FGCU men's basketball earns final spot in ASUN Tournament, plus full ASUN Tournament schedule
A season that once seemed to hold unlimited promise for the FGCU men’s basketball team was one loss away from ending.
The day before the Eagles’ final regular season game against Austin Peay, the one that would decide whether or not FGCU would keep its NCAA Tournament hopes alive, head coach Pat Chambers told his players to follow him out of the Alico Arena gym.
The second half of the season had seen the Eagles endure injuries, illness and a seemingly endless run of close conference losses chip away at the momentum of FGCU’s 14-3 start, the best in the program’s history.
“I told them we’ve got to get cleansed,” Chamber said.
'Dunk City' conductor Brett Comer returns to FGCU on the opposite sideline
FGCU men's basketball team can clinch ASUN Tournament berth with win over Austin Peay
So the entire team ran across the parking lot and jumped into the pool, clad in their practice gear, sans sneakers.
“I saw guys smiling again; I saw guys laughing, jumping off the diving board,” Chambers said. “I saw guys enjoying themselves.”
Those positive vibes carried over into Friday’s game against the Governors, which saw FGCU cruise to an 89-71 victory after leading by as many as 32 points. The win allowed the Eagles to clinch the 10th and final spot in the ASUN Tournament and keep their postseason hopes alive.
FGCU (17-14, 7-11) will play ninth-seeded Queens (N.C.) on Monday in Kennesaw, Ga. in a first-round matchup. The winner will play top-seeded Kennesaw State Tuesday.
“I think we’re extremely grateful to be where we are,” said Eagles junior guard Chase Johnston, who had a game-high 23 points and 10 rebounds in the win over Austin Peay. “There’s four teams that aren’t going to be competing in this tournament. We’re just going to take it one game at a time. We have a bunch of warriors in that locker room so we don’t doubt each other.”
“Regardless of what seed we are, we know we can compete at the highest level in this conference,” added fifth-year guard Caleb Catto. “We’ve proved that. We lost some close games. Now it’s just getting ready for this new season and just getting that new energy and new life back.
“If we believe we can, I think that’s the most important part.”
Chambers said the coaching staff approached Friday’s game with Austin Peay as the first game of the ASUN Tournament since it represented a win-and-in scenario.
“We said hey, we’ve got a home game to start the tournament, let’s go,” he said.
FGCU must win four games in seven days, all on the road, to clinch its first NCAA berth since 2017. The Eagles did win three games in consecutive days in November to capture the Gulf Coast Shootout at Hertz Arena, which helped propel them on their record-breaking start.
“This is the season, this is what it is,” Chambers said. “Start off great, go down a little bit and hopefully now we’re ready to go on a bit of an ascension.”
2023 ASUN Basketball Tournament bracket
Click here for the 2023 ASUN Men's Basketball Tournament printable bracket.
2023 ASUN Basketball Tournament schedule
Monday
Game 1: 9. Queens vs. 10. FGCU (at Kennesaw St.), 7 p.m. on ESPN+
Game 2: 7. North Florida vs. 8. Bellarmine (at Liberty), 7 p.m. on ESPN+
Tuesday, February 28
Quarterfinals
Game 3: Game 1 winner at 1. Kennesaw St., 7 p.m. on ESPN+
Game 4: 5. Lipscomb at 4. Stetson, 7 p.m. on ESPN+
Game 5: Game 2 winner at 2. Liberty, 7 p.m. on ESPN+
Game 6: 6. N. Alabama at 3. Eastern Kentucky, 7 p.m. on ESPN+
Thursday, March 2
Semifinals
Game 7: Lowest remaining seed at Highest remaining seed, Time TBD on ESPN+
Game 8: Next lowest remaining seed at Next highest remaining seed, Time TBD on ESPN+
Sunday, March 5
Championship game
Game 9: Lowest remaining seed at Highest remaining seed, 3 p.m. on ESPN2
This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: FGCU men's basketball team face long road to win ASUN Tournament
