ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Florida Gulf Coast men's basketball started quickly, but New Mexico's defense slowed down the Eagles' offense for the first time all season en route to a 75-59 win in Albuquerque on Sunday.
No Eagle scored in double-digits for the first time since Nov. 7, 2022, when FGCU lost to Florida Atlantic during the Owls' Final Four season.
Jordan Ellerbee and
Rory Stewart each scored nine to lead FGCU.
Stewart scored all nine of his points in the first half, including back-to-back 3-pointers after JR Konieczny knocked down the first shot of the game to give FGCU an early 9-0 lead. The Eagles' 3-point defense was simultaneously excellent, as New Mexico opened the game 0-for-9 from behind the arc.
The Lobos eventually began hitting shots to get back in the game, while the Eagles' first six field goals were all 3-pointers.
Gabe Tanner hit FGCU's first 2-pointer with 5:07 to play in the first half to put FGCU up 21-18.
New Mexico retook the lead for good minutes later, and took a 28-25 lead into halftime. Both teams made nine field goals each in the first half; the two squads shot a combined 32% from the field in the frame.
Playing in front of a home crowd of 12,204, the Lobos opened the second half with stingy defense of their own, only allowing four made Eagles' shots in the first eight minutes of the half as they pushed the lead to double-digits. On the offensive end, UNM made eight shots in the same timeframe.
Ellerbee and Tanner combined for seven points in the final two minutes of the game, but the Eagles fell 75-59.
New Mexico was led by Antonio Chol, who scored 14. Jake Hall and Deyton Albury each scored 12, and JT Rock added 10 for the Lobos.
Free throws again made a difference, as New Mexico outshot FGCU from the line 27-14. FGCU has lost the free throw margin in each of its last four losses.
Tanner had the best game of his young career in the loss, setting new career highs with eight points and 24 minutes played. He also had an emphatic putback and-one dunk in the second half.
FGCU lost its first game ever against the Lobos and fell to 0-2 all-time in the Mountain Time Zone.
Next, FGCU returns to the Sunshine State for its second power conference game of the season at UCF on Saturday, Dec. 20 at 5 p.m.
Tickets are on sale now for the Dec. 28 game against Fort Lauderdale and ASUN action at
https://fgcuathletics.evenue.net/list/FGCU.
For more information on FGCU men's basketball, follow @FGCU_MBB on Instagram, X (Twitter) and Facebook, and visit
fgcuathletics.com.
