FORT MYERS, FL – Four players scored in double figures including 19 by junior Jalen Warren (Milton, Ontario/Eastern Florida State) but it was not enough as North Alabama (13-16, 8-8) rallied back for a 78-73 overtime win against the FGCU men's basketball team (10-21, 7-9 ASUN) on Saturday afternoon at Alico Arena.
 
With a Lipscomb win over Liberty and a Jacksonville win over Stetson, the loss dropped the Eagles into the sixth seed in the upcoming ASUN Men's Basketball Championship Tournament which begins next Tuesday, March 3. The Eagles will head to Nashville to take on third-seeded Lipscomb. Tip-off will be set for 7 PM CT (8 PM ET) and the game will be streamed live on ESPN+.
 
"We felt like that was a game where if you had one more stop, one more free throw, one more made shot and you're going home happy today. It's unfortunate, but closing out games and finding ways to win is still something we're learning as a young team," said head coach Michael Fly. "Now the important part is to learn from them and not make similar mistakes on Tuesday night."
 
Warren's 19 points, six of which came in overtime, came on 8-of-12 shooting while he added five assists. Redshirt sophomore Malik Hardy (Miramar, FL/Nova Southeastern) had a career-high 16 points, highlighted by three triples, and added five rebounds, four assists and three steals in 36 minutes. Sophomore Zach Scott (Miami, FL/Westminster Academy) added 15 points, while fellow sophomore Caleb Catto (Cape Coral, FL/Southwest Florida Christian Academy) had 12 points.
 
North Alabama, the fifth seed in the ASUN tournament, was led by a game-high 22 points for Jamari Blackmon. Mervin James finished with 13 points, while C.J. Brim notched 12. Both Emanuel Littles and Christian Agnew had 10 points on the day.
 
In Saturday's game, the Eagles were bolstered in the first half by a hot shooting performance from long range connecting on 7-of-11 three points. Despite the shooting effort, the Eagles had 13 turnovers which helped keep things close as the game was tied 31-31 at the intermission.
 
The second half saw FGCU build out an eight point lead, 47-39, at the 12:40 mark after a lay-up by junior Brian Thomas (Kennesaw, GA/Kell HS) and back-to-back three pointers from Scott.
 
The Lions came back with three pointers from James Anderson and Blackmon and the tied the game, 50-50, on a three-point play by Anderson whose total game points game in that stretch.
 
The Eagles stretched its lead back to as many as six over the next five minutes, but North Alabama continued to chip away. A pair of Hardy free throws put FGCU up five with 40 seconds remaining, but a Blackmon three pointer and then two free throws by James tied the game with 23 seconds to go. FGCU was able to get a shot off with five seconds on the clock, but it was off the mark forcing overtime.
 
In the extra session, the teams traded baskets to open but a seven point swing put UNA up 72-67. Warren scored to pull within three and then did so again after an ensuing bucket by the Lions. A three-point play by Brim with 38 seconds to go pushed the UNA lead back to six, 77-71, but Hardy scored 10 seconds later to pull back within four. Brim added another free throw with 20 seconds remaining to seal the win.
 
Overall, FGCU shot 52 percent (27-52) for the game while North Alabama hit 50 percent (29-58) from the floor. The Eagles hit 11 three pointers, but that was mitigated by the Lions scoring 21 points off 18 turnovers. FGCU converted 15 UNA miscues into 10 points for the day.
 
Similar to the earlier game in Florence, Saturday's match-up saw nine lead changes and 11 ties. The earlier meeting had 11 lead changes and 12 ties.
 
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. You can also sign-up to have news on FGCU men's basketball and other programs delivered directly to your inbox by visiting www.fgcuathletics.com/email.


   

ASUN MEN'S BASKETBALL STANDINGS
SCHOOL	OVERALL	ASUN
Liberty *	27-4	13-3
North Florida *	20-11	13-3
Lipscomb *	14-15	9-7
Stetson *	15-16	9-7
North Alabama *	13-16	8-8
FGCU *	10-21	7-9
Jacksonville *	14-17	9-9
NJIT *	9-20	6-10
Kennesaw State	1-28	0-16

SATURDAY'S SCORES

North Alabama 78, FGCU 73 (ot)
NJIT 76, Kennesaw State 55
Jacksonville 53, Stetson 52
Liberty 71, Lipscomb 77

 
Upcoming ASUN Men's Basketball Schedule
Tuesday, March 3
(1) Liberty vs. (8) NJIT - 7 PM (ESPN+)
(2) North Florida vs. (7) Jacksonville - 7 PM (ESPN+)
(3) Lipscomb vs. (6) FGCU - 7 PM CT/8 PM ET (ESPN+)
(4) Stetson vs. (5) North Alabama - 7 PM (ESPN+) 
 
E.A.G.L.E. CAMPAIGN
IT TAKES A TEAM to achieve our newest goal - a $10 million campaign to address student-athlete needs in continued academic success, life skills, mental health, nutrition, and strength and conditioning as well as departmental needs in facility expansion and improvement as well as mentoring and leadership training for coaches and staff. The name embodies our mission and the purpose of the E.A.G.L.E. Campaign - Eagle Athletics Generating Lifetime Excellence. Join Our Team and pledge your gift today to help the Eagles of tomorrow!
 
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 165-107 record (.618 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 81 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 12-plus seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just eight-plus 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 women's basketball (2019-20) and both men's soccer (2018, 2019) and women's soccer (2018) as three 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-one consecutive semesters. The 2019 Fall semester saw another milestone reached as all 15 programs achieved a 3.0-or-higher team GPA. 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--