FORT MYERS, Fla.- The Jacksonville men's basketball team battled but ultimately fell to the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles 80-70 on Thursday night.
 
Jacksonville (9-6, 0-1) outscored FGCU 24-13 in the final four-plus minutes, which included a 13-1 run, but time ultimately ran out on what would have been an incredible comeback.

The first half saw FGCU separate themselves on the scoreboard as they entered the second half ahead 37-22. Zach Anderson of the Eagles had 13 points in the half on a perfect 3-3 from deep, while preseason All-ASUN member Isaiah Thompson followed suit with 11 points. Sophomore Zach Bell was a bright spot for JU in the half, scoring eight points on three buckets, two from deep range. The biggest difference in the first half was FGCU's shooting percentage, at an even 52%, shooting from the floor. That included shooting 7-14 from three.
 
Much of the second half saw similar action to the first. Through the first 15 minutes, FGCU created more separation as they outscored the Dolphins 30-20. However, the Dolphins came alive in the final minutes on both sides of the court in the attempt of an improbable comeback. After a pair of Donovan River free-throws went in, the Dolphins caused four consecutive turnovers, and Jarius Cook, Marcus Niblack, and Gyasi Powell all took advantage to claw JU back into the game. The team didn't stop there, though, as JU kept the FGCU offense at bay. Jacksonville continued to hit its free-throws and two-point tries. The 23-point deficit got down to eight, but as time ran down, FGCU was able to escape without the game getting away from them.
 
In addition, Bell led the team in scoring for the second consecutive game with 16 points, while Niblack and Powell scored in double figures as well.
 
UP NEXT

Jacksonville returns to action on Saturday in it second game of conference play at Stetson. Tipoff is set for 2 PM and the game can be streamed on ESPN+ or listened to on 1010XL.
 
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