Florida Gulf Coast: Two Years Removed From 'Dunk City'

“Wow. They’re going to do it. This is unbelievable.”

I remember sitting on the edge of my seat in my two-bedroom apartment with my roommate during the second day of the 2013 NCAA tournament’s round of 64. We were both stunned at the turn of events we were witnessing in Philadelphia during the night session.

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To me, it felt like the real-life (basketball) version of Rocky. (OK, so I was pretty tacky and used the Rocky-Philadelphia connection. It still works though, right?)

Florida Gulf Coast, a school I had never heard of until their name was called on Selection Sunday just a week prior to the game, defeated the South Region’s No. 2 seed in the Georgetown Hoyas.

Now granted, this isn’t the Patrick Ewing-led Hoyas we’re talking about here, but this is one of the most recognizable schools in all of college basketball.

This former Big East powerhouse — a school built by dominant big men and great coaching — was getting taken to school by a bunch of misfit toys from a school that basically sits on a beach.

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I may still be caught up in the moment of that night because it was so fun to watch, but that lob you just saw from Brett Comer might go down as one of the greatest plays in NCAA tournament history.

I mean, think about the situation.

Current Washington Wizards forward Otto Porter Jr. just scored to cut the Florida Gulf Coast lead to 65-58 with just over two minutes left in the game. In the NCAA tournament, that probably feels like an eternity for teams with a lead.

The Hoyas set up their full-court press to pressure the underdog Eagles, but just like Balboa in the late rounds against Apollo Creed, Rocky showed no fear.

The Eagles would of course go on to beat the Hoyas, then would take down former NBA prospect Jamaal Franklin and the San Diego State Aztecs in the round of 32 to advance to the Sweet 16.

Florida Gulf Coast’s improbable run probably feels like it happened five years ago, which leads to an interesting question: What happened to the self-proclaimed (and rightfully so) “Dunk City“?

For starters, the 2013-14 campaign was another success for Florida Gulf Coast, despite not grabbing as many headlines as they did in the months prior.

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Former Kansas assistant Joe Dooley was brought in to take over the reins for Andy Enfield, who bolted for the USC job after two seasons with the Eagles.

Dooley led the Eagles to another 20-win season, and FGCU tied former NCAA tournament darling Mercer for the best conference mark at 14-4 in the Atlantic Sun Conference. (The Bears would defeat FGCU in the A-Sun tournament title game to advance to the 2014 NCAA tournament, and would pull off their own stunning upset over Duke in the round of 64.)

Even without their emotional leader from their 2013 run — current Maine Red Claws guard Sherwood Brown — Comer and the guy who caught Comer’s lob against Georgetown, Chase Fieler, kept the Eagles afloat and competitive in the mid-major ranks of college basketball.

Fieler would depart after last season, but the Eagles once again found the 20-win plateau. Despite losing in the A-Sun tournament semifinals to USC Upstate, the Eagles still finished 22-11 and played in the postseason for a third straight season.

Plus, they’re still maintaining their role of “College Basketball’s Highlight Factory”:

Rayjon Tucker, a 6-foot-5, 185-pound three-star prospect from Charlotte, N.C., received offers from Auburn, Clemson and VCU, but chose to attend Florida Gulf Coast this season.

Tucker fits the mold of a FGCU prospect: a project that needs some tuning, but there’s no need to worry about his athleticism.

Losing Brown, Comer and Fieler to graduation may signal the end of that “Dunk City” era, but under a good basketball mind like Joe Dooley, Florida Gulf Coast could find themselves back in the NCAA Tournament limelight real soon.

Where are they now?

Andy Enfield – It’s been a struggle for Enfield since his departure from “Dunk City.” In two seasons with USC, Enfield has won just five Pac-12 conference games and holds a 23-41 record.

Sherwood Brown – The former A-Sun Player of the Year had a brief stint in Israel after going undrafted in the 2013 NBA Draft. He was later acquired by the NBDL’s Maine Red Claws, left to join a team in Mexico, then was reacquired by the Red Claws last season.

Brett Comer – The A-Sun’s all-time leader in career assists went undrafted in the 2015 NBA Draft, but did receive a workout with the Miami Heat during the pre-draft process. He recently returned to FGCU to help at a children’s camp on campus with former FGCU forward Bernard Thompson, who recently signed to play in Slovakia.

Chase Fieler – One of the founding fathers of “Dunk City,” Fieler found some success with Ourense Termal, a Spanish LEB team, then recently signed to play for a team in Holland for the upcoming season, per his Twitter account.

https://twitter.com/fieler20/status/625699196499308544

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Florida Gulf Coast: Whatever Happened To ‘Dunk City’?

By Michael Whitlow | Aug 8, 2015

Where are they now?

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