FGCU received the 7th seed in the USC bracket of the NIT and was defeated by the second-seeded  Oklahoma State Cowboys in the first round of the tournament.
(meta data) TITLE: Men's college basketball: FGCU loses at Oklahoma State in NIT SUBSCRIBE NOWfor full access Get the news # College basketball: FGCU men fall at Oklahoma State in NIT Scott Wright Special to the Naples Daily News Published 11:55 p.m. ET March 13, 2018 | Updated 6:00 a.m. ET March 14, 2018 Florida Gulf Coast's Michael Gilmore (24) blocks the shot of Oklahoma State's Brandon Averette (0) during a first-round NIT tournament game Tuesday in Stillwater, Okla. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP)(Photo: Bryan Terry, AP) STILLWATER, Okla. — On four straight offensive possessions late in the third quarter, Florida Gulf Coast players found clear paths to the basket. A failed alley-oop was followed by a missed slam dunk. Then a pair of layups rimmed out. Easy offense turned to empty offense, and the Eagles' attempt at a rally drowned in a sea of orange at Oklahoma State's Gallagher-Iba Arena. FGCU's season came to an end with an 80-68 loss at Oklahoma State on Tuesday night in the first round of the National Invitation Tournament. "I'm proud of our guys for not folding, which they didn't do all year," coach Joe Dooley said. "We put ourselves in bad situations and fought back, like they usually do. "I thought we had a couple stretches where we played really well, and we also had some stretches where we really put ourselves in harm's way, and they took advantage of it." More: College basketball: FGCU men scurry to Oklahoma State confident for NIT opener More: College basketball: FGCU men returned to practice in better moods and ready for the NIT The Eagles (23-12) trailed 60-43 at the start of the fourth quarter and opened it with a 13-2 run. Yet the third-quarter dry spell had left them in too deep a hole to climb out of. Despite briefly cutting the Cowboys' lead to 62-56, FGCU's deficit quickly fell back to double-digits and hovered in that range the rest of the night. The Eagles lost their ASUN tournament title game to Lipscomb at home, so they'll have to settle for the NIT. (Video by Dana Caldwell/Naples Daily News) By Dana Caldwell In the Atlantic Sun tournament title game just over a week ago, the Eagles trailed by 32 in the second half and got within five before losing by 12, costing them an NCAA tournament bid. Aside from a strong second quarter Tuesday night, the Eagles' offense struggled to find consistency. "They were positioned to guard us to keep me and our perimeter players out of the lane," guard Brandon Goodwin said. "And when we did get in the lane, they converged really hard on us. It was kind of tough to get shots up. They were rebounding and pushing the ball." Oklahoma State's Kendall Smith (1) looks to pass as Florida Gulf Coast's Brandon Goodwin (0) defends during an NCAA college basketball first-round NIT tournament game, Tuesday, March 13, 2018, in Stillwater, Okla. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP) (Photo: Bryan Terry, AP) Apart from regular stars Goodwin and Zach Johnson, FGCU got little offensive production from the rest of the lineup. Johnson finished with 23 points and Goodwin had 18 to end a year they earned all-conference honors in the ASUN. Johnson was 7-of-19 from the floor and Goodwin was 7-of-20, with the rest of the team combining to go 9-of-21. Goodwin raised his season total to 632 points, breaking his own FGCU single-season record from a year ago (629). The NIT's experimental 3-point line, backed up 20 inches beyond the regular college line (one of a few rule alterations being tested in the NIT) didn't cause the Eagles much trouble. They shot 37.0 percent from 3, slightly better than their season percentage of 36.3. Oklahoma State put the game away with reliable free-throw shooting in the final minutes, going 16-of-21 at the line in the fourth quarter. The Cowboys' Jeffrey Carroll had 18 points, leading four double-figure scorers. An FGCU team that looked to be on its way to a third straight NCAA Tournament instead