For the eighth straight season, the ASUN women’s basketball regular-season champion hails from Fort Myers.
FGCU (26-3, 17-0 ASUN) won its 50th straight conference game dating back to 2023 in an 78-64 win over the visiting Dolphins (14-15, 8-9) Thursday night at Alico Arena. They’ll go for their second straight undefeated conference regular season Saturday at Stetson (16-13, 10-7).
The regular-season crown is the Eagles‘ first under Chelsea Lyles, who’s off to a scorching 26-1 start in her first season as the program’s head coach after replacing Karl Smesko two games in.
“It feels good,” Lyles said. “More than anything, I’m just proud and happy for the girls. This is one of their goals, and for them to accomplish that and just seeing their joy in the locker room makes you happy as a coach.”
Jacksonville made it a game early, leading 21-20 after 10 minutes. It was in part due to a sloppy FGCU first quarter, where the Eagles weren’t finishing on shots they’re used to making inside.
Once the second quarter rolled around, the Eagles took command, outscoring the Dolphins 40-21 in the middle two quarters.
“It’s just understanding the team that we are,” Lauryn Taylor said. “We can’t go into a game based off the other team. We play FGCU basketball day in and day out. We came in, executed defensively first, and let the offense speak for itself.
“… It says a lot about coach Lyles and the coaching staff. They work endlessly. They work super hard for us, trying to put us in the right position to make good plays. Shoutout to the coaching staff for trusting us to get the gameplan executed, and for the team for doing it.”
Khamari Mitchell-Steen and Alahna Paige each scored 17 points in the win for the Eagles, while Cerina Rolle and Taylor each finished with 12. For Jacksonville, Priscilla Williams led all scorers with 20 points, while Makayla Edwards added 11. Edyn Battle and Saniyah Craig each had 10 points.
Here are three takeaways from Thursday night’s win:
Size on glass gave FGCU problems, but defense clamped down
The Dolphins were adamant about establishing the paint, taking upwards of 75 percent of their shots inside in the opening quarter. Jacksonville outrebounded the Eagles 54-35, including a 21-6 edge on the offensive glass. Craig feasted, posting 10 points and a game-high 23 rebounds.
Despite being beat on the glass, it was the Eagles who outscored Jacksonville in the paint, 40-30.
“We knew that they would come out pretty aggressive,” Lyles said. “We knew what their strengths were, which were offensive rebounding and free throws, and we thought we didn’t do a great job containing those two areas. We’ve definitely got to do a better job if we have to see them again in the conference tournament.
“All around, we had a few players step up for us, especially when we got in foul trouble. This time of year, you’re just trying to win each game and keep on moving forward.”
Quality threes > raining threes
Outside of a pair of shots nearing the buzzer and a third with the shot clock running down, FGCU shot 5 of 7 in the first half and 8 of 20 for the game from distance, often finding the open shooter as Jacksonville struggled to defend the perimeter with FGCU’s actions.
“I thought we shot the three pretty well,” Lyles said. “Our layups, I wish we would’ve done a little bit of a better job finishing those. It’s just something we’re gonna have to work on and get better at moving forward.
Excellent guard play creates chances inside
The “backcourt” (if you want to call it that) had a solid outing in creating looks inside for Taylor and Mitchell-Steen among others, helping the team shoot 46.7 percent from the field against a Dolphins team with a lot of length. Paige, Mitchell-Steen, Rolle, and Dolly Cairns each had a pair of assists in the win.
“We definitely try to work on making passes that will be completed, on time and on target,” Lyles said. “That helps our shooting percentage a ton. Our guard did a really good job flowing into offense, finding the open teammate, and getting them the ball.”
Follow Sports Reporter Alex Martin on X: @NP_AlexMartin. For the best sports coverage in Southwest Florida, follow @newspresssports and @ndnprepzone on Instagram.
This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: FGCU women’s basketball wins eighth consecutive ASUN regular season title
