FORT MYERS, Fla. – Tavian Dunn-Martin (Huntington, W.Va./Huntington HS/Akron/Duquesne) and Kevin Samuel [Codrington Village, Barbuda/Redemption HS (Texas)/TCU] each posted double-doubles, while four Eagles overall scored in double figures as the FGCU men's basketball team opened ASUN play with a 74-67 win over North Florida on Wednesday night at Alico Arena. The win improved FGCU to 11-4 overall and 1-0 in ASUN play, while the Ospreys fell to 4-10 on the season and 0-1 in league action.
 
"I want to credit Coach Driscoll who I think has done a terrific job in this league over the years. UNF had guys out tonight and I thought they fought all night and had us on our heels for much of the night," said head coach Michael Fly. "On the flip side, I told our guys that's a character win for a game that really could go either way. Fortunately for us, we've come out on top more than we've lost in these situations so far this year. This was a game that, hopefully, you build on and you learn from going forward in the season."
 
Samuel finished the game with 16 points, 11 rebounds, and five blocks for his sixth double-double of the year. The 16 points, on 8-of-9 shooting from the floor, also gave him 985 career points as he looks to reach the 1,000-point plateau for his career between TCU and FGCU.
 
Dunn-Martin had his third double-double of the season and as many over the last four games. He had a game-high 12 assists marking the fourth time this season he's handed out a dozen or more helpers. Alongside his assists, he also scored 11 points while snagging five rebounds.
 
Caleb Catto (Cape Coral, Fla./Southwest Florida Christian Academy) and Cyrus Largie (Miramar, Fla./Mater Lakes Academy) each scored in double-figures with 12 points and 11 points, respectively, with the duo combining to hit six of FGCU's 10 three pointers on the night.
 
UNF was led by Carter Hendricksen's 16 points and eight rebounds followed by 15 points from Jose Placer. Jarius Hicklen added 11 points to round out the top scorers.
 
Overall, the Eagles hit 28-of-57 (49%) of it shots, while the Ospreys were 27-of-67 (40%) from the floor. FGCU owned a 44-to-31 advantage on the glass which led to 13 second chance points and 13 fast break points.
 
The Eagles trailed by six late in the first half, but a pair of triples by Largie and Matt Halvorsen (Kingsport, Tenn./Christ School/Western Carolina) followed by a Dunn-Martin lay-up put the Green and Blue up 34-32 with 1:07 remaining. Placer scored on a lay-up with 13 seconds to go giving a tie score at the intermission.
 
FGCU opened things up in the second with a 9-to-0 run paced by a dazzling alley-oop from Dunn-Martin to Samuel followed by a tip-in. Andre Weir (Hollywood, Fla./Chaminade-Madonna Prep/Richmond) hit a pair of free throws and then Austin Richie (Glenwood, Ill./Don Bosco Institute/Triton College/Tulsa) knocked down a triple giving FGCU a 53-48 lead midway through the stanza.
 
A Largie three-pointer followed by a Dunn-Martin lay-up extended the lead to eight, but a quick five points including a triple by Hendricksen cut the deficit to 70-67 with 33 seconds remaining.
 
The Eagles were able to close out the win at the free throw line as Richie and Franco Miller, Jr. (Freeport, Bahamas/Ole Miss) each hit a pair of free throws to give the final score.
 
FGCU is slated to head to Jacksonville this Saturday, January 8 with a 6 PM tipoff at Historic Swicher Gymnasium. The game will be streamed live 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.

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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 200-138 record (.585 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 87 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 43 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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