FORT MYERS, Fla. – Georgia Southern used a 61.5 percent shooting effort in the second half to overcome the FGCU men's basketball team 72-57 on Sunday evening at Alico Arena. After the Green and Blue held the visiting Eagles to under 30 percent in the first half, Georgia Southern connected on 16-of-26 field goals in the second half to come back from a five-point halftime deficit.
 
"Unfortunately, tonight was a tale of two halves – we were the more aggressive team in the first half, we were up double-figures in the first half, we had the most energy in the first half, but Georgia Southern made a run in the second half to counter-punch us," said head coach Michael Fly. "We talked at the break that the first four minutes would be critical, but they won that stretch and we couldn't recover unfortunately. Credit Georgia Southern for how they were able to turn things around the last three minutes of the first half and into the second half."
 
Junior Sam Gagliardi (Gig Harbor, Wash.) led FGCU with 13 points highlighted by four three pointers. Junior Justus Rainwater (Enunclaw, Wash.) nearly posted a double-double with 10 rebounds and eight points. Redshirt sophomore Malik Hardy (Miramar, Fla.) rounded out the top scorers with nine points while adding four rebounds and two assists.
 
Georgia Southern (5-3) was led by 16 points from both Elijah McCadden and Ike Smith, while Quan Jackson added 15 points.
 
The first half saw the FGCU (2-8) take a 35-30 lead into the locker room as the defense held Georgia Southern under 30 percent shooting from the floor and Gagliardi hit all four of his three pointers for 12 points at the break. The home Eagles led by as many as 11, 35-24, with 1:55 before the intermission.
 
The second half was all Georgia Southern from the start, however, as the Eagles went on a 20-to-5 run opening up a 50-40 lead at the 11:40 mark.
 
FGCU cut the lead under double digits on five occasions after that including a jumper by freshman Jalen Harper (Mableton, Ga.), but Georgia Southern re-extended their lead to as many as 18 with 2:27 to go.
 
Freshman Dakota Rivers (Windermere, Fla.) had a lay-up and a free throw in the last minute of play to give the final score.
 
Overall, FGCU shot 21-of-58 from the floor, while Georgia Southern finished 26-of-60. Georgia Southern also held a slight edge on the glass, 39-to-34, but were able to convert 12 rebounds into 17 second chance points compared to seven for FGCU.

2019-20 Hilton Garden Inn FGCU Classic All-Tournament Team
Campbell - Cedric Henderson, Jr.
FGCU - Justus Rainwater
Georgia Southern - Ike Smith
Georgia Southern - Elijah McCadden
North Dakota - Filip Rebraca
North Dakota - Marlon Stewart
 
FGCU will return to action on Wednesday night when the Eagles travel to Miami to face FIU (7 PM). The game will be streamed live on CUSA.tv.
 
Tickets are on sale now, but limited, and can be purchased by visiting the Alico Arena Box Office, going online to www.FGCUAthletics.com or calling 239-590-7145.

For complete coverage of FGCU men's basketball, follow the Eagles on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook at @FGCU_MBB and online at www.FGCUAthletics.com. 



BASKETBALL TICKET INFORMATION
FGCU basketball tickets for the 2019-20 season are on sale now including single-game tickets and the popular mini-plan options. For more information, contact an FGCU Ticket Office representative by calling 239-590-7145, visiting Alico Arena Monday-Friday between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. or by visiting www.FGCUAthletics.com/Tickets. 
 
COACH FLY
Michael Fly was introduced as the fourth FGCU men's basketball head coach on April 5, 2018. He had spent the previous seven years as an assistant coach on the Eagles' staff. In his time with the Eagles, he helped FGCU to a 157-95 record (.628 winning percentage), including six ASUN Tournament Final appearances, three NCAA Tournament victories, three ASUN Tournament titles and three ASUN Regular Season Championships, two berths in the NIT, a CIT appearance and a run to the Sweet 16. He has coached 13 all-conference selections while with the Green and Blue, including two ASUN Player of the Year honors in Sherwood Brown and Brandon Goodwin, two ASUN Defensive Player of the Year selections in Bernard Thompson and Demetris Morant and one ASUN Newcomer of the Year in Schadrac Casimir. Of the top-10 players in career points at FGCU, Fly has helped develop eight of them, including all-time leading scorer Thompson (1,835). Additionally, the Kentucky alumnus has coached both the ASUN all-time assists leader Brett Comer (845; 24th in NCAA history) and FGCU all-time leading rebounder Chase Fieler (714).
 
#FEEDFGCU
FGCU Athletics sponsors events in November and April 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.
 
ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 80 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 13 seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just nine seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 36 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. Seven FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport – including both men's soccer (2018, 2019) and women's soccer (2018) as two of the most recent. In 2016-17, the Green and Blue posted a department-best sixth-place finish in the DI-AAA Learfield Directors' Cup and top-100 showing nationally, ahead of several Power-5 and FBS institutions. In 2018-19, the Eagles had an ASUN and state of Florida best seven teams earn the NCAA's Public Recognition Award for their Academic Progress Rate in their sport. FGCU also collectively earned a record 3.35 GPA in the classroom in the spring 2018 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for twenty consecutive semesters.  The Eagles also served an all-time high 7,200 volunteer hours in 2017 – being recognized as one of two runners-up for the inaugural NACDA Community Service Award presented by the Fiesta Bowl.
 
--FGCUATHLETICS.COM--