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Kevin Samuel

Men's Basketball

Men's Hoops Heads to North Florida Looking to Extend Win Streak

Eagles and Ospreys set for 5 PM tip on ESPN+.

 FGCU Men's Basketball Game Notes & Information
 Game 28  FGCU (18-9, 8-5 ASUN) vs. North Florida (9-18, 5-8 ASUN)
 Date // Time  Saturday, Feb. 18 // 5:00 p.m.
 Location  Jacksonville, Fla. // UNF Arena
 Live Statistics  Statbroadcast Live Stats
 Watch Online  ESPN+
 ASUN Notes  ASUN Standings // ASUN Scoreboard // ASUN Stats
 Tickets  Next Home Game: Feb. 26 vs. Jacksonville - Order Online // 866-FGCU-TIX
 Twitter  @FGCU_MBB // @FGCUEagles 
 Instagram  FGCU Men's Basketball
 Facebook  FGCU Men's Basketball
  
FOR OPENERS
• The FGCU men's basketball team looks to close out the penultimate week of the regular-season on a strong note as the Eagles head to North Florida on Saturday afternoon. The Green and Blue will be looking to extend their five-game win streak in the game against the Ospreys which is set for a 5 PM tip on ESPN+.
• The Eagles currently sit third in the East Division standings, while North Florida is sixth. The East Division remains a tight race with Jacksonville in second place (9-4) with the Eagles just behind at 8-5. The Ospreys enter the game with a 5-8 league record. A win for the Eagles coupled with a loss for Jacksonville would move FGCU into second heading into the final week of the regular season.
 
The Match-up
• Through 27 games this year, FGCU is averaging 78.0 points while giving up 73.3 per game. The Eagles have solid shooting numbers at 45.2 percent from the floor and 35.4 percent from deep. FGCU ranks second in the league in scoring, fifth in scoring margin (+4.8), and third in three pointers made (10.5/game), while leading the league in assists (444, 16.4/game), rebounds (1050, 38.89/game) and blocked shots (133, 4.9/game).
• The Green and Blue is led by Tavian Dunn-Martin and Kevin Samuel who are averaging 20.4 and 11.7 points per game, respectively. Samuel is averaging nearly a double-double with a team-best 9.8 rebounds, while adding 82 blocks. He has already set the single-season record for blocked shots surpassing Kyle Marks (2008-09) who previously held it with 51.
• Cyrus Largie is the third leading scorer on the team at 10.9 points while adding 5.0 rebounds.
• Along with his scoring, Dunn-Martin also leads the Eagles and the ASUN in assists with 6.2 per game which ranks 7th nationally. Dunn-Martin and Caleb Catto are the top three-point shooter (players with more than 75 attempts) at .373 and .372, respectively. Samuel is the overall field goal percentage leader at 64.5 percent from the floor which ranks fourth nationally. His 3.15 blocks per game also ranks 8th nationally while his 12 double-doubles this season are also 17th in the NCAA.
• North Florida has won two straight including this past Tuesday, 72-69, against Liberty. The Ospreys have won four of their last five overall with the lone loss coming against Bellarmine.
• Jose Placer leads UNF in scoring this season at 14.9 points per game followed by Carter Hendricksen at 12. 6 points. Jarius Hicklen rounds out the top scorers at 11.7 points.
 
Eagles Vs. ospreys
• In the all-time series, FGCU holds a slight 19-15 advantage after winning the earlier match-up this season in Alico Arena to open league play.
• The Eagles will be looking for the first season sweep of UNF since the 2018 campaign.
 
Record-Breaking Night In OT Win Over Hatters
• Tavian Dunn-Martin scored a program record 38 points, including 20 in the final 7:33 of the game, to lead FGCU over Stetson, 89-82 in overtime, last Saturday for the Eagles' fourth consecutive win.
• Dunn-Martin's performance eclipsed four previous players who were tied for the program record with 37 points. Zach Johnson most recently had the high with 37 against Lipscomb (3/4/18), while Ryan Hopkins did it twice – against Florida College (1/14/03) and Plymouth State (12/31/02). Leighton Bowie also had 37 against Illinois Wesleyan on Dec. 20, 2003. For Dunn-Martin, he finished the night hitting 13-of-25 from the floor with five three pointers and was 7-of-8 at the free throw line. He added seven assists and six rebounds in 40 minutes of play.
• The performance also marked the sixth 30-point game of the year for Dunn-Martin which made him the only ASUN player in the last decade to do so in a single season. Garrison Mathews of Lipscomb had five such games during the 2018-19 season as the last ASUN player to have five-or-more for a year.
• In addition to Dunn-Martin's play, Kevin Samuel had his 12th double-double of the season with 12 points and 12 rebounds while posting seven blocked shots which tied his previous career high set against Oklahoma State (12/16/20). The seven blocks were tied as the third-most in program history and just one shy of the single-game FGCU record (last set by Brian Thomas, 3/3/20 vs. Lipscomb).
 
FOUR Eagles Over 1K
• In addition to Tavian Dunn-Martin (1,414 pts) reaching 1,000 points earlier this year, Matt Halvorsen crossed the milestone during his career at Western Carolina and now has 1,439 through five seasons.
• Kevin Samuel reached the mark at Kennesaw State and now has 1,127 in 121 career games.
• Caleb Catto is most recent Eagle to hit the milestone with 1,005 points in 109 games – hit went over the mark after scoring 11 points in the win at home against Kennesaw State.
 
 Leaders Among the ASUN
• Tavian Dunn-Martin is currently second in the ASUN in scoring, averaging 20.4 points per game just behind Liberty's Darius McGhee (22.9). He leads the league in assists (6.2/game, 160), is third in three pointers (3.15/game, 82), and second in total field goals (164). He is one of just four ASUN players with multiple 30-point games this season and the only player with six.
• Kevin Samuel leads the ASUN in blocked shots (3.15), rebounding (9.8), field goal percentage (64.5), and double-doubles (12).
• Cyrus Largie is third in the league in total steals (43) and fourth in steals per game (1.59).
 
Historic Season Numbers
• The Eagles have set or are on the verge of setting several single-season program records:
- No. 1              Made 3pt FG                                                     284
- No. 1              Attempted 3 pt FG                                           802
- No. 1              Blocks Per Game                                               4.9
- No. 3             Assists Per Game                                             16.4
- No. 5              Points Per Game                                              78.0
 

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.

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 has helped FGCU to a 206-141 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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Players Mentioned

Schadrac Casimir

#11 Schadrac Casimir

G
5' 10"
Redshirt Senior
Caleb Catto

#2 Caleb Catto

G
6' 5"
Senior
Tavian Dunn-Martin

#5 Tavian Dunn-Martin

G
5' 8"
Graduate Student
Matt Halvorsen

#11 Matt Halvorsen

G
6' 1"
Graduate Student
Cyrus Largie

#4 Cyrus Largie

G
6' 3"
Junior
Kevin Samuel

#21 Kevin Samuel

C
6' 11"
Fifth Year

Players Mentioned

Schadrac Casimir

#11 Schadrac Casimir

5' 10"
Redshirt Senior
G
Caleb Catto

#2 Caleb Catto

6' 5"
Senior
G
Tavian Dunn-Martin

#5 Tavian Dunn-Martin

5' 8"
Graduate Student
G
Matt Halvorsen

#11 Matt Halvorsen

6' 1"
Graduate Student
G
Cyrus Largie

#4 Cyrus Largie

6' 3"
Junior
G
Kevin Samuel

#21 Kevin Samuel

6' 11"
Fifth Year
C