JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The top-seeded FGCU women's basketball team travels to Jacksonville to square off with a pair of ASUN rivals. Winners of 11-straight games, the Eagles will face UNF on Thursday, Feb. 2 before going toe-to-toe with Jacksonville on Saturday, Feb. 4.
 
HOW TO FOLLOW
Fans can find a live broadcast of both games on ESPN3. Live stats will also be available from Sidearm Stats.
 
EAGLE FAST FACTS
^ With a 6-0 ASUN record, FGCU has sole possession of first place in the conference standings.
 
^ FGCU has won 43-straight regular season ASUN contests with its last loss taking place on Feb. 1, 2014 against Northern Kentucky. As it stands, FGCU is just one win away from tying its all-time record of 44 consecutive conference victories.
 
^ The Eagles' RPI has jumped from 144 to 86 since the conference play began.
 
^ The Eagles have stepped up their scoring in conference play to an ASUN-leading 79.2 points per game. Overall, FGCU is scoring 72.2 points per contest.
 
^ FGCU's defense has only allowed 63.3 points per game in conference road games this season. The Eagles are 3-0 on the road in league play, and have won each contest by 13 or more points so far.
 
SCOUTING UNF
> The Ospreys are looking for their first win against FGCU in nearly seven years this week. UNF's last win came on Feb. 13, 2010, a narrow 57-56 victory over the Eagles. They look to snap a 14-game losing streak.
 
> The Ospreys have excelled blocking this season, recording three or more blocks in 13 of 20 games played.
 
> UNF is making 5.8 three pointers per game this season, third best in the ASUN conference entering this week's action. They have made a season-high 10 on two different occasions this year.
 
>  Tesh Hanson, who missed the last couple of games, continues to be one of the top-five rebounders in the league. She averages 7.5 rebounds per game, including 22 offensive rebounds in ASUN play.
 
KEY PLAYERS
1 Claire Ioannidis - Ioannidis is the team's second leading scorer at 11.2 PPG this year. The Aussie senior has made 48 three pointers this season, third most in the ASUN. Last year, she connected on 78 treys.
 
2 Sierra Shepherd - Shepherd has played and started every game this season for North Florida. She averages 10.2 points per game, while playing 30.7 minutes per game, second most on the Ospreys team.
 
10 Simone Brown - Brown's rebounding has been strong lately, as she has grabbed seven or more boards in three straight games. She ranks 10th in the league at 6.0 rebounds per game overall this year.
 
SCOUTING JACKSONVILLE
> FGCU handed the Dolphins their first ASUN loss of the season with a 60-57 victory on 1/28/17. The win gave the Eagles sole possession of first place in the conference.
 
> With a trip to the NCAA tournament on the line, the top-seeded Eagles hosted No. 2 JU in last year's ASUN championship. FGCU had won 45-straight against conference foes heading into the game. In a heartbreaking upset, the Eagles dropped a 56-54 result in the title game, giving JU its first-ever NCAA Tournament berth.
 
> The Dolphins are the only team in the ASUN with a double-digit rebounding margin (10.2) and rank ninth in the nation in the category.
 
> Jacksonville is shooting an ASUN-best 37.2 percent from downtown; Sherranda Reddick leads all league players at 42.3 percent.
> FGCU and JU are the only ASUN teams holding opponents under 60 points per game. The Eagles' scoring defense is ranked 30th in the nation at 56.9 ppg while Jacksonville is 37th at 58.0 ppg.
 
KEY PLAYERS
4 Brandi Buie - Buie scored the game-winning basket with three seconds remaining to capture a 56-54 victory over the Eagles in last year's ASUN Championship.
 
13 Kimberly Dawkins - Dawkins was named the ASUN's Preseason Defensive Player of the Year and ranks third in the league in rebounds per game (8.2) and second in blocks per game (1.6).
 
22 Sherranda Reddick - Reddick currently owns 1,566 points in her four-year career and is the Dolphins' all-time leading scorer. She currently leads in the conference in points per game (18.3) and three-point percentage (.423).
 
