| Florida Gulf Coast Eagles | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| |||
 | |||
| University | Florida Gulf Coast University | ||
| First season | 2002-03 | ||
| Head coach | Pat Chambers (2nd season) | ||
| Conference | Atlantic Sun | ||
| Location | Fort Myers, Florida | ||
| Arena | Alico Arena (capacity: 4,633) | ||
| Nickname | Eagles | ||
| Colors | Cobalt blue and emerald green[1] | ||
| Uniforms | |||
| |||
| NCAA tournament Sweet Sixteen | |||
| 2013 | |||
| NCAA tournament round of 32 | |||
| 2013 | |||
| NCAA tournament appearances | |||
| 2005*, 2013, 2016, 2017 *at Division II level | |||
| Conference tournament champions | |||
| 2013, 2016, 2017 | |||
| Conference regular season champions | |||
| 2014, 2017, 2018 | |||
The Florida Gulf Coast Eagles men's basketball team is the men's basketball team that represents Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers, Florida, United States. The school's team currently competes in the ASUN Conference.[2]
In 2002, Florida Gulf Coast became an independent member of NCAA Division II.[3] Florida Gulf Coast also started its men's basketball team, with Dave Balza as head coach from the inaugural 2002–03 to the 2010–11 season. He was succeeded by Andy Enfield from 2011–13, who took the Eagles to the Sweet Sixteen as the first ever 15-seed to do such. After putting FGCU on the map with their new "Dunk City" moniker, Enfield accepted the men's basketball position at USC. Joe Dooley then assumed the role from 2013-2018 before accepting the Head Coach position at East Carolina[4] Michael Fly served as head coach from 2018 to 2022, before being replaced by former Penn State head coach Pat Chambers.[5] In 2006, Florida Gulf Coast applied for NCAA Division I status and became a transitory Division I effective in the 2007–08 season.[6] Florida Gulf Coast became a full Division I member on August 11, 2011.[7]
The Eagles men's basketball team is best known for their run in the 2013 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, their first since moving up to Division I. In the Round of 64, the Eagles defeated the #2 seed Georgetown 78–68. It was only the seventh time that a 15th seed had defeated a 2nd seed, and the second-highest margin of victory for one.[8] Two days later in the Round of 32, the Eagles defeated the #7 seed San Diego State 81–71, becoming the first 15th seed to ever advance to the Sweet 16.[9] The school was referred to as "Dunk City" or "Florida Dunk Coast" on many media outlets such as ESPN and CBS due to their high-flying athletic finishing style.[10][11]
- ^ 2017-18 Florida Gulf Coast University Visual Identity & Brand Guidelines (PDF). Retrieved March 22, 2022.
- ^ "Florida Gulf Coast Eagles". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 14, 2012.
- ^ "FGCU Terminates Membership in NAIA". Florida Gulf Coast University. Retrieved March 22, 2013.
- ^ http://www.ecupirates.com/news/2018/4/4/joe-dooley-named-ecu-head-mens-basketball-coach.aspx. Archived 2018-04-11 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Florida Gulf Coast hires Pat Chambers, 51, as next men's basketball coach before Eagles open postseason tournament". ESPN.com. March 14, 2022. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
- ^ "Introduction" (PDF). Florida Gulf Coast University Football Feasibility Study: Considerations for NCAA Division I and Football Championship Subdivision Football. Florida Gulf Coast University. pp. I-1. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-06-20. Retrieved 2013-03-23.
- ^ Caldwell, Dana (August 12, 2011). "FGCU officially becomes member of NCAA Division I". Naples Daily News. Retrieved March 22, 2013.
- ^ [1] ESPN
- ^ [2] ESPN
- ^ "BracketRacket: Craft's shot, Sadler and Dunk City". ESPN.com. AP. Retrieved 25 March 2013.
- ^ Norlander, Matt. "Florida GIF Coast Vol. II: The most enjoyable team wins another". CBSSports.com. Retrieved 25 March 2013.