Box Score MIAMI (Nov. 29, 2012) – The FIU women's basketball team dropped a 60-57 decision to Sun Belt Conference foe Arkansas State on Thursday night at U.S. Century Bank Arena. With the loss, the Panthers fall to 2-4 overall and 0-2 in SBC play, while the Red Wolves improve to 1-5 overall and 1-0 in league action.

In the opening stanza, FIU fell behind by as many as nine points before the Panthers put together a run and a layup from junior Jerica Coley knotted the score at 22-22 with 1:14 left on the clock. ASU then scored on a layup of its own and a converted free throw that sent the Red Wolves into the halftime break with a 25-22 advantage.

The second half saw the squads battle to a 57-57 tie with 2:06 remaining in the contest. ASU would then post a 3-of-3 mark from the charity stripe in the final minutes of the game to come away with a 60-57 victory.

Coley led all scorers with 14 points on the night, as she has now scored in double-figures in five of six contests this season. Through 72 career games, the St. Petersburg, Fla., native has scored 1,405 points, a total which ranks seventh all-time at FIU. Coley added six rebounds and team-high totals of three blocks and three assists, playing all
40 minutes against the Red Wolves.

Also scoring in double-figures for FIU were senior Finda Mansare with 12 points, and junior Marita Davydova with 10 points. Davydova registered a team-leading eight rebounds, while Mansare tied a squad best with three blocks, and senior Carmen Miloglav dished out a team-high-tying three assists.

FIU shot 25-of-65 (38.5 percent) from the floor, while ASU shot 17-of-47 (36.2 percent) from the field. From the free throw line, the Panthers converted 7-of-8, and the Red Wolves went 24-of-28. FIU did not convert one three-pointer, while ASU was 2-of-7 from beyond the arc.

The Panthers out-rebounded the Red Wolves, 43-27, and FIU notched eight blocks compared to four for ASU. On the night, FIU scored 20 second-chance points against five for ASU.

FIU will return to action on Saturday, Dec. 2, when the Panthers host another SBC squad in South Alabama. Tipoff is slated for 5:30 p.m. at U.S. Century Bank Arena, with
the men's basketball team set to square off against the Jaguars at 7:30 p.m. Both contests will be streamed live for free via FIUSports.com.

Fans are encouraged to follow the Panthers on Twitter (@FIUWBasketball) and become a fan on Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUWBasketball) for all the latest FIU women's 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).

About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports, and is a proud member of the Sun Belt Conference and an affiliate member of Conference USA (men's soccer). Athletic events are played in seven different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including U.S. Century Bank Arena and Alfonso Field at FIU Stadium.

About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. Its colleges and schools offer more than 180 bachelor's, master's 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 and enrolls nearly 48,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. More than 140,000 alumni live and work in South Florida. FIU is a member of the Sun Belt Conference and has 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/