FORT MYERS, Fla. - The FGCU women's basketball team made seven 3-pointers in the third quarter alone and scored more points in each of the final two quarters than the first half combined to pick up a 66-49 come-from-behind victory over SIU Edwardsville in the FGCU Hilton Garden Inn Classic in Alico Arena on Thursday.

With the win, FGCU is now 12-3 overall and will be back in action Dec. 29 at home against South Dakota State University (10-3), who are currently the No. 2 ranked mid-major in the nation per CollegeInsider.com. The Eagles are No. 3 in the poll.

"I thought right out of halftime the ball started moving quicker and we became a lot harder to guard," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "I wish we would already understand this and not take until halftime to figure it out. But it was a good comeback win. I'm really pleased with how we played the second half. I feel better going into break after watching the second half."

Rosemarie Julien was named the FGCU Hilton Garden Inn Classic MVP, while Lisa Zderadicka was named to the All-Classic team. Julien (Port St. Lucie, Fla./Treasure Coast HS) averaged 13 points, three rebounds and 3.5 assists while shooting 10-for-17 from the field in the two games, while Zderadicka (Vienna, Austria/HAK Korneuburg) averaged 10.5 points, two rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.5 steals while shooting 9-for-14 from the field.

The first quarter featured a pair of runs. Nasrin Ulel opened the game with a layup, but SIU Edwardsville responded with 10 straight points. The Eagles missed four straight shots and had a pair of turnovers after that initial layup, but responded with a 9-0 run that featured field goals from four different players. 

SIU Edwardsville led 25-17 after a 13-5 run to open the second quarter. Fortunately for FGCU, the Cougars went 0-for-5 from the field with three turnovers on possessions with a chance to stretch that lead. The Eagles ended a five minute scoreless stretch with a free throw and a layup from Ulel (Murrietta, Calif./Murrietta HS), but SIU Edwardsville took a 27-20 lead into the break.

In the opening half, the Eagles scored a season-low 20 points on 8-for-26 shooting (2-for-11 from 3-point range), but that all changed in the third quarter. 

Ulel, Taylor Gradinjan and China Dow combined for four straight 3-pointers early in the second half as FGCU took a two-point lead. SIU Edwardsville answered back and took a 37-34 lead, but Dow (Louisville, Ky./Christian Academy of Louisville) answered with a game-tying 3-pointer before Gradinjan (Cudahy, Wis./Cudahy HS) and Zderadicka hit back-to-back 3-pointers for a six-point lead.

Two more 3-pointers from Gradinjan stretched the lead to 13 with 6:12 left. Following that, the Eagles led by 15 several times until a 3-pointer from Erica Nelson (Kansas City, Mo./Lee Summit North HS) produced the final margin, which was the largest of the game for FGCU.

In the second half alone, FGCU shot 18-for-28 (64.3 percent) from the field, including 10-for-17 (58.8 percent) from 3-point range.

Ulel and Dow each scored a game-high 14 points. Ulel finished 6-for-9 from the field and had a team and career-high seven rebounds, while Dow tied a career-high with four 3-pointers and added a game-high three steals along with two assists. Zderadicka chipped in 13 points and a game-high five assists on 6-for-8 shooting, and Gradinjan had 12 points and three rebounds on 4-for-8 shooting from 3-point range.

Outside of those four players, nobody had more than four points. Julien had four points and four assists before fouling out, while Tytionia Adderly (Jupiter, Fla./Cardinal Newman HS), Nelson and Jessica Cattani (Muskego, Wis./Muskego HS) each had three points. That trio also combined for 11 rebounds, led by Adderly's five.

Notes
FGCU made at least 10 3-pointers for the 11th time this year. They finished .481 (26-for-54) from the field and .429 from 3-point range as a team - both of which were the second best single game performances this year. Defensively, the Eagles held SIU Edwardsville to 49 points, which is the second lowest total they've allowed this year.

Ulel's team-high rebounding total marked the first time this year that neither Adderly (11) or Dow (3) led the team in that category. Nelson tied a career-high with two blocks, a feat she's accomplished four times now.

FGCU Hilton Garden Inn All-Classic Team
Rosemarie Julien (FGCU) - MVP
Lisa Zderadicka (FGCU)
Lauren White (SIU Edwardsville)
Megan Sefcik (Akron)
Taylor Rooks (Harvard)
Jeannie Boehm (Harvard)

FOLLOW ALONG
For up-to-the-minute information and behind-the-scenes access to the women's basketball program, follow @FGCU_WBB on Twitter and Instagram and like us on Facebook at /FGCUWBB.

COACH SMESKO
FGCU head coach Karl Smesko rallied the 2016-17 Eagles to their seventh-straight 25-win campaign, which culminated in the team's fourth NCAA tournament appearance in six seasons of eligibility. The seven-time ASUN Coach of the Year was named the espnW Mid-Major Coach of the Year in 2015-16 following a run that witnessed the Eagles finish a best-ever 33-6. Over a five-year stretch starting in 2011-12, FGCU racked up four ASUN seasons with a perfect record and capped the run with back-to-back 30 plus win seasons. In 2014-15, the team earned its first top-25 ranking and another NCAA Tournament trip as a seven seed, where FGCU won its first ever NCAA Division-I Tournament game against No. 10 Oklahoma State. With 26 wins in 2016-17, Smesko has guided the Eagles to 13-straight 20-win seasons.  He maintains a record of 416-85 (.830) at FGCU, including a 160-15 (.914) mark in ASUN play. Over the past six seasons, he has guided FGCU to a 93-3 (.969) record in conference play. Smesko earned his 400th career coaching win in 2014-15 in just 493 career games, two games faster than UConn's Geno Auriemma. He holds a career head coaching record of 477-112 (.810). 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.