ASUN SUCCESS
The Eagles joined the ASUN for the 2007-08 season and immediately saw success among the conference ranks. The team has won six-straight regular-season championships with a record of 102-4 over that span. The Eagles have won seven total regular-season championships and have never finished lower than second in the final conference standings. FGCU holds a record of 151-13 all-time in conference games and maintains a 86-2 record in ASUN games played at Alico Arena. Since earning postseason eligibility during the 2011-12 season, the Eagles have won three of four ASUN Tournament Championships.
 
LEAGUE LEADERS
This season the Eagles are leading the ASUN in scoring defense (56.9 pg), assists (15.5 pg), FG made (595), 3pt FG made (225), 3pt FGs per game (9.8) and turnover margin (6.17).
 
STREAKING
The Eagles have now won 43-straight regular season ASUN contests, with their last loss taking place on Feb. 1, 2014 against Northern Kentucky. FGCU is just one win away from tying its all-time record of 44 consecutive conference victories. The Eagles' streak stands as the second-longest active regular season conference win streak in the NCAA behind UConn, which has won 63-straight.
 
RAINING THREES
The team's moniker Raining Threes isn't just for show. FGCU has made an incredible 4,293 3-pointers in 15 seasons for an average of nine per game. The Eagles are riding a 358-game streak with at least one three ball and have made a long-range shot in 473 of 474 games in program history.
 
FLORIDA FOES
Since transitioning to Division I in 2007, the Eagles hold a record of 85-19 over teams from the state of Florida.
 
RECAPPING JACKSONVILLE
 
After 11 lead changes, the FGCU women's basketball team outlasted Jacksonville 60-57 in a rematch of last year's ASUN Championship. The Eagles victory gave the Green and Blue sole possession of first place in the ASUN standings and hands JU its first conference loss of the season.
 
With the win, the Eagles not only remain undefeated in league play, but they hang on to a perfect 12-0 record at home and notch their 11th-straight victory, tying for the seventh longest active win streak in the nation.
 
Jordin Alexander (Fisher, Ind./ Hamilton Southeastern HS/Brown)
played a season-high 38 minutes because of her effectiveness shutting down JU's lead scorer, Sherranda Reddick. Reddick, who entered the game averaging 18.3 points per contest, walked away with just eight on the night.
 
China Dow (Louisville, Ky./Christian Academy of Louisville/Middle Tennessee State) also caused problems for Jacksonville's offense, tallying three steals, a block and a team-high eight rebounds for FGCU.
 
From the other end of the floor, Rosemarie Julien (Port St. Lucie, Fla./Treasure Coast HS/Chipola College) led the Green and Blue with 18 points, including a pair of crucial three-pointers.
 
Erica Nelson (Lee's Summit, Mo./Lee Summit North HS/Johnson County CC) and Alexander also reached double-figure scores with 15 and 11 respectively.
 
UP NEXT
The Eagles will return to the Nest for their second game against North Florida on Wednesday, Feb. 8. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.
 
SMESKO
Head coach Karl Smesko earned his sixth-consecutive ASUN Coach of the Year award with a successful 2015-16 campaign and was named the espnW Mid-Major Coach of the Year. Under his direction, the team has compiled two-straight 30-win seasons with four perfect ASUN regular-season slates in the last five years. The team earned its first top-25 ranking and a third NCAA Tournament appearance as a seven seed in 2014-15 where FGCU won its first ever DI NCAA Tournament game against No. 10 Oklahoma State. With 30 wins and counting this year, Smesko has guided the Eagles to 12-straight 20 win seasons.  He maintains a record of 396-79 at FGCU for a win percentage of 83.4 with a mark of 151-13 (92.1 W%) in ASUN contests and has led the team to an 87-1 (98.9) record in conference play in the last five seasons.  The six-time ASUN Coach of the Year earned his 400th career win in 2014-15 in just 493 career games, two games faster than UConn's Geno Auriemma, and holds a career record of 457-106 (81.2 W%).  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 raise awareness.