Lee Today

The No. 26 FGCU women's basketball team (18-3 overall, 6-1 ASUN Conference) dropped its first league game of the season, falling to Liberty 88-78 in overtime Saturday evening. 

The loss snaps the Green & Blue's 10-game winning streak, and FGCU's six-game road run. It also marked the Eagles' first overtime since a 85-84 double-overtime triumph over Michigan State on Dec. 21, 2021. 

Liberty (11-7, 5-2) earned its first win against FGCU in 12 attempts. The Eagles are now tied with Austin Peay and Lipscomb in the ASUN standings.   

Graduate guard Tishara Morehouse (Milwaukee, Wis./Rufus King HS/Nebraska CC) scored a game-high 27 points – which tied the Liberty Arena record. Morehouse was 5-of-8 from the 3-point line and grabbed three rebounds to go with four assists and two steals. The effort was Morehouse's 17th double-digit scoring game and the eighth time this season she scored at least 20 points. 

Graduate guard Sophia Stiles (Malta, Mont./Malta HS/Montana) delivered a season-best 24 points to go with five rebounds and two steals. Graduate guard Sha Carter (Southfield. Mich./Wylie E. Groves HS/Walsh) recorded 13 points and grabbed a game-high eight rebounds to go with two assists and two steals. 

"Liberty outplayed us tonight," said FGCU head women's basketball coach Karl Smesko. "We had too many defensive breakdowns and Liberty took full advantage."    

The Green & Blue started with an 18-10 run that included six points from Morehouse and five from Stiles. The Flames then outshot the Eagles with a mini 4-2 burst to narrow the margin, but FGCU earned a 20-14 lead through the first quarter.  

Stiles opened the second quarter with a jumper followed by one of 12 FGCU 3-pointers, but the Flames went on a 15-5 run that saw the gap narrow to 30-29 with 3:35 to go. From there, redshirt junior guard Alyza Winston (Muskegon, Mich./Muskegon HS/Mississippi State) hit a trey for separation and the Eagles scored four points to the Flames' three for a 37-34 halftime edge. 

Stiles opened the third quarter with another 3, but Liberty responded with a 9-2 run to take the advantage for the first time of the night, 43-42. Carter hit a jumper to kick-start a 14-11 exchange that gave FGCU a 56-54 lead heading into the final 10 minutes of regulation. 

It remained a one-possession affair throughout the fourth quarter, and FGCU carried a 73-68 lead into the final 30 seconds. But the Eagles were unable to ice the game at the free-throw line, and Liberty redshirt junior guard Emma Hess canned a 3 with 3.5 seconds remaining to force overtime. 

Liberty's defense held the Eagles scoreless early in overtime, scoring five unanswered points for a 78-73 lead. From there, the Flames would secure the home victory at the free-throw line. 

Redshirt junior guard Kennedi Williams led Liberty with 24 points, and redshirt senior guard Dee Brown grabbed eight rebounds.  

The Eagles return to Fort Myers for a two-game homestand next week, first taking on Eastern Kentucky (11-8, 4-2) at 7 p.m. Thursday at Alico Arena and then facing Bellarmine (7-13, 3-4) at 7 p.m. Saturday.  

The Green & Blue have now hit 233 3-pointers, for an average of 11.1 treys per game – the highest average in the country. The Eagles have more than doubled their opponents' treys total, allowing only 86 this season. FGCU's run to its 2021-22 national ranking was due to the Eagles' continued dominance behind the 3-point arc. The Eagles have led the nation in made threes per game the past three years and in four of the last five seasons -- with an NCAA single-season record total 431 in 2017-18.    

Entering this season, the Eagles were selected by both the coaches and the media to repeat as ASUN champions. FGCU is currently ranked No. 2 in the Collegeinsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 poll. The Eagles finished with a program-best-ever No. 20 ranking in 2021-22 and have four Top 25 finishes in the past five seasons. Further, only the Green & Blue and defending national champion South Carolina have won at least 30 games in five of the last eight campaigns. 
For complete coverage of FGCU women's basketball, follow the Eagles on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook at @FGCU_WBB and online at www.FGCUAthletics.com. You can also sign up to have news on FGCU women's basketball and other programs delivered directly to your inbox by visiting www.fgcuathletics.com/email. 

Original source can be found here.