Liberty (14-1) vs. FGCU (3-12)
Fort Myers, Florida – Alico Arena Center (4,500 capacity)
Thursday, Jan. 2, 5:00 p.m. ET

TV: ESPNU
Radio: Alan York will have the Liberty radio network call on 107.5 FM in Lynchburg or also streaming online.
Last Meeting: Flames won 74-67 in Lynchburg on February 9th and 81-63 in Fort Myers on January 5th last season.
Series History: Liberty leads 2-0.

Projected LU Starters:

11 Georgie Pacheco-Ortiz (Sr., 6-1, 175) – 9.1 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 2.1 apg
2 Darius McGhee (So., 5-9, 150) – 9.9 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 1.5 apg
10 Elijah Cuffee (Jr., 6-4, 200) – 9.1 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 2.4 apg
1 Caleb Homesley (R-Sr., 6-6, 205) – 11.2 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 2.5 apg
31 Scottie James (R-Sr., 6-7, 230) – 10.4 ppg, 7.4 rpg, 1.1 apg

Top LU Reserves:

0 Myo Baxter-Bell (R-Sr., 6-5, 255) – 8.7 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 1.5 apg
22 Kyle Rode (Fr., 6-7, 220) – 6.4 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 1.6 apg
33 Shiloh Robinson (Fr., 6-7, 200) – 3.5 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 0.5 apg

Projected FGCU Starters:

2 Caleb Catto (So., 6-5, 190) – 10.3 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 2.9 apg
1 Zach Scott (So., 6-4, 173) – 12.0 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 1.1 apg
32 Justus Rainwater (Jr., 6-8, 230) – 6.7 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 0.3 apg
13 Tracy Hector (Sr., 6-5, 232) – 2.6 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 2.2 apg
15 Sam Gagliardi (Jr., 6-4, 199) – 6.9 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 1.1 apg

Top FGCU Reserves:

5 Jalen Warren (Jr., 6-3, 167) – 9.0 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 3.3 apg
0 Dakota Rivers (Fr., 6-8, 230) – 5.4 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 0.3 apg
11 Qwanzi Samuels (Fr., 6-8, 196) – 2.1 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 0.4 apg
4 Cyrus Largie (Fr., 6-1, 212) – 1.9 ppg, 1.4 rpg, 0.9 apg

QUICK FACTS

  • Liberty ended 2019 with the second highest winning percentage (.882) in Division I going 32-4.
  • The Flames have 8 wins away from home this season, the most of any team in Division I.
  • Liberty is ranked No. 2 in the country in scoring defense, holding opponents to 53.1 points per game.
  • Liberty has three 1,000 career point scorers on the team, the most of any team in school history. Richmond is the only other Division I team in the country that has three 1,000 point scorers on their team.
  • The Flames ended non-conference play with 6 neutral court wins, the most Liberty has ever had in a single season.
  • Liberty looks to become the first team since FGCU in 2017 to repeat as ASUN Champions.

PREVIEW

With a 14-1 record at their backs, the Liberty Flames now turn its attention to ASUN play where McKay and the Flames look to repeat as champions. Not only would it be the first time the ASUN has seen a repeat champion since 2017, it would be the first time Liberty has ever repeated as conference champions in school history.

That trek begins Thursday evening in Fort Myers, Florida, the same place Liberty opened ASUN play a season ago when the Flames face Florida Gulf Coast.

The Eagles are one of the more storied ASUN basketball programs, as they have the most ASUN titles of any current league member with their three tournament championships from 2013, 2016, and 2017. Dunk City made a national splash in 2013 when they advanced to the Sweet 16 as a 15-seed. They also have regular season ASUN titles in 2014, 2017, and 2018, and FGCU has finished either first or second in the ASUN regular season standings every year from 2013 through 2018. That streak was snapped last year when the Eagles finished in a tie for third place behind Liberty and Lipscomb.

Behind 2nd year head coach Michael Fly, FGCU was picked to finish 3rd in this year’s ASUN race behind Liberty and North Florida, but their non-conference slate went about as poorly as you could imagine. The Eagles are just 1-12 against Division I opponents, with their only win coming back on November 20th against Florida Atlantic in overtime, 72-70. FGCU has played the 195th toughest schedule, and the only positive thing to say about their season thus far is they haven’t lost to any 300+ ranked KenPom teams. Their worst losses have come against UMBC and Robert Morris. It will be interesting to see how they stack up against ASUN competition.

KENPOM PREDICTION

Liberty 66, FGCU 53