Johnson, Terrell help FGCU beat USC Upstate in A-Sun tourney

Feb 27, 2018, 02:19 am

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Zach Johnson and Christian Terrell combined to make 8 of 10 from 3-point range and score 44 points to help Florida Gulf Coast beat South Carolina Upstate 96-76 on Monday night in the first round of the ASUN Tournament.

Johnson finished with 26 points, one shy of his career high, and Terrell made 4 of 4 from behind the arc. Terrell was 7-of-9 shooting overall and added six points and a career-best eight assists, while Antravious Simmons scored 18 and grabbed eight rebounds, for No. 1 seed FGCU (22-10). The Eagles will play fifth-seeded North Florida or No. 4 seed NJIT in the semifinals on Thursday.

Mike Cunningham hit a 3-pointer to pull Upstate (7-25) within four points with 13:19 to play, but moments later he was called for a technical foul following a verbal altercation with a fan. The Spartan bench was then assessed a technical for arguing about it and Dinero Mercurius hit all four free throws before Simmons and RaySean Scott Jr. made back-to-back layups to make it 66-54 about a minute later. Upstate, which had a one-point lead early in the second half, trailed by at least eight points the rest of the way.

Cunningham tied his career high with 28 points, including five 3s, for the Spartans.

FGCU hit 11 3-pointers, shot 59.7 percent from the field and committed a season-low four turnovers.