FORT MYERS, Fla. – Florida Gulf Coast University women's basketball advanced to the Atlantic Sun Conference title game Tuesday with its 74-52 semifinal win over No. 7 Austin Peay at Alico Arena.
"It was a great win for us to advance to the championship," head coach Karl Smesko said. "Austin Peay is a great defensive team. They are very physical. I thought at the beginning of the second half; we were able to make a little bit of a run and get some separation. We had everyone contribute and make plays for us. Uju, Shekinah and Dolly had so many big plays."
FGCU will be making its 12th straight appearance in the championship and is seeking its seventh consecutive ASUN Tournament crown. It is the 13th year in a row that the team has qualified for the conference's championship game as the league canceled the 2019-20 edition due to the COVID-19 pandemic. FGCU has advanced to the title game every year since earning postseason eligibility in 2011-12. The Eagles, winners of 21 straight, will face No. 3 Central Arkansas on Saturday, March 16, at 7 p.m. at Alico Arena. Central Arkansas took down No. 5 Eastern Kentucky 68-57.
Uju Ezeudu turned in another double-double performance, her eighth of the season, with a team-leading 18 points and 11 rebounds against the Govs. FGCU knocked down 11 threes Tuesday as Ezeudu and Dolly Cairns produced three apiece. Cairns surpassed 1,000 career points in the win. Shekinah Guthrie added 11 points, finishing 5-of-7 from the field.
The Green and Blue has yet to taste defeat in 2024 and opened semifinal battle with the game's first bucket. After one, FGCU led Austin Peay 19-8. The Governors returned the favor in the second, winning the quarter 19-13 to cut FGCU's lead to five heading into the half (32-27).
The Eagles are 27-0 this season when leading at the half. FGCU came out of the locker room connecting on a corner three and would later go on a 12-0 run. Brylee Bartram capped the run with her second three of the night, extending the Eagles lead to 18 (51-33) and forced an Austin Peay timeout.
The Eagles dominated the third, took a double-digit advantage into the fourth and would lead by as many as 22 in the final period.
Cairns effectively put the Governor's away as the senior capitalized on back-to-back Austin Peay turnovers, winning the race to the basket twice to lift FGCU to a 64-47 lead midway through the fourth.
