MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – Looking to bounce back from a rare road loss, the FGCU men's basketball team is set to clash with another perennial postseason contender as the Eagles battle Middle Tennessee Tuesday, Nov. 21, at 7:30 p.m. Eastern (6:30 local).
 
HOW TO WATCH
The game will be broadcast on Stadium TV, which is available in select areas of Florida and the country. To see if the game will be shown on TV in your area, click here to view a channel guide (it is not available locally in Southwest Florida). Fans who are not able to watch on TV can stream the game on the network's Facebook page by clicking here. Similar to ESPN3, fans – if not already a Facebook user – can easily create an account by logging in with an email address and password.
 
OPENING TIP ITEMS
^ This will mark the second of six non-conference games for FGCU against opponents which played in the postseason and finished with a top-40 RPI last year (more information later).
^ FGCU had won 10-straight road games dating back to last year – the 2nd-longest road winning streak in the country – before Saturday's last-second loss at Bowling Green, 83-80. Last year's national runner-up Gonzaga has the longest current streak at 11 in a row. The next longest road winning streak is six straight by four different teams.
^ The Eagles are the defending ASUN regular-season and two-time defending tournament champions. FGCU is installed as the preseason ASUN favorites, predicted to return to the NCAA Tournament for a third-straight year and fourth time in the past six seasons.
 
TWEETABLES
1) FGCU is ranked #13 in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 Poll, while Middle Tennessee was receiving votes in the Associated Press Top 25 the first two weeks. Each of FGCU's first four opponents this year have received votes in the mid-major or national polls.
2) Both Middle Tennessee and FGCU have made the NCAA Tournament three times in the previous five years. Both teams won a game in the tournament in 2016, while the Blue Raiders also picked up a victory last year.
 
3) This is the first time in the Division-I era (since 2007-08) that FGCU has started a season with three-straight games of 80 or more points.
4) Three players have increased their scoring in each of the first three games of the year: Christian Terrell (13, 16, 18), Ricky Doyle (8, 9, 11) and Antravious Simmons (5, 7, 8).
5) With 11 points at Bowling Green, Doyle became the sixth different FGCU player to reach double figures in a game already this year. The Eagles had 10 different players score against the Falcons.
 
ODDS & ENDS
Under 5th-year head coach Joe Dooley, the Eagles are 70-5 when leading at the half and 41-5 when scoring at least 80 points … on Saturday at Bowling Green, FGCU led at the half (43-40) and scored 80 points, but a Falcons' 3-pointer with .9 of a second remaining resulted in an Eagles' loss … FGCU has a +60 edge in points in the paint and a +35 rebounding advantage through the first three games of the year … the win over Siena last Monday marked Dooley's 150th career victory … that contest also represented the 38th time since Dooley took over in 2013-14 that FGCU has held a team to 60 points or fewer … the 33-point road win at Siena (86-53) was tied for the largest victory away from home in D-I program history, and was tied for Siena's largest home defeat in its D-I history (since 1976-77).
 
BIO BLASTS
0 Brandon Goodwin: Named to the Lou Henson Award Watch List as the nation's best mid-major player.
11 Christian Terrell: Has made 15 of his last 18 attempts from the floor (7-7 at Siena, 8-11 at Bowling Green).
13 RaySean Scott Jr.: Missed the first two games of the year with a muscle strain in his knee, but returned at Bowling Green. He played nine foul-plagued minutes and scored two points while grabbing two rebounds.
15 Ricky Doyle: Just missed his first career double-double with nine points and a career- and game-high 11 rebounds versus Siena.
31 Dinero Mercurius: Has made three 3-pointers in each of the first three games off the bench to start his career in the Green and Blue as a redshirt junior.
 
SCHEDULE BREAKDOWN
This will be the second of six non-conference games for FGCU against teams that finished in the top 40 of the RPI last year. Each of those teams won at least 25 games and played in the postseason:
 
Nov. 11: vs. 39 Illinois State (28-7, NIT) | W, 98-87
Nov. 21: @ 34 Middle Tennessee (31-5, NCAA)
Dec. 2: vs. 34 Middle Tennessee
Dec. 9: @ 40 UT Arlington (27-9, NIT)
Dec. 22: @ 29 Wichita State (31-5, NCAA)
Dec. 27: @ 31 Rhode Island (25-10, NCAA)
 
Each of those NCAA Tournament opponents won a March Madness game last year, and the other two claimed three total victories in the NIT. Those opponents went a combined 142-36 (.798 winning percentage) last season and posted an average RPI of 34.
 
