Liberty Flames @ Florida Gulf Coast Eagles
Liberty gets hot, defeats FGCU 81-63 in A-Sun debut
FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Darius McGhee scored 18 points on six 3-pointers and Liberty made its debut in the Atlantic Sun Conference by making six straight 3s and 14 overall to defeat defending league champion Florida Gulf Coast 81-63 on Saturday night.
The Flames (12-4), coming off a 73-58 win over UCLA a week earlier that proved to be the last game for Bruins coach Steve Alford, were up 54-50 when they got hot.
Elijah Cuffee hit a 3, Liberty's fourth-straight make, to push the lead to 57-50. After the Eagles missed, Liberty missed but turned an offensive rebound into a Georgie Pacheco-Ortiz 3. Cuffee's next 3 capped a 9-0 burst but the Flames went on to drain seven consecutive shots for a 75-54 lead with 6:39 to go.
Liberty finished the second half 18 of 26 from the field (69 percent), 8 of 12 behind the arc. For the game shot was 57 percent (31 of 54), 14 of 28 from distance.
The Eagles (5-11), the defending conference champs, shot 50 percent but couldn't keep pace with the Flames. Schadrac Casimir had 16 points.
Game Information
Fort Myers, FL
Referee:Chris Ford
Referee:Archibald Whaley
Referee:Chris Chumley
2025-26 Standings
| Conference USA | CONF | GB | OVR |
|---|---|---|---|
| Liberty | 17-3 | - | 26-8 |
| Sam Houston | 13-7 | 4 | 22-12 |
| Louisiana Tech | 11-9 | 6 | 20-14 |
| Western Kentucky | 11-9 | 6 | 18-14 |
| Middle Tennessee | 11-9 | 6 | 17-15 |
| Kennesaw State | 10-10 | 7 | 21-14 |
| Jacksonville State | 10-10 | 7 | 15-17 |
| New Mexico State | 8-12 | 9 | 16-16 |
| Missouri State | 8-12 | 9 | 16-18 |
| Florida International | 8-12 | 9 | 15-17 |
| UTEP | 7-13 | 10 | 11-20 |
| Delaware | 6-14 | 11 | 10-21 |
| Atlantic Sun Conference | CONF | GB | OVR |
|---|---|---|---|
| Austin Peay | 15-3 | - | 22-9 |
| Central Arkansas | 15-3 | - | 22-12 |
| Queens University | 13-5 | 2 | 21-14 |
| Lipscomb | 12-6 | 3 | 19-13 |
| Florida Gulf Coast | 8-10 | 7 | 16-18 |
| West Georgia | 8-10 | 7 | 15-17 |
| Bellarmine | 7-11 | 8 | 13-19 |
| Jacksonville | 7-11 | 8 | 12-20 |
| Stetson | 7-11 | 8 | 12-21 |
| Eastern Kentucky | 7-11 | 8 | 11-21 |
| North Florida | 5-13 | 10 | 7-25 |
| North Alabama | 4-14 | 11 | 9-21 |
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