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Dakota Rivers

Men's Basketball

Men's Hoops Opens ASUN Championship Tournament Tuesday Against North Alabama

Eagles and Lions set for 7 PM tip on ESPN+ at Alico Arena.

 FGCU Men's Basketball Game Notes & Information
 Game 31  #6W North Alabama (9-20, 2-14 ASUN) vs. #3E FGCU (20-10, 10-6 ASUN)
 Date // Time  Tuesday, Mar. 1 // 7:00 p.m.
 Location  Fort Myers, Fla. // Alico Arena
 Live Statistics  Statbroadcast Live Stats
 Watch Online  ESPN+
 Promotions  White Out
 ASUN Notes  ASUN Standings // ASUN Scoreboard // ASUN Stats
 Tickets  Order Online // 866-FGCU-TIX
 Twitter  @FGCU_MBB // @FGCUEagles 
 Instagram  FGCU Men's Basketball
 Facebook  FGCU Men's Basketball
  
FOR OPENERS
• March is officially here as the FGCU men's basketball team opens the ASUN Championship Tournament on Tuesday night with a first round match-up against North Alabama. The Eagles finished as the third seed in the East Division, while the Lions were the sixth seed in the West Division.
• The winner will head to Bellarmine on Thursday, March 3 as the Knights finished as the second seed in the West.
• The Eagles had a big finish to the regular season with a road win, and the program's first win overall, at Liberty on Wednesday night before returning home to defeat Jacksonville last Saturday afternoon. The two wins produced FGCU's first 20-win season since the 2017-18 campaign giving the Green & Blue momentum heading into the postseason.
 
Tonight's Match-Up
• Through 30 games this year, FGCU is averaging 77.6 points while giving up 73.0 per game. The Eagles have solid shooting numbers at 44.7 percent from the floor and 34.9 percent from deep. FGCU ranks second in the league in scoring, fourth in scoring margin (+4.7), and third in three pointers made (10.2/game), while leading the league in assists (483, 16.1/game), rebounds (1176, 39.2/game) and blocked shots (152, 5.1/game).
• The Green and Blue is led by Tavian Dunn-Martin and Kevin Samuel who are averaging 20.8 and 11.6 points per game, respectively. Samuel is averaging nearly a double-double with a team-best 9.8 rebounds, while adding 91 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 10.8 points while adding 4.8 rebounds.
• Along with his scoring, Dunn-Martin also leads the Eagles and the ASUN in assists with 6.2 per game which ranks 5th nationally. Austin Richie, Caleb Catto, and Dunn-Martin are the top three-point shooters at .371, .368, and .360, respectively. Samuel is the overall field goal percentage leader at 63.8 percent from the floor which ranks 5th nationally. His 3.14 blocks per game also ranks 6th nationally while his 13 double-doubles this season are also 16th in the NCAA. He is also one of just three active players nationally to have 1,000 career points and rebounds. With 297 career blocks, he could become the only player this season to add 300 swats as well.
• North Alabama has lost eight straight including its last meeting against FGCU on Feb. 9 (L, 60-92).
• The Lions are averaging 69.3 points while giving up 68.1 points. Daniel Ortiz leads UNA with 13.9 points per game followed by C.J. Brim (10.0 points). Jamari Blackmon and Payton Youngblood round out the leading scorers at 9.8 and 8.5 points, respectively.
 
Eagles Vs Lions
• FGCU is 4-6 all-time against North Alabama with the Eagles having won three of the last four meetings. The Green and Blue also holds a 4-2 record in the series when played at Alico Arena.
 
FGCU In The ASUN Tournament
• FGCU owns a 17-7 record all-time in the ASUN Championship tournament. The Eagles have won all but twice in the quarterfinals (8-2) and have reached the title game in six of the last 10 years.
2012 2-1 Runner-up (6 seed)
2013 3-0 Champions (2 seed)
2014 2-1 Runner-up (1 seed)
2015 1-1 Semifinals (2 seed)
2016 3-0 Champions (4 seed)
2017 3-0 Champions (1 seed)
2018 2-1 Runner-up (1 seed)
2019 0-1 Quarterfinals (4 seed)
2020 0-1 Quarterfinals (6 seed)
2021 1-1 Semifinals (6 seed)
 
By reaching the ASUN Championship Final in each of its first three seasons of eligibility, FGCU became the only school in NCAA history to accomplish that feat.
 
Catto Earns Academic All-District
• Senior Caleb Catto was recently announced as a member of the CoSIDA Academic All-District team highlighting his tremendous work on and off the court. As a member of the team, he is now eligible for CoSIDA Academic All-America honors as well.
• Catto becomes the first-ever member of the program to earn the accolade. He was also the first player to be named to the ASUN All-Academic Team following the 2020-21 campaign.
• The guard currently carries a 3.75 cumulative grade-point-average as an integrated studies major. He has posted 4.0 GPA's in each of the last three semesters and was a member of the 2021 NABC Honors Court. Throughout his career, he has been honored on the FGCU President's List and Dean's List as well as on the ASUN Honor Roll. Catto serves on the Eagles Council (SAAC) as the group's Secretary and has been a member of the E.A.G.L.E.S. Leadership Institute. He has also contributed 65 hours of service to the greater Southwest Florida community in projects such as Eagle Reading, Toys for Tots, and Seminole Basketball Camps.
 
Historic Season Numbers
• The Eagles have set or are on the verge of setting several single-season program records:
No. 1 Made 3pt FG 307
No. 1 Attempted 3 pt FG 879
No. 1 Blocks Per Game 5.1
No. 1 Total Blocks 152
No. 3 Assists Per Game 16.1
No. 5 Points Per Game 77.6
No. 7 Rebounds Per Game 39.2
No. 7 Assists 483
 
Samuel, Dunn-Martin Having Record Breaking Years
• Tavian Dunn-Martin is one of just 80 NCAA players since 1992-93 to have over 600 points and 180 assists in a single-season. He holds the FGCU single-game scoring record with 43 points and his 602 points are the third-most for a single-season in FGCU history - just behind Brandon Goodwin who had two 600-pt seasons.
• Kevin Samuel is on pace to become the only active NCAA player to have 1,000 career points & rebounds along with 300 blocks (297). His 91 blocks are a single-season FGCU record as are his 3.14 blocks per game. His 9.8 rebounds per game are also a single-season program record, while his 285 total rebounds are currently the second-most for a single-season. The 91 blocked shots also rank as the 3rd most for a career in FGCU history.

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 208-142 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.
 
--FGCUATHLETICS.COM--
 
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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
Cyrus Largie

#4 Cyrus Largie

G
6' 3"
Junior
Austin Richie

#32 Austin Richie

G
6' 6"
Senior
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
Cyrus Largie

#4 Cyrus Largie

6' 3"
Junior
G
Austin Richie

#32 Austin Richie

6' 6"
Senior
G
Kevin Samuel

#21 Kevin Samuel

6' 11"
Fifth Year
C