#DEPTHCITY
In each of the previous two years, FGCU has had 10 different players during the season score double-figure points in a game. Already this year, the Eagles have the aforementioned six players who have reached double-figure points. Below is a list of players who have scored 10 or more points in a game this season, how many times they have led (or tied) the team in scoring and their season high.
 
Zach Johnson: 27 (1)
Brandon Goodwin: 21 (1 – tie)
Christian Terrell: 18 (2 – 1 tie)
Dinero Mercurius: 14
Christian Carlyle: 11
Ricky Doyle: 11
 
SCOUTING MIDDLE TENNESSEE
^ Middle Tennessee and FGCU are meeting for the first time, but will face off for the second time just 11 days later when the Eagles host the Blue Raiders at Alico Arena on Dec. 2. This will be Middle Tennessee's last game before they head to Fort Myers.
^ The Blue Raiders were picked 1st in the Conference USA preseason poll with eight 1st-place votes. Senior guard Giddy Potts was named to the Preseason All-Conference Team for the second-consecutive season.
^ Nick King leads Middle Tennessee with 22.3 points per game. Brandon Walters (12.3) and Potts (10) also average double-figure points, with Walters pacing the Blue Raiders on the glass with 6.3 caroms per contest.
^ Middle Tennessee lost at home to a strong Belmont team, 69-63, on Nov. 16, but bounced back with a 75-65 win at Tennessee State on Saturday afternoon. The Blue Raiders have also won at Murray State (72-67) and opened the year with a 104-52 victory over D-II Trevecca.
^ As a 12 seed last year, Middle Tennessee defeated 5th-seeded Minnesota in the NCAA Tournament. In the 2016 NCAA Tournament, the 15th-seeded Blue Raiders stunned 2nd-seeded Michigan State.
 
ROAD WARRIORS
In addition to the aforementioned road winning streak being snapped at Bowling Green on Saturday, overall FGCU was a program-best 10-3 away from Alico Arena last season, with all three losses coming by single digits.
 
The Eagles finished a program-best 7-0 on the road in the ASUN last year, surpassing the previous single-season record for wins of five. FGCU is the first ASUN institution to go undefeated on the road in conference action since former league member Samford went 8-0 in 1998-99.
 
HEAD COACH JOE DOOLEY
Dooley has guided the Eagles to at least 20 wins and postseason appearances in each of his first four campaigns with the team. Last season, he became the first coach in program history to be named ASUN Coach of the Year, and was also tabbed as the NABC District 3 Coach of the Year. Under his guidance, FGCU was statistically the 4th-best team in the country in scoring on possessions immediately following timeouts last season, averaging 1.059 points per possession.
 
MILESTONE TRACKER
FGCU is well within reach of several milestone victory marks this season.
 
All-Time Record: 287-196 (13 More Wins For 300)
All-Time Record In D-I Era: 173-157 (27 More Wins For 200)
All-Time Record At Home: 192-60 (8 More Wins For 200)
All-Time Record vs. ASUN Opponents: 91-81 (9 More Wins For 100)
 
RANKINGS RUNDOWN
FGCU is ranked #13 in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 Poll. They are joined in the poll by UT Arlington at #4, while Illinois State and Bowling Green are receiving votes. Siena was receiving votes in the initial poll when the Eagles and Saints met last Monday.
 
In the Associated Press and/or USA Today Coaches Poll, Wichita State is ranked #6 in the country, while UT Arlington and Rhode Island (all 2017-18 FGCU opponents) are both receiving votes.
 
Additionally, in ESPN's Joe Lunardi's preseason Bracketology, FGCU is predicted as a 14 seed in this year's NCAA Tournament. Along with the Eagles, Lunardi also has Wichita State (2 seed), Rhode Island (9), Middle Tennessee (12) and UT Arlington (13) all included in his initial Bracketology.
 
RECAPPING 2016-17
^ Last season, FGCU claimed its first outright ASUN regular-season title (12-2) and second overall. The Eagles set a program D-I regular-season record with 23 wins and tied the all-time victory mark of 26, finishing one triumph shy of matching the program's all-time mark.
^ Additionally, the Green and Blue recorded the first single-digit loss season in the D-I era (since 2007-08). FGCU set D-I program single-season records in points per game (79.4), rebound margin (+5.4) and field goal percentage (.499) – 5th-best in the nation.
^ The Eagles made their third NCAA Tournament appearance in five years (six seasons of eligibility) and earned a program-best No. 14 seed. Despite losing its leading rebounder and shot blocker in Demetris Morant early in the 2nd half with an ankle injury, FGCU went on to fall to 3rd-seeded Florida State – the second-tallest team in the nation – by just six points, 86-80.
 
