MIAMI (October 18, 2017) – Fifth-year FIU Head Men's Basketball Coach Anthony Evans announced the Panthers' 2017-18 schedule today, a slate which includes a trio of NCAA Tournament teams visiting Ocean Bank Convocation Center (OBCC), highlighted by 2017 NCAA Final Four participant and Southeastern Conference foe South Carolina. The Gamecocks are led by FIU alum and Miami native Frank Martin '93. In addition, Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) and Middle Tennessee, who also played in the NCAA Tournament last year, will also visit the OBCC.

The Panthers will tip the season off with two games in three days, beginning on Nov. 10 against Florida Memorial and then close out the weekend when Stetson comes to Miami on Nov. 12.

Following three games against Elon, UW-Milwaukee and Concordia-St. Paul in the Black and Gold Shootout in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the Panthers return home to face the Gamecocks on Nov. 27, Florida National on Nov. 29 and South Alabama on Dec. 2.

FIU will travel up Interstate 75 for back-to-back in-state road games on Dec. 11 at USF and then to Jacksonville to take on North Florida on Dec. 13.

The Panthers will return home to close out the calendar year and ring in 2018 with a season-long six-game homestand, beginning with James Madison on Dec. 16 for the first of three games in seven days. The blue and gold will then face FGCU on Dec. 19 and then close out non-conference play against Hartford on Dec. 22. 

FIU begins Conference USA play on Dec. 30 against rival Florida Atlantic, followed by Middle Tennessee on Jan. 4 and UAB on Jan. 6 to close out the six-game homestretch.

The Panthers will hit the road for the first time in conference play on Jan. 11 when they travel to the Lone Star State to face UTSA and then to West Texas to take on UTEP on Jan. 13. The two games begin a stretch where FIU plays four-of-six games on the road, with all four road contests being played in Texas.

After Old Dominion and Charlotte at home on Jan. 18 and Jan. 20, respectively, FIU returns to the Southwest to face Rice on Jan. 25 and North Texas on Jan. 27.

The Panthers will begin the month of February at home against Southern Miss on Feb. 1 and Louisiana Tech on Feb. 3 before embarking on a season-long three-game road stretch that starts at Marshall on Feb. 8, followed by trips to WKU on Feb. 10 and then at FAU on Feb. 17.

The final homestand of the season will be on Feb. 22 against North Texas and against Rice on Feb. 24, before closing out the regular season on the road at Charlotte on March 1 and at Old Dominion on March 3.

The 2018 Conference USA Basketball Championships presented by Baylor Scott & White Sports Performance Center at the Star, will take place in Frisco, Texas at the Ford Center at the Star, March 7-10.

Season tickets for the 2017-18 FIU basketball season are now on sale.  Please visit www.FIUSports.com or call 305-FIU-GAME to purchase your tickets today or for more information.

Fans are encouraged to follow @FIUHoops on Twitter, and "Like" FIU men's basketball on Facebook (www.Facebook.com/FIUMensBBall) for the latest Panther basketball news.

Follow all of FIU's 18 athletic teams on Google+ (FIU Athletics), Twitter (@FIUAthletics), Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUSports), YouTube (FIUPanthers), and Instagram (FIUathletics).

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About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports. Athletic events are played in eight different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including FIU Arena and at Riccardo Silva Stadium.
 
About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. Its colleges and schools offer more than 180 bachelor¹s, master¹s and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law, and medicine. As one of South Florida's anchor institutions, FIU is Worlds Ahead in its local and global engagement, finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission. FIU has awarded 200,000 degrees and enrolls 50,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. FIU is a member of Conference USA and has 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.