Atlantic Sun Review: Florida Gulf Coast Stays Perfect As Lipscomb & USC Upstate Grab First Wins

The Eagles headed to Jacksonville for the first Atlantic Sun road test and with a 79-75 win, pulled ahead with a full game lead in the conference.

Through precise 3-pointers from Dallas Moore and Beau Beech, the Ospreys opened up an early lead over FGCU. The Eagles however came storming back to tie the game at 38 at half. Joe Dooley showed his determination to get the ball in the post. While it didn't always result in points in the paint, the inside-outside game worked great for Florida Gulf Coast.

In the 2nd half, neither squad could seem to gain an edge until a Charles McRoy alley-oop dunk electrified an already ecstatic North Florida crowd. While that sparked a run, a couple of turnovers and lack of box outs allowed the Eagles back in the game.

With just under five minutes left in the game, Brett Comer -- returning from a knee injury -- hit a floater to extend the FGCU lead to nine (71-62), its biggest of the night. Although UNF surged back, Florida Gulf Coast was able to withstand the run and escape Jacksonville with its first Atlantic Sun road win.

Keith McDougald showed why he was a preseason All-Conference selection. The senior guard scored 27 points and willed the Dolphins to a victory over Stetson.

Also adding solid contributions for Jacksonville was young rising star Jarvis Haywood, with 14 points, and South Carolina-transfer RJ Slawson, with 15 points.

While the Hatters were able to outman Jacksonville on the glass, 34-31, 18 turnovers proved killer for a squad that can't afford to lose any possessions.

Stetson will look to bounce when they head to North Florida on Saturday.

Casey Alexander and the Bisons got their first Atlantic Sun win on the road at ETSU Thursday night. Lipscomb pulled out the two-point victory in large part due to freshman guard Josh Williams and his 34 points.

Martin Smith's lights out shooting from beyond the arc also helped propel the Bisons to a "that was way too close" win. Halfway through the first half, Lipscomb had a commanding 13-point lead but Rashawn Rembert stormed out in the 2nd half to cut the lead to just two with 15 minutes remaining.

In the end the Bisons' 3-point shooting was too much and they now have some momentum heading to USC Upstate on Saturday.

In addition to Lipscomb, USC Upstate was also able to get a big goose egg off of its record, capturing its first Atlantic Sun win of the season. While Torrey Craig continued his miniature slump, other Spartans stepped in beautifully.

Junior guard Ty Greene, who never stepped off the floor, got to the free throw line enough to give the USC Upstate a much needed boost. Greene's abysmal 3-point shooting night mirrored the whole Spartans squad, but Ricardo Glenn and Craig more than made up for it on the boards.