Courtesy of FGCUAthletics.com
DUNK CITY, Fla. – The FGCU men’s basketball team has added another marquee opponent to its 2018-19 non-conference schedule as the three-time defending ASUN tournament or regular-season champion Eagles will face Michigan State in East Lansing on Sunday, Nov. 11.
This will be the third all-time meeting between the two schools and first since 2016. In that contest, FGCU battled, but controversially lost on a last-second timing error to the then-#13 Spartans, 78-77. The first meeting came during the 2009-10 campaign.
The matchup with Michigan State will represent the second challenging road game of the opening week of the season for FGCU as the Green and Blue commence their season on Nov. 6at Missouri Valley Conference Tournament runner-up Illinois State.
Michigan State finished with a 30-5 record last season and won the Big Ten regular-season title with a 16-2 mark. The Spartans earned a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament and picked up a win in March Madness before finishing with an RPI of 15.
In the 2016 meeting at the Breslin Center with MSU leading by one point, FGCU in-bounded the ball from under its own basket with 1.6 seconds remaining; however, despite the ball not being touched by any player, the game clock hit zero before Antravious Simmons – the player receiving the in-bounds pass near the FGCU free-throw line – even touched the ball.
Big Ten Conference officials acknowledged that a timing error did occur, but the play stood and the Eagles suffered a difficult loss.
The addition of Michigan State gives FGCU three non-conference opponents who played in the NCAA Tournament last year and four total postseason opponents already for 2018-19. Only nine non-league matchups have been announced so far for the upcoming season, with many more coming pending signed contracts.
FGCU won 20+ games for the sixth-straight season in 2017-18, culminating the campaign with a 23-12 record and an ASUN Regular Season Championship outright for the second-straight season with a 12-2 record. The Eagles played in the NIT for the second time in program history; part of a larger stretch of six postseason appearances in the program’s first seven years of eligibility – believed to be the only team in NCAA D-I men’s basketball history to have accomplished that feat.
Despite losing its leading scorers from last year’s club, FGCU brings back plenty of quality returners and welcomes a slew of talented newcomers who will make immediate impacts.
Most recently, new head coach Michael Fly inked a major graduate transfer addition with 1,000-point scorer Schadrac Casimir (pronounced: Cedric Caz-meer) from Iona. The fifth-year guard will be eligible for the 2018-19 season as a redshirt senior. In 106 career games with Iona, Casimir (Stamford, Conn./Trinity Catholic HS) averaged 10.5 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.8 assists per contest. As part of his 1,112 points, more than half came from beyond the arc as the guard knocked down 205 3-pointers. Comparatively, 2015 graduate Bernard Thompson holds the FGCU D-I program record for 3-pointers made with 219 in 134 games.
The Eagles will also introduce redshirt junior Haanif Cheatham (Fort Lauderdale, Fla./Pembroke Pines HS), a 6-5 guard who has already scored more than 700 points in just over two years at Marquette, and was a member of the Big East All-Freshman Team.
Additionally, redshirt sophomore forward Troy Baxter Jr. (Tallahassee, Fla./Oldsmar Christian HS) from UNLV will be eligible. The former 4-star recruit stands at 6-8, and averaged 4.3 points and 2.3 rebounds as a true freshman at UNLV in 2016-17. Baxter Jr. – whose athleticism is similar, if not greater, than that of fellow UNLV transfer and 2017 FGCU graduate Demetris Morant – should fit Dunk City well as he won the National High School Slam Dunk Contest in April of 2016.
The Green and Blue also have a good mix of veteran and young backcourt talent with junior Decardo Day (Jackson, Miss./Iowa Western CC/Southern Utah/Callaway HS) and freshmen Caleb Catto (Cape Coral, Fla./Southwest Florida Christian Academy) and Zach Scott (Fort Lauderdale, Fla./Westminster Academy).
2018-19 Schedule To Date (More Games To Be Added)
Tuesday, Nov. 6 @ Illinois State
Sunday, Nov. 11 @ Michigan State
Friday, Nov. 16 vs. South Dakota State (8 PM; Doubleheader)
Sunday, Nov. 25 @ FAU
Wednesday, Nov. 28 vs. FIU (7:30 PM; Doubleheader)
Sunday, Dec. 2 vs. Colgate (1:30 PM)
Wednesday, Dec. 5 @ Oral Roberts
Sunday, Dec. 16 @ UMBC
Saturday, Dec. 29 @ Ole Miss
Saturday, Jan. 5 vs. Liberty * (7 PM; Doubleheader)
Tuesday, Jan. 8 @ North Alabama *
Saturday, Jan. 12 @ North Florida *
Saturday, Jan. 19 @ Kennesaw State *
Monday, Jan. 21 vs. Stetson * (7 PM)
Thursday, Jan. 24 @ Lipscomb *
Sunday, Jan. 27 vs. North Florida * (5 PM)
Wednesday, Jan. 30 @ NJIT *
Saturday, Feb. 2 vs. Jacksonville * (7 PM; Doubleheader)
Wednesday, Feb. 6 vs. North Alabama * (7 PM)
Saturday, Feb. 9 @ Liberty *
Wednesday, Feb. 13 vs. NJIT * (7 PM)
Saturday, Feb. 16 @ Stetson *
Wednesday, Feb. 20 vs. Lipscomb * (7 PM)
Saturday, Feb. 23 vs. Kennesaw State * (7 PM; Doubleheader)
Friday, Mar. 1 @ Jacksonville *
Monday, Mar. 4 – ASUN Tournament Quarterfinals
Thursday, Mar. 7 – ASUN Tournament Semifinals
Sunday, Mar. 10 – ASUN Tournament Final
Bold = Home Game | * ASUN Conference Game
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