) is able to play, it will give the Eagles a big boost in the low blocks as FGCU by far leads the A-Sun with 41.6 rebounds per game. The Eagles rank 5th in the nation in total rebounds with 832 and are 22nd in the country in rebounds per game. Twelve of FGCU's 13 wins this year have come when it has out-rebounded its opponent.
 
A-SUN RANKS
In addition to rebounding and 3-point percentage defense, FGCU leads the A-Sun in points allowed (69.3), field-goal percentage defense (40.5), scoring margin (+8.8).
 
A-SUN SUCCESS
Since the start of the 2012-13 season, FGCU boasts a 42-12 (.778) record in A-Sun games – seven more wins than any other team in the league (North Florida, 35).
 
BY THE NUMBERS
FGCU has the following records in 2+ years under the direction of Dooley:
 
Leading At The Half: 45-3 (.938)
Scoring At Least 80 Points: 20-2 (.909)
Grabbing More Rebounds: 47-5 (.904)
Holding Opponent Below 40% FG: 34-4 (.895)
Scoring At Least 70 Points: 37-5 (.881)
 
PLAYER QUICK HITS
^ Freshman Reggie Reid (Harlem, Ga./Harlem HS) ranks 2nd among all freshmen nationally in assist rate at 35.6 percent – the percentage of field goals made by a team that a player assists on while in the game. Reid is ranked 24th nationally in the category and is only behind Oklahoma State's Jawun Evans at 37.1 percent among all freshmen.
^ After hitting just 11 3-pointers in the 11 games before FGCU's current seven-game winning streak, redshirt senior Filip Cvjeticanin (Zagreb, Croatia/American School of Madrid) has knocked down 16 triples in the last seven contests. Cvjeticanin is 4th on the program's all-time 3-pointers made list with 175, and 3rd among all D-I players. The D-I record is held by 2014 graduate Bernard Thompson with 219. Cvjeticanin is four 3-pointers shy of moving into 3rd place all-time (Bryan Crislip, 2002-05) and 2nd place on the D-I list (Christophe Varidel, 2010-13). Ryan Hopkins (2002-05) holds the all-time record with 355.
^ Morant has 66 career blocks, just 14 shy of moving into 2nd place on the program's all-time list. Chase Fieler (2010-14) owns the all-time record with 134 rejections.
 
ON RECORD PACE
FGCU is on pace for several D-I and all-time program records this year:
 
Points Per Game: 78.2 – Would shatter the D-I record of 72.9 set by the Sweet Sixteen team in 2012-13.
Rebounds Per Game: 41.6 – Would set the D-I record, besting each of the previous two years (38.1 in 2014-15 and 36.6 in 2013-14).
Field-Goal Percentage: 46.9 – Would be the best all-time, just ahead of the record of 46.7 percent in 2013-14.
Blocks Per Game: 4.3 – Would shatter the best mark all-time as no team has ever even averaged 4 blocks per game in a season.
Scoring Margin: +8.8 – Would be the best in D-I history, besting the previous mark of +6.1 in 2012-13.
 
BREAKOUT SEASONS
Redshirt junior Marc-Eddy Norelia (Orlando, Fla./Tulane/Olympia HS) tied the D-I program single-season record of seven double-doubles held by Fieler in 2013-14 with team-bests of 18 points and 13 rebounds last Thursday night against NJIT. Norelia is 2nd in the A-Sun in rebounding at 8.8 per outing, 8th in field-goal percentage (.517) and 10th in scoring with 15.2 points per game. Norelia has come one rebound short of a double-double on four other occasions already this year as well. The all-time single-season program record for double-doubles is nine, held by Robinson Tisme in the program's first season in 2002-03. Norelia has been named A-Sun Player of the Week and A-Sun Co-Player of the Week this year.
 
After averaging just 3.3 points per game last year, sophomore Christian Terrell (Jacksonville, Fla./Providence HS) has catapulted to 13.9 per game this year – an increase of 10.6 – and has led the Eagles in scoring seven times. Not only is the 6-5 Terrell getting the job done on the offensive end, he also enters Saturday's contest with the third-most rebounds on the team this year with 91.
 
YOUNG, TALENTED AND DEEP
FGCU has just two seniors on its roster, and so far this year 82 percent of its scoring, 87 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 teams in the nation with more are Boston University (12) and Georgia Southern (11). 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 (or tied) the team in scoring.
 
R-Jr. Norelia (8): 34
R-Fr. Johnson (3): 26
So. Terrell (7): 25
R-Sr. Julian DeBose (1): 20
Fr. Tucker (1): 19
R-Sr. Cvjeticanin (1): 18
Fr. Reid: 18
R-So. Simmons: 17
R-So. Kevin Mickle: 14
R-Jr. Morant: 11
 
In a further testament to the youthful and talented group, Reid leads all A-Sun freshmen in assists per game (3.9), Terrell leads all A-Sun sophomores in points per game (13.9), Simmons (Miami, Fla./VCU/South Miami HS) leads all A-Sun sophomores in rebounds per game (5.2) and Norelia is second among all A-Sun juniors in rebounds per game (8.8).
 
CHALLENGING NON-CONFERENCE SCHEDULE
FGCU played a challenging non-conference schedule as all but one of FGCU's seven losses have come against top-150 RPI teams, including two losses to top-20 teams (#7 Texas A&M, 75-65; #20 Florida, 70-50) and three to top-50 teams (#46 South Dakota State, 56-52) – and two of those three losses came by 10 points or less. FGCU has also dropped an 85-75 decision at #115 Ohio, a 66-63 contest to #147 Louisiana Tech and an 89-81 overtime outing against #150 South Dakota.
 
MILESTONE MARKS
FGCU won its 250th all-time game on Jan. 16 with an 85-56 decision over USC Upstate. The Eagles enter Saturday's game with an all-time record (since 2002-03) of 251-180 (.582). The Eagles also have their all-time A-Sun record over .500 as FGCU is 75-73 in A-Sun contests. The Eagles had not been over .500 all-time in A-Sun games since they were 4-3 in their inaugural A-Sun and D-I season in 2007-08.
 
GOLDEN SUMMER
DeBose (Washington, D.C./Rice/St. John College HS) won a gold medal as part of Team USA at the World University Games (WUG) this summer in South Korea ... was one of only two players (SMU's Nic Moore) on the team not from Kansas University ... finished the tournament averaging 4 points, 2.3 rebounds and 10.8 minutes per contest ... scored a team-high 18 points in the USA's final group-round game against Switzerland ... connected on 50 percent (13-26) of his shots from the floor during the WUG, including 3-8 from 3-point range ... added nine offensive and nine defensive rebounds, with the nine offensive boards representing the second-most by any guard on the roster  ... also contributed six steals and a block as Team USA won its games by an average of 20.3 points.
 
NEXT UP
FGCU will return home to face Jacksonville (10-11, 2-2 A-Sun) on Wednesday night at Alico Arena at 7 p.m.
 
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 114-83 (.579), and in his 2+ years with FGCU is 57-31 (.648).
 
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.