FORT MYERS, Fla. – Kevin Samuel [Codrington Village, Barbuda/Redemption HS (Texas)/TCU] had his second double-double of the season with 19 points and 12 rebounds and Cyrus Largie (Miramar, Fla./Mater Lakes Academy) added 17 points to lead the FGCU men's basketball team past Dartmouth, 78-68, in overtime at Alico Arena on Saturday night. The Eagles improved to 7-3 overall, while the Big Green fell to 3-3 on the year.
 
Samuel's 19 points marked a new season-high as he hit 7-of-11 field goal attempts, while he cleared double-figure rebounds for the third straight games. He also had a pair of steals and blocks in the game.
 
"I thought we had a number of guys step up tonight and that's what we expect; the strength of our team is our numbers and depth," said head coach Michael Fly. "It's hard sometimes in a game like this where you have a lead late in regulation to be forced into overtime. Our guys showed a lot of fortitude not get down and find a way to win."
 
Largie finished the night with 17 points to go with six rebounds and three steals. Matt Halvorsen (Kingsport, Tenn./Christ School/Western Carolina) notched 13 points, with a team-high three triples, while Tavian Dunn-Martin (Huntington, W.Va./Huntington HS/Akron/Duquesne) had 11 points. Caleb Catto (Cape Coral, Fla./Southwest Florida Christian Academy) rounded out the top performers with a career-best 11 rebounds.
 
Dartmouth was led by Brendan Barry who scored a game-high 26 points on the strength of six three pointers. Asryn Rai posted 18 points and seven rebounds, while Taurus Samuels rounded out the top performers with 12 points.
 
The Big Green carried a 36-30 lead into the intermission thanks in part to a tough shooting start from deep for the Eagles who went 2-of-12 from deep.
 
In the second half, the Eagles put together a 13-to-3 run as Austin Richie (Glenwood, Ill./Don Bosco Institute/Triton College/Tulsa), Halvorsen and Dunn-Martin all hit three-pointers to put FGCU up 52-45 with 6:36 to go. The Green and Blue carried a six point lead into the final 30 seconds of regulation, but Dartmouth converted three free throws before Barry drilled a three-pointer with eight seconds remaining to force the overtime session.
 
In the overtime, FGCU used a 9-to-0 run to go up 72-64 at the 1:01 mark. After a pair of Dunn-Martin free throw, Halvorsen hit four straight in the final 28 seconds to seal the win.
 
Overall, the Eagles converted 26-of-33 free throws compared to 8-of-10 for the Big Green. FGCU finished the night going 6-of-25 from three-point range, while Dartmouth was 10-of-33. The game featured seven lead changes and seven ties.
 
FGCU will play its next two games on the road starting Tuesday night at Florida A&M (7 PM) before then heading to Robert Morris on Saturday, Dec. 11 (7 PM).
 
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.

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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 196-137 record (.583 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 86 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 14+ seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just nine seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 42 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. Eight FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport - including women's basketball (No. 25, 2021-22), beach volleyball (No. 20, 2021) 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 3.50 GPA in the classroom in the fall 2020 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for 24 consecutive semesters. The 2019 Fall, 2020 Spring, 2020 Fall, and 2021 Spring semesters each saw another milestone reached as all 15 programs achieved a 3.0-or-higher team GPA in each. 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.
 
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