GAME NOTES: The Florida Gulf Coast Eagles will begin their postseason on Wednesday when they host the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders at Alico Arena for the first round of the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament.

This will be the second consecutive appearance in the CIT field for the Islanders, who defeated Northern Colorado before losing to Pacific in last season's second round. Corpus Christi dropped a 70-76 decision to Sam Houston State in the semifinals of the Southland Conference Tournament on Friday. The setback dropped the Islanders to a 19-13 overall standing, which includes a 13-5 conference record.

Florida Gulf Coast, which gained the nation's attention with a run to the Sweet 16 two years ago, went 22-10 with an 11-3 mark in the Atlantic Sun this season. The Eagles were defeated, 63-62, in the semifinals of their conference tournament by USC-Upstate. FGCU has been invited to a postseason tourney in three out of the four years since becoming Division I eligible. The Eagles have lost three out of their last four games since going on a season-long 10 game winning streak.

Corpus Christi finished tied for third in the Southland Conference standings thanks to an exceptional all-around performance this season by senior guard John Jordan, who averages 15.6 points, 5.2 assists and 1.8 steals per outing. Jordan is the only active player in the nation with at least 1,500 points, 500 rebounds and 500 assists. He posted 20 points, five boards and five rebounds in the team's loss to SHSU last Friday. Sophomore forward Rashawn Thomas is also a regular contributor for the Islanders with averages of 13.5 points and 7.9 boards per tilt. The Islanders have not posted a 20-win season since the 2006-07 team reached the NCAA Tournament.

FGCU has a sensational point guard of its own in Brett Comer, who is netting 12.5 points and a team-high 7.2 assists per tilt. Comer has dealt out 45 assists over his past five games, but will be looking to bounce back from the 5-of-15 performance from the floor he submitted in last week's loss to USC Upstate. Senior guard Bernard Thompson is leading the Eagles despite the fact that his 13.7 points per game average is his lowest scoring average since his freshman year. Thompson poured in a team-high 25 points in the team's most recent outing. Jamail Jones (11.7 ppg, 5.4 rpg) and Julian DeBose (11.3 ppg) also play a huge role in the Eagles' attack.

The CIT is a 32-team tournament that invites teams from non-BCS conferences (ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac 12 and SEC teams are not considered) who do not receive bids to the NIT or NCAA Tournaments. The bracket is not predetermined in order to minimize travel and class time missed.

The homecourt advantage and senior tandem of Comer and Thompson should give the Eagles an edge in this first-round matchup. Jordan has been one of the premier players at the mid-major level throughout his tenure at Texas A&M- Corpus Christi, but his time as an Islander may be coming to an end.