In a game that was believed to be an easy win for the Georgetown Hoyas, the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles fought until the final buzzer, not once giving up. The determination paid off, as the 15th ranked Eagles stunned the second ranked Hoyas in their first ever NCAA tournament appearance.
FGCU will play the winner of the Oklahoma-San Diego State game in the Round of 32, as they could make a run and advance to the Sweet Sixteen.
Sherwood Brown scored 24 points and Bernard Thompson dropped 23, as they led Florida Gulf Coast to a 78-68 win. In the second half, the Eagles went on a 21-2 run to pull away from the Hoyas, not allowing them to ‘pull’ themselves back in.
Chase Fieler also added some plays to the highlight reel, including a big alley-oop dunk that got the commentators jumping: [Click here for video]
Georgetown has another disappointing season, as they have lost to a double-digit seed in their last four tournament appearances. Their star Otto Porter struggled from the field, just shooting 5-for-17. Markel Starks led the Hoyas in scoring with 23 points, shooting 4-for-10 from beyond the arc.
According to ESPN Stats & Info, just 2.3% of people chose FGCU over Georgetown on the ESPN Tournament Challenge , as there are no more perfect brackets left.
Florida Gulf Coast joins a bunch of teams that could make a potentially deep run in the playoffs. Teams like Oregon, Ole Miss, and FGCU are playing some solid teams in the Round of 32 but advancing to the next round should not be a problem.