MEN'S & WOMEN'S BASKETBALL SUCCESS
FGCU is one of only seven schools in the country which have had its men's and women's teams win at least 20 games in five-straight seasons, joining: Duke, Louisville, Kentucky, Baylor, BYU and Saint Mary's.
 
Additionally, with both the men's and women's teams winning at least 26 games last season, FGCU is one of only three non-Power 5 schools in the nation to boast that claim along with Gonzaga and Bucknell. In total, only nine schools had both its men's and women's basketball teams record at least 26 victories a year ago: Duke, Notre Dame, Michigan, South Carolina, Baylor and Florida State.
 
BUILDING A TRADITION
FGCU is believed to be the only men's D-I program in NCAA history to make five postseason appearances in its first six years of eligibility (2013: NCAA; 2014: NIT; 2015: CIT; 2016: NCAA; 2017: NCAA).
 
The Eagles are also one of just 23 teams in the nation to have won at least 20 games and made postseason appearances in each of the past five seasons. Of those 23 teams, only six are mid-major schools, as FGCU joins Vermont, Belmont, New Mexico State, Iona and UC Irvine to hold that distinction.
 
62 INCHES
At just 5-foot-2-inches, freshman Darnell Rogers (Baltimore, Md./Believe Prep/ Shiloh HS/Indian Land HS) is by far the smallest Division-I player in the nation. The next smallest player is Mount St. Mary's Junior Robinson at 5-5.
 
Rogers is believed to be the smallest scholarship D-I men's basketball player in history. While not confirmed due to many teams not being able to verify early-year rosters, only one player has been confirmed as smaller than 5-2, and that was Dayton's Keith Braswell at exactly 5 foot. However, Braswell was a walk-on during his one season with the Flyers in 1994-95.
 
More recently, Malcolm Reid – a 5-2 walk-on at Southeastern Louisiana in 2015-16 – matched Rogers' height, but he once again was also a walk-on. Darnell's father, Shawnta, stood at 5-4 and put together a heralded career at George Washington, ultimately culminating in him winning Atlantic 10 Conference Player of the Year in 1999.
 
MOST WINS IN FLORIDA
Since the start of the 2013-14 season, FGCU has the 2nd-most wins among D-I schools in the state of Florida (entering games on Nov. 20)
 
1) Florida: 103
2) FGCU: 93
     Miami: 93
4) Florida State: 88
5) North Florida: 77
6) UCF: 64
7) Jacksonville: 55
8) FIU: 53
9) Bethune-Cookman: 44
10) Stetson: 43
11) USF: 39
12) FAU: 38
13) Florida A&M: 30
 
FGCU is the only D-I team in the state of Florida which has posted four-straight 20-win seasons (five-consecutive for the Eagles). As FGCU has moved among some of the preeminent teams in the state, it has done so with Florida talent. Last year, Florida natives were responsible for 80 percent of FGCU's points and 75 percent of the Green and Blue's rebounds and assists.
 
This season, eight of FGCU's 13 scholarship players hail from the Sunshine State, and including walk-ons there are 11 total players from Florida on the 2017-18 roster.
 
LOW-POST FORCE
FGCU led the country in points in the paint per game last year at 41.3. Included in that average were a pair of D-I program record performances of 68 points in the paint versus Ave Maria and Florida National.
 
2016-17 Points In The Paint Leaders
1) FGCU: 41.3
2) Utah: 41.1
3) North Carolina: 39.9
4) VCU: 38.2
5) Kentucky: 37.3
 
#DUNKCITY
Helping fuel that low-post production was FGCU finishing 3rd in the nation with 159 dunks – 11 more than the original Dunk City Sweet Sixteen team in 2012-13.
 
2016-17 Team Dunk Leaders
1) Florida State: 183
2) Kentucky: 179
3) FGCU: 159
4) USC: 154
 
2016-17 Individual Dunk Leaders
1) Tacko Fall (UCF): 106
2) Bam Adebayo (Kentucky): 101
3) Demetris Morant (FGCU): 97
 
BY THE NUMBERS
16: FGCU erased a 16-point 1st-half deficit in its home opener last year against UT Arlington en route to an 85-72 win. It marked the largest comeback in the program's D-I history; one point shy of tying the all-time mark of 17 set in 2005-06.
66: The Eagles set a D-I program record by scoring 66 points off the bench last year against Ave Maria.
98: FGCU's 98 points against Illinois State were the most in a season opener in program history. The previous high was 90 in the program's first-ever game in 2002-03 versus Puerto Rico-Bayamon.
 
