FORT MYERS, Fla. – A trio of free throws put the Eagles ahead in the final minute of play and Stetson (4-9, 2-5 ASUN) missed a pair of three-point attempts in the last six seconds of regulation as the FGCU men's basketball team (7-5, 2-3 ASUN) held on for a 64-63 win on Friday night at Alico Arena. The Hatters final attempt came with 0.8 seconds to go, but hit off the back rim giving the Green and Blue its second win in the last three games.
 
The nip-and-tuck contest featured 11 lead changes and eight ties with the largest lead of the night just seven points by the Hatters nearly four minutes into play.
 
"I thought that was a really competitive college basketball game tonight," said head coach Michael Fly. "It certainly wasn't the prettiest from the offensive stand point, but the encouraging thing is that we were able to win because of our defense. If we bring that same energy tomorrow and are able to knock down a few shots, then we will be in good shape."
 
After Stetson carried a 35-31 lead into the intermission, a 13-to-2 run by the Eagles gave FGCU a 48-42 lead after a Cyrus Largie (Miramar, Fla./Mater Lakes Academy) three-pointer at the 13:14 mark of the second half.
 
After the lead changed three times from that point, another quick 9-to-2 run by FGCU put the Eagles back up by six points, 61-56, with 4:38 to go. Stetson did not go away as the Hatters countered by scoring eight straight to go up 63-61 with 72 seconds remaining.
 
With 51 seconds left, Caleb Catto (Cape Coral, Fla./Southwest Florida Christian Academy) hit a pair of free throws before Eli Abaev (Deerfield Beach, Fla./Austin Peay) hit one of two 30 seconds later. Stetson corralled the defensive rebound on the miss and called timeout after crossing center court. With six seconds to go, Christian Jones missed a three-pointer with the ball going out of bounds to stay with the Hatters. Chase Johnston was able to get off one final attempt but the shot was long as time expired preserving the win for the Eagles.
 
Jalen Warren (Milton, Ontario/Eastern Florida State) led FGCU with 12 points and four assists, while Abaev added 11 points and six rebounds. Dakota Rivers (Windermere, Fla./Windermere HS) rounded out the top scorers for the Eagles with 10 points, five rebounds, and four blocked shots.
 
Stetson was led by Mahamadou Diawara who scored 16 points, while Rob Perry posted a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds. Chase Johnston added 12 points and Christiaan Jones notched 11 points.
 
The two teams will meet again on Saturday night at Alico Arena. Tip-off is set for 7 PM and the game will be streamed on ESPN+.

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 SCHEDULE & RESULTS
Friday, Jan. 29
Bellarmine 84, Kennesaw State 67
FGCU 64, Stetson 63
North Alabama 82, North Florida 78
Liberty 59, Jacksonville 54

Saturday, Jan. 30
Bluefield State at Lipscomb - 3 PM
Bellarmine at Kennesaw State - 4 PM
Stetson at FGCU - 7 PM
North Alabama at North Florida - 5 PM
Liberty at Jacksonville - 6 PM

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 170-113 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--