Florida Gulf Coast University women's basketball knocked down 12 3-pointers Saturday to defeat Jacksonville 92-50 to improve to 4-0 in Atlantic Sun Conference play.
"Proud of the way we competed today," head coach Chelsea Lyles said. "Everyone who came in made a positive contribution."
FGCU, winners of its last six, stood as the last remaining undefeated team in the ASUN, and the Eagles showed why from the opening tip in Jacksonville. Emani Jefferson corralled a loose ball during the opening tip and needed only seven seconds to put the Eagles up 2-0. FGCU would not look back from there, constantly pushing the pace Saturday all sparked by 15 steals and 22 turnovers.
With Saturday's 42-point victory, the Green and Blue (13-3) has won all four ASUN games by double digits for an average of 28.5 points.
With just under three minutes to play in the opening period, Casey Santoro stripped a driving Dolphin, sprinted up the court and found a trailing Skyler Gill for a wing three to put the Eagles up 17-6, forcing a JU timeout.
FGCU has forced 12 or more turnovers in all 16 games this season and has now held 15 of its 16 opponents to 58 points or less to boast one of the nation's best scoring defenses. At just 52.4 points per game, the Eagles rank No. 7 nationally in the category.
FGCU hit nine threes in the first 20 minutes of play and was shooting 69.2 percent from distance going into the half, a season-best 57.1 percent for the day (12-of-21). FGCU improves to 11-0 on the year when hitting eight or more in a game. Defensively, the Eagles limited Jacksonville to zero 3-point attempts in the first half and only two made threes for the entire contest.
Dolly Cairns did not miss in the first half. The sharpshooter made all five of her shot attempts and went a perfect 4-for-4 from behind the arc. Cairns produced all 14 of her points Saturday in the first half, propelling the Eagles to a 20-point halftime lead, 46-26.
Eleven different Eagles scored on Saturday for a season-high 92 points. Lauryn Taylor turned in a team-leading and game-high 16 points, tying her season high against NJIT. Jefferson cashed in for 15 points and a team-leading six steals. Cerina Rolle became the fourth Eagle to reach double digits Saturday with 10 points.
On Thursday, FGCU led by as many as 40 points heading into the final period. Today, FGCU lead by 30, 70-40. Saturday's win extended the Eagles' win streak against ASUN opponents to 37 consecutive victories, and also upended the Dolphins for the 19th consecutive time in the 41-game series.
FGCU continues its four-game road swing Thursday at Queens University of Charlotte at 7 p.m. on ESPN+. FGCU recorded an 81-58 victory over the Royals in the ASUN opener.