LOCKING IN ON D
Since Dooley took over FGCU in 2013-14, FGCU has held 38 teams to 60 points or fewer. The Sweet Sixteen team in 2012-13 held 13 opponents to 60 points or fewer, but prior to that – in five seasons of D-I history – FGCU teams had only held opponents to 60 points or fewer 20 times.
 
The Eagles have led the ASUN in scoring defense in three of Dooley's four years with FGCU and finished 2nd in the other season. Last year, the Eagles paced the conference by holding opponents to just 69.3 points per game – exactly six points better than any other team.
 
FAMOUS LINEAGE
FGCU has a pair of players related to Naismith Basketball Hall of Famers in Michael Gilmore (Jacksonville, Fla./Miami/VCU/Rickards HS) and walk-on Ryan McAdoo (Boca Raton, Fla./St. Andrews HS). Gilmore is the nephew of Artis Gilmore, a six-time NBA All-Star, while McAdoo is the son of Bob McAdoo, a five-time NBA All-Star and NBA MVP in 1975.
 
2016-17 RE-TWEETS
1) The Eagles won 11 non-conference a season ago – the most in program history.
2) FGCU had two separate 4+ game winning streaks in D-I non-conference history for the first time.
3) FGCU won three games by one point for the first time in a single season, and it had a record four games decided by a single point.
4) Incredibly, all 15 of FGCU's players had a positive plus/minus ratio, and every scholarship player was at least +40 on the year.
5) FGCU recorded three 100+ point games last season, marking the first time in single-season D-I history that occurred.
 
THE GROWTH OF FGCU
After starting their D-I transition with five-straight losing seasons, the Eagles have now posted five-consecutive 20-win seasons. After not finishing higher than 6th place in the ASUN the first five years, FGCU has finished no worse than a tie for 2nd each of the past four seasons.
 
2007-08: 10-21, 6-10 ASUN (T-8th)
2008-09: 11-20, 7-13 ASUN (9th)
2009-10: 8-21, 5-15 ASUN (T-10th)
2010-11: 10-20, 7-13 ASUN (7th)
2011-12: 15-17, 8-10 ASUN (T-6th)
2012-13: 26-11, 13-5 ASUN (2nd)
2013-14: 22-13, 14-4 ASUN (T-1st)
2014-15: 22-11, 11-3 ASUN (2nd)
2015-16: 21-14, 8-6 ASUN (T-2nd)
2016-17: 26-8, 12-2 ASUN (1st)
2017-18: 2-1, 0-0 ASUN
D-I Total: 173-157, 91-81 ASUN
Last 5 Years: 119-58, 58-20 ASUN
 
GOODWIN'S RECORD-SETTING 2016-17
Goodwin (Norcross, Ga./UCF/Norcross HS) was the unanimous ASUN Newcomer of the Year, in addition to being named ASUN First Team, ASUN Tournament MVP and setting a league record by securing six ASUN Newcomer of the Week honors. He was also named to the NABC All-District First Team after setting a program record by scoring 629 points. He hit three game-winning shots and led FGCU in scoring (18.5) and assists (4.1).
 
HOME RECORD INFO
FGCU is 76-14 (.844) at Alico Arena since the start of the 2012-13 season, including a 16-3 mark last year. Additionally, in ASUN games FGCU has been even more dominant, posting a 34-5 (.872) mark against league foes in the regular season since 2012-13.
 
NEXT UP
FGCU returns home to host the Homewood Suites FGCU Shootout this Friday-Sunday (Nov. 24-26). The Eagles will face Denver at 7 p.m. on Friday, Navy at 7 p.m. on Saturday and St. Francis Brooklyn at 6 p.m. on Sunday.
 
IRMA RELIEF DONATIONS
In the wake of Hurricane Irma, many individuals and families throughout Southwest Florida are still in desperate need of assistance. To aid in those relief efforts, FGCU Athletics will be collecting donations at all Eagle home games for the immediate future. Donation items most needed include: non-perishable food, clothing, household items and first-aid supplies. Additionally, those unable to attend upcoming home games can drop off donations in canisters located in the Alico Arena lobby. All donations will be given to those hardest hit in Lee and Collier counties.
 
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 5th season with the Eagles in 2017-18 and has coached eight all-conference selections in that time. He has led FGCU to 20+ win seasons and postseason appearances in all four years: 2014 NIT; 2015 CIT; 2016 NCAA; 2017 NCAA. Dooley was named the 2017 ASUN Coach of the Year and the 2017 NABC District 3 Coach of the Year after leading the Eagles to a D-I program record 26 wins. In 8+ seasons overall as a head coach, Dooley has a record of 150-99 (.602), and in his 4+ years with FGCU is 93-47 (.664). 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 FourPrios, 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 visit www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.