found itself in the NIT as a No. 7 seed following the upset loss to Lipscomb in the ASUN tournament final. Dooley has been reported in connection with vacant coaching jobs at East Carolina and Missouri State, but said he likes where he's at with the Eagles. "I like our situation," Dooley said. "We've got a good team coming back. I like our guys. We'll come back and try to be good again next year." Photos: FGCU men at Oklahoma State in NIT Fullscreen #### Posted! A link has been posted to your Facebook feed. Florida Gulf Coast's Michael Gilmore (24) blocks the shot of Oklahoma State's Brandon Averette (0) during an NCAA college basketball first-round NIT tournament game, Tuesday, March 13, 2018, in Stillwater, Okla. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP) Bryan Terry, APFullscreenOklahoma State's Mitchell Solomon (41) celebrates with teammate Tavarius Shine (5) in front of Florida Gulf Coast's Dinero Mercurius (31), Michael Gilmore (24) and Antravious Simmons (32) during an NCAA college basketball first-round NIT tournament game, Tuesday, March 13, 2018, in Stillwater, Okla. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP) Bryan Terry, APFullscreenFlorida Gulf Coast's RaySean Scott Jr. (13) fouls Oklahoma State's Jeffrey Carroll (30) during an NCAA college basketball first-round NIT tournament game, Tuesday, March 13, 2018, in Stillwater, Okla. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP) Bryan Terry, APFullscreenOklahoma State's Kendall Smith (1) goes to the basket as Florida Gulf Coast's Michael Gilmore (24) defends in an NCAA college basketball first-round NIT tournament game, Tuesday, March 13, 2018, in Stillwater, Okla. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP) Bryan Terry, APFullscreenOklahoma State's Kendall Smith (1) looks to pass as Florida Gulf Coast's Brandon Goodwin (0) defends during an NCAA college basketball first-round NIT tournament game, Tuesday, March 13, 2018, in Stillwater, Okla. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP) Bryan Terry, APFullscreen ### Interested in this topic? You may also want to view these photo galleries: Replay1 of 52 of 53 of 54 of 55 of 5AutoplayShow ThumbnailsShow CaptionsLast SlideNext Slide OKLAHOMA ST. 80, FGCU 68 FGCU (23-12) Gilmore 2-6 2-2 7, Simmons 1-2 0-0 2, Terrell 3-6 0-0 9, Johnson 7-19 6-8 23, Goodwin 7-20 3-4 18, Doyle 0-1 1-2 1, Thomas 0-0 0-2 0, Scott 1-3 0-0 2, Ernst 0-0 0-0 0, Carlyle 0-0 0-0 0, Mercurius 2-3 0-0 6. Totals 23-60 12-18 68. OKLAHOMA ST. (20-14) McGriff 1-4 1-2 4, Solomon 3-7 6-6 13, Waters 4-6 0-1 10, Smith 1-11 5-8 7, Carroll 3-11 12-13 18, N'Guessan 0-0 0-0 0, Sima 1-2 3-4 5, Dziagwa 0-2 2-2 2, Averette 4-8 0-0 8, Shine 4-8 3-5 13. Totals 21-59 32-41 80. Halftime_Oklahoma St. 37-26. 3-Point Goals_Florida Gulf Coast 10-27 (Terrell 3-4, Johnson 3-8, Mercurius 2-3, Gilmore 1-4, Goodwin 1-7, Scott 0-1), Oklahoma St. 6-22 (Waters 2-3, Shine 2-4, McGriff 1-2, Solomon 1-2, Dziagwa 0-2, Averette 0-2, Smith 0-3, Carroll 0-4). Fouled Out_Simmons. Rebounds_Florida Gulf Coast 31 (Gilmore 7), Oklahoma St. 44 (Solomon 9). Assists_Florida Gulf Coast 11 (Goodwin 5), Oklahoma St. 12 (Smith 4). Total Fouls_Florida Gulf Coast 32, Oklahoma St. 14. Technicals_Florida Gulf Coast coach Joe Dooley. A_5,305 (13,611). 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2017–18 Atlantic Sun Conference men's basketball season
Abstract.
Conference play began on January 2018 and concluded on February 2018. The season marked the 40th season of Atlantic Sun Conference basketball. 
 Florida Gulf Coast won the regular season championship by two games over Lipscomb. The Atlantic Sun Tournament was held from February 26 through March 4 at campus sites as top seeds hosted each round. Lipscomb defeated Florida Gulf Coast in the championship game to win the tournament championship. As a result, Lipscomb received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. FCGU earned an invite to the NIT. 
 Lipscomb received the 15th seed in the West Region of the NCAA Tournament and was defeated by the second-seeded  North Carolina Tar Heels in the first round.