NEWARK, N.J. – The FGCU men's basketball team (21-7, 10-2 ASUN) shot 62 percent from the floor in the 2nd half to spur a comeback as the Eagles picked up a crucial 80-73 win at NJIT (9-19, 1-11 ASUN) Thursday night, extending their road winning streak to eight straight and moving back into sole possession of 1st place in the ASUN.
 
Brandon Goodwin led all scorers with 24 points, Demetris Morant just missed a double-double with 16 points and a game-best nine rebounds, Christian Terrell tallied 15 points and passed out a game-high six assists against no turnovers and Antravious Simmons (Miami, Fla./VCU/South Miami HS) came off the bench to secure 10 points.
 
FGCU entered the evening tied with Lipscomb atop the ASUN standings, but the Bisons (9-3) were knocked off at home by North Florida (7-5). The results propelled FGCU one game clear of Lipscomb with just two regular-season contests remaining as the Green and Blue now control their own destiny to win the league's regular-season crown.
 
It also guarantees FGCU a top-2 seed in the ASUN Championship regardless of what happens over the final two games as the Eagles are three games ahead of 3rd-place UNF and USC Upstate (7-5). The higher seed hosts each round of the conference tournament.
 
Trailing 42-37 at the half, FGCU began the 2nd half on an extended 15-8 run and opened up a 52-50 lead just more than 4 minutes into the stanza. Marc-Eddy Norelia (Orlando, Fla./Tulane/Olympia HS) led the charge during that stretch as he scored all seven of his points for the game in that opening 4-minute portion.
 
The run began with a designed alley-oop out of the locker room by head coach Joe Dooley as Terrell (Jacksonville, Fla./Providence HS) fed Morant (Miami, Fla./UNLV/Bishop Gorman HS). While it technically didn't occur out of a timeout, it added to Dooley and the Eagles' efficient execution after extended breaks in play. FGCU entered the game ranked 4th in the nation in points per possession after a timeout at 1.059.
 
The group added to that number later in the half to again start a critical stretch in play. Dooley called a timeout at the 5:30 mark after NJIT used a 7-0 run to take a 66-64 lead. Out of that timeout, Dooley designed a baseline 3-pointer for Goodwin (Norcross, Ga./UCF/Norcross HS), and the redshirt junior knocked it down to put the Eagles back in front, 67-66.
 
NJIT quickly answered with a 3-pointer of its own, but on the ensuing possession Goodwin pulled up from the top of the arc and drilled another 3 that put the Eagles ahead for good.
 
At the final media timeout of the night with 3:30 remaining, FGCU held a 70-69 lead after the Goodwin 3-pointer. Before heading back onto the court, Dooley implored his team that three-consecutive stops would result in a win. That's exactly what the Eagles got as they forced three-straight scoreless possessions for NJIT and converted six points of their own on their three trips to open up an insurmountable 76-69 lead with less than a minute remaining.
 
"When you make shots it gives you a lot of energy, and they were making shots early on," commented Dooley of the Highlanders, who shot 57.7 percent (15-26) from the floor in the 1st half. "But our guys did a good job of getting some stops in the 2nd half and making shots and free throws. And then we got some big stops down the stretch which really helped us."
 
The Eagles, who are now 9-3 away from home this year, have won eight-straight road games – the 3rd-longest active streak in the nation behind only Vermont's nine-game run and #1 Gonzaga's 10-game stretch.
 
The victory also eclipsed the program's single-season road record for wins (8, 2002-03) and ASUN road victories (5, multiple times) as the Eagles are 6-0 in league tilts. All three road losses came by single digits at former #1 Baylor (81-72), then-#13 Michigan State (78-77) and top-100 RPI La Salle (84-80).
 
The 21st win on the year ties the program's single-season Division-I record set in 2012-13 and again in 2014-15.
 
FGCU entered the game leading the nation in points in the paint at 41.5 per outing, and were right on that number again as it finished with a 42-32 edge. However, much of that damage came in the 2nd half as the Eagles out-scored the Highlanders in the paint in the final 20 minutes, 26-12.
 
Tim Coleman tallied 19 points to lead a quartet of double-figure scorers for NJIT. Chris Jenkins added 17, Rob Ukawuba netted 14 off the bench and Anthony Tarke had 10.
 
After that high-percentage 1st-half shooting, FGCU held the Highlanders to 44 percent (12-27) in the 2nd half. Meanwhile, the Eagles – ranked 5th in the nation in field-goal percentage at 50.4 – connected at a 56-percent clip (31-55) for the game, including the aforementioned 16-26 performance in the 2nd half.
 
FGCU put itself in a position to win by taking care of the ball as the Eagles committed a season-low seven turnovers. The Eagles were also clutch down the stretch from the free-throw line, going 9-10 in the 2nd half. Four of those makes were recorded by Terrell during the 9-0 run in the closing minutes.
 
FGCU will travel to Spartanburg, S.C., to face USC Upstate (17-12, 7-5 ASUN) in a pivotal league tilt on Saturday, Feb. 18, at 2 p.m. The Spartans are one of two ASUN teams to have defeated FGCU this year when they clipped the Eagles in the closing seconds at Alico Arena last month, 62-60.
 
With an FGCU win at Upstate and a loss by Lipscomb at home versus Jacksonville (5-7) on Saturday, the Eagles will secure their second ASUN regular-season championship and wrap up the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament.

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COACH DOOLEY 
FGCU is led by head coach Joe Dooley, who is in his 4th season with the Eagles in 2016-17 and has coached eight all-conference selections over his first three campaigns. Dooley guided FGCU to a 4th-straight 20-win season and 4th-consecutive postseason appearance in 2015-16 as the Eagles claimed the ASUN Tournament Championship and won their First Four NCAA Tournament game in 31-point record-setting fashion. He led FGCU to its first ASUN Regular-Season Championship and first trip to the NIT in 2014, and in 2015 he led the Eagles to 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 8th season overall as a head coach and has a record of 142-97 (.596), and in his 3+ years with FGCU is 86-45 (.656).
 
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.