JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Already the most prolific 3-point shooting team in the country, the No. 28 FGCU women's basketball team (22-3 overall, 10-1 ASUN Conference) rained a season-high 22 triples on North Florida on Saturday afternoon en route to a 106-51 victory over the Ospreys at UNF Arena.

The 22 treys was one away from FGCU's all-time single-game record, which was set in 2021 against Ave Maria. The Green & Blue have made 22 3s three other times prior to Saturday, most recently against Lipscomb in 2018.

FGCU's 106 points were also tantalizingly close to another school record, finishing just three points shy of the Green & Blue's 109 points against Puerto Rico-Cayey in 2005 and Johnson and Wales in 2018. The 106 points were just two shy of the school's ASUN single-game record of 108 (Lipscomb in 2014).

The Green & Blue have now eclipsed the 100-point plateau 25 times, FGCU's 53 second-half points also marked the best 20 minutes in the 2022-23 season.

The Eagles have won four straight games, 10 of their last 11, and eight of their last nine games on the road. FGCU remains atop the ASUN standings, as the only team with 10 wins. The Ospreys fell to 6-15 overall and 3-8 in the ASUN. Saturday's 55-point margin of victory was FGCU's second highest of the season – matching its 86-31 win over Central Arkansas on Jan. 14.

Graduate guard Sha Carter (Southfield. Mich./Wylie E. Groves HS/Walsh) led the team with a game-high 23 points and grabbed a game-high eight rebounds to go with two assists – her third time scoring 20 or more points and her 16^th double-digit game of the season.

Redshirt junior guard Brylee Bartram (Tampa, Fla/ Seffner Christian Academy/ Florida/ Vanderbilt) tied her season-best with 21 points (Ave Maria, Dec. 4) by draining seven triples – which was also just one shy of FGCU's single-game record. Bartram also pulled down two boards and chipped in three assists in her first career FGCU start.

Graduate guard Tishara Morehouse (Milwaukee, Wis./Rufus King HS/Nebraska CC) scored 19 points and dealt a career-high 10 assists for her first career double-double. Saturday marked Morehouse's 21st double-digit game of the season. Redshirt junior guard Alyza Winston (Muskegon, Mich./Muskegon HS/Mississippi State) added 10 points, grabbed two boards and chipped in two assists.

"Great team effort tonight," said FGCU head women's basketball coach Karl Smesko. "We did a good job moving the ball and creating good shots. We also had a terrific first half defensively. Sha, TK, and Brylee all had great games."     

   The Green & Blue jumped out hot, firing off an 18-6 run, with Carter contributing seven points. The Ospreys would score one layup before the Eagles unleashed nine unanswered points to end the first quarter ahead 27-8.

After an even start to the second quarter, Bartram hit a triple at the 8:22 mark to touch off a 21-11 run that consisted of five treys and 10 Carter points to extend the Eagles advantage to 53-19 heading into halftime. The 26-point second quarter was also a season high for the Green & Blue.

 North Florida began the third quarter with a mini 6-3 burst before the Eagles responded with a 34-16 remainder of the quarter that consisted of eight points from Carter and seven from redshirt junior Uju Ezeudu (Reynoldsburg, Ohio/ Reynoldsburg HS/ Denver) for a 90-41 advantage. Five different players were able to hit threes in the period, as the Eagles set a third-quarter high with 37 points.

 FGCU's offensive barrage continued in the final 10 minutes, as the Green & Blue scored 16 points – with three Bartram triples to the Ospreys 10 total points – to seal the victory.

Smesko played all 12 available players, with each Eagle earning at least three minutes of playing time and 10 players scoring at least two points. Sophomore guard Kaila Rougier and redshirt junior guard Lyric Swann led North Florida with nine points and Swann grabbed four rebounds. 

The Eagles return to Alico Arena on Wednesday, hosting Stetson (11-13, 5-6) at 7 p.m.  

The Green & Blue have now hit 293 3-pointers, for an average of 11.7 treys per game – the highest total and per-game average in the country. FGCU has nearly tripled their opponents' treys total, allowing only 104 this season. FGCU's run to its 2021-22 national ranking was due to the Eagles' continued dominance behind the 3-point arc. The Eagles have led the nation in made threes per game the past three years and in four of the last five seasons -- with an NCAA single-season record total 431 in 2017-18.     

Entering this season, the Eagles were selected by both the coaches and the media to repeat as ASUN champions. FGCU is currently ranked No. 4 in the Collegeinsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 poll. The Eagles finished with a program-best-ever No. 20 ranking in 2021-22 and have four Top 25 finishes in the past five seasons. Further, only the Green & Blue and defending national champion South Carolina have won at least 30 games in five of the last eight campaigns.  

  For complete coverage of FGCU women's basketball, follow the Eagles on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook at @FGCU_WBB and online at www.FGCUAthletics.com. You can also sign up to have news on FGCU women's basketball and other programs delivered directly to your inbox by visiting www.fgcuathletics.com/email.   

  INDIVIDUAL TICKETS, MINI PLANS AVAILABLE  

Tickets for the 2022-23 FGCU Basketball season are on sale now and can be purchased by going online to www.FGCUTickets.com or calling 866-FGCU-TIX. Group tickets can also be purchased for 10 or more people – making a memorable evening for families, businesses, or other organizations.  
 
COACH SMESKO   
FGCU head coach Karl Smesko maintains a record of 632-131 (.828) overall in his career, the third-highest winning percentage among active Division I coaches behind only UConn's Geno Auriemma and LSU's Kim Mulkey. He has also led the Eagles to a 241-19 (.926) mark in ASUN regular-season play and a 30-2 (.938) record in ASUN tournament play. Over the previous 10-plus seasons, he has guided FGCU to a 167-6 (.965) record in conference play with six undefeated seasons. The 12-time ASUN Coach of the Year has led the program to 12-straight 25-win seasons and 18 consecutive 20-win campaigns, including 30-plus wins in five of the last eight years. On top of all that, the Eagles are 571-104 (.845) all-time since Smesko started the program in the 2002-03 season, and the Green & Blue's .845 all-time winning percentage is the best in NCAA Division I women's basketball history. 
 
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!  
 
#FEEDFGCU
FGCU Athletics sponsors events in November and April to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (https://www.fgcu.edu/adminservices/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 https://www.fgcu.edu/adminservices/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.  
 
ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 94 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 15-plus seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just 11-plus seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 47 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. In 2022, the men's golf team became the first program to earn an at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament. Eight FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport - including women's basketball (No. 20, 2021-22 and No. 25 in 2022-23) beach volleyball (No. 20, 2022) and both men's soccer (2018, 2019) and women's soccer (2018) as four of the most recent. In 2016-17, the Green & 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 3.66 GPA in the classroom in the fall 2022 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for 27 consecutive semesters. The past seven semesters (Fall 2019 – Fall 2022) saw another milestone reached as all 15 programs achieved a 3.0-or-higher cumulative 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.
   

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