FGCU Men's Basketball Game Notes & Information
Games 10 & 11	FGCU (5-4, 0-2 ASUN) vs. Lipscomb (9-7, 4-2 ASUN)
Date // Time	Friday, Jan. 22 // 7:00 p.m. (CT) // 8:00 p.m. (ET) Saturday, Jan. 23 // 7:00 p.m. (CT) // 8:00 p.m. (ET)
Location	Nashville, Tenn. // Allen Arena (both games)
Live Statistics	Friday - Stat Broadcast // Saturday - Stat Broadcast
Watch Online	Friday - ESPN+ Saturday - ESPN+
Game Notes	FGCU Notes | ASUN Standings & Stats
Twitter	@FGCU_MBB // @FGCUEagles
Instagram	FGCU Men's Basketball
Facebook	FGCU Men's Basketball
NCAA Whistle No. 6 - This episode focuses on Grounded Secondary Defenders.

FORT MYERS, Fla. - The first ASUN road trip of the year is on tap this weekend as the FGCU men's basketball team (5-4, 0-2 ASUN) heads to Lipscomb (9-7, 4-2 ASUN) for a pair of games on Friday and Saturday nights. The games are both set for 7 PM (CT) tip-offs and will be streamed online through ESPN+.

Currently, the Eagles are slated to have a bye weekend to close out January before returning to home action on Feb. 5-6 when FGCU hosts Stetson. Single-game tickets, group tickets (as low as $8 each), along with several mini-plan packages, are on sale now through the Alico Arena Ticket Office. Fans are encouraged to order tickets online through www.FGCUTickets.com or by calling 866-FGCU-TIX. FGCU is using mobile ticketing this year as part of its COVID-19 protocols so please check www.FGCUTickets.com for complete details or call the ticket office to speak with a customer service representative. Fans who order one of the four-game mini-plans that are offered, they will also receive their choice of an Eagles hat, bag, or t-shirt!

After dropping both games last weekend against Bellarmine, FGCU will be looking for its first ASUN wins of the year. Last season against Lipscomb, the Eagles split the regular-season meetings before the Bison won the ASUN quarterfinal match-up in Nashville.

Caleb Catto (Cape Coral, Fla./Southwest Florida Christian Academy) has been one of the top players in the ASUN, averaging a team-best 14.8 points per night. Cyrus Largie (Miramar, Fla./Mater Lakes Academy) continues his walk-on to scholarship player story line, averaging 11.3 points and 6.0 rebounds, while Jalen Warren (Milton, Ontario/Eastern Florida State) rounds out the top scorers with 11.6 points per game.

After going on a two-week pause due to COVID protocol, FGCU returned to action to begin ASUN play with a pair of home losses to Bellarmine. The Knights picked up a 74-60 win on Friday night before earning the road sweep 80-63 on Saturday. Catto led the Eagles on Friday with 15 points, while Warren led the way on Saturday with 13 points as one of four players in double figures. On Friday, FGCU struggled in the first half shooting just 27 percent from the floor and going 1-of-13 from deep. The Eagles picked up the pace in the second half, but could not dig out of a 27-point deficit. Saturday saw FGCU open strong taking a 38-36 lead into the intermission. The Knights, however, took back momentum in the second half with an 11-to-1 run late giving them a double-figure lead.

Catto, who ranks third in scoring among ASUN players, is not the only Eagle whose name shows up on the league's statistical rankings, as graduate Eli Abaev (Deerfield Beach, Fla./Austin Peay), sophomore Dakota Rivers (Windermere, Fla./Windermere HS), and freshman Luis Rolon (Ponce, Puerto Rico/Central Pointe Christian Academy) have also had strong starts to the season. Abaev's 8.1 boards per game are the the most of any player in the conference, while Rivers' 1.67 blocks per game also pace the ASUN. In his first season playing collegiate basketball, Rolon ranks first in steals per game (2.44) and assists per game (4.9) - nationally he ranks 17th in steals and is averaging the third-most assists per game for any freshman in the country.

This weekend's series will mark the 28th and 29th all-time meetings between the two programs in which Lipscomb holds a 16-11 advantage. The teams split the two regular-season meetings last year with each winning on their home court. The Bison ended FGCU's 2019-20 season in the ASUN Quarterfinals as Ashan Asadullah scored an Allen Arena record 40 points.

Lipscomb saw a three-game win streak snapped last Saturday as the Bison split its series against North Florida. The Bison are led by KJ Johnson who is averaging 13.6 points per game as one of four players in double-figures this season. Asadullah is averaging 12.9 points and 7.9 rebounds, while Romeao Ferguson is also averaging 12.9 points. Greg Jones rounds out the top scorers with 10.9 points per game. 

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.

UPCOMING ASUN SCHEDULE
Friday, Jan. 22
Kennesaw State vs. North Florida - 7 PM
Stetson vs. Bellarmine - 7 PM
Jacksonville vs. North Alabama - 7 PM
FGCU vs. Lipscomb - 8 PM (CT)/7 PM (ET)

Saturday, Jan. 23
Kennesaw State vs. North Florida - 5 PM
Stetson vs. Bellarmine - 5 PM
Jacksonville vs. North Alabama - 7 PM
FGCU vs. Lipscomb - 8 PM (CT)/7 PM (ET)


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 169-112 record (.603 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 82 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 38 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 (No. 24, 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 (APR) in their sport and have had the highest percentage of teams so honored from these two groups over each of the past three years. FGCU also collectively earned a record 3.46 GPA in the classroom in the spring 2020 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for 22 consecutive semesters. The 2019 Fall and 2020 Spring semesters each 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--