Mark Chiarelli

Special to The News-Press

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – As FGCU prepared to face the University of Massachusetts on Sunday, a "let's go 'Dunk City' cheer echoed from the upper corner of the MassMutual Center.

The supporter appeared to surprise the Eagles on his first attempt, as members of the team turned to look in his direction during warm-ups. It wasn't until the fan tried again that FGCU responded, clapping and cheering back in his direction.

But by the end of Sunday's game, it was UMass — and the majority of the 5,235 in attendance — who were surprised, as FGCU rolled to an 84-75 victory.

The Eagles rode impressive offensive performance from guards Bernard Thompson (15 second-half points) and Brett Comer (14 assists) en route to a crucial non-conference victory over the Minutemen, which appeared in the NCAA tournament a season ago.

"It was nice especially to see our seniors play the way they did on the road," FCGU coach Joe Dooley said.

Thompson catapulted the Eagles during a second-half surge which saw their lead swell to as high as 78-60 with 2:59 remaining. He hit six 3-pointers, tying a career-high, and finished with 18 points.

FGCU took a 36-33 lead into halftime, but a UMass flurry made it 40-40 with 17:44 remaining. That's when Thompson stepped in, hitting a 3-pointer off an assist from Comer on the ensuing possession.

The Eagles didn't look back.

Thompson hit another 3-pointer to make 48-42, again the beneficiary of a Comer assist. After a layup from UMass center Cady Lalanne, the Eagles embarked on a 9-2 scoring run, sparked by a layup from forward Jamail Jones.

"Our guys did a good job of not getting rattled when they made the run," Dooley said.

"I was just trying to get to the open spot," Thompson said. "I wasn't really surprised. Brett was penetrating pretty good and he got into the lane ... He just found me at the 3-point line, I just had to knock down the shots."

It was Thompson who capped off the run, burying another 3-pointer to make it 57-46 with 9:59 remaining. The Eagles rolled with relative ease from there.

Jones (16 points), guard Julian DeBose (15) and forward Marc-Eddy Norelia (15) all finished in double-figures with scoring. Comer added nine points and five rebounds.

UMass coach Derek Kellogg lauded the play Comer in particular.

"Anytime things broke down they gave the ball to Comer and really dictated the whole game," Kellogg said. "He took over the game for big stretches with his playmaking ability.

Dooley entered Sunday's game searching for more consistency at the start of games, as the Eagles didn't pull away from Division II Florida Tech until the second half and fell behind against Green Bay 15-0 in recent contests.

On Sunday, the Eagles were the aggressors.

FGCU jumped out to an 11-4 lead and led 33-26 with 3:37 left in the first half before UMass closed the gap. Facing a Minutemen team that extended its full-court press throughout the game, Dooley said the Eagles, and Thompson in particular, showed poise.

"I think one of the things that happened was we did a good job handling the pressure," Dooley said.

Thompson shot 1-of-7 from the field in the first half before his second-half barrage.

"There were a lot of broken floor situations which enabled him to get open," Dooley said. "When the floor is spread, it enabled him to get some shots."

According to Thompson, the Eagles found success from creating opportunities on the defensive end. UMass shot 42.9 percent from the field and committed 13 turnovers while UMass reserve guard Donte Clark (25 points) was the only Minutemen to score more than 11 points.

"We just had to buckle down on the defensive end," Thompson said. "I think our defense kind of led into our offense, it gave us a lot of easy baskets because we were getting stops."

Dooley said he expected a challenge, but also expected his team to respond based on its performance against other non-conference foes this season.

"When we scheduled this game, we knew UMass was a great program," Dooley said.

"The thing is that we weren't surprised because we've played good teams ... I think we expected a great challenge and I think our guys responded and I think we have our hands full here in the future too."

FGCU (8-1)

Thompson 6-15 0-0 18, Jones 6-12 2-2 16, Comer 2-7 4-5 9, Hicks 1-4 4-4 6, Morant 2-5 0-0 4, DeBose 5-10 4-4 15, Norelia 7-10 1-2 15, Moeller 0-1 1-2 1, Shoon 0-0 0-0 0, Hovey 0-0 0-0 0, Greene Jr. 0-2 0-0 0, Terrell 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 29-66 16-19 84.

UMASS (5-4)

Esho 4-9 3-4 11, Lalanne 3-9 3-6 9, Gordon 3-9 1-2 7, Davis 2-8 1-2 6, Hinds 0-0 2-2 2, Clark 6-12 10-11 25, Bergantino 3-3 0-0 6, Anderson 1-1 3-3 5, Dyson 2-3 0-0 4, Coleman 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 24-56 23-30 75.

Halftime—FGCU 36-33. 3-Point Goals—FGCU 10-18 (Thompson 6-8, Jones 2-5, Comer 1-2, DeBose 1-3), UMass 4-10 (Clark 3-4, Davis 1-2, Coleman 0-2, Lalanne 0-2). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—FGCU 33 (Hicks, Thompson 6), UMass 34 (Lalanne 6). Assists—FGCU 24 (Comer 14), UMass 15 (Davis 8). Total Fouls—FGCU 21, UMass 17. A—5,235.