Box Score MIAMI (Dec. 1, 2012) – Despite double-digit scoring by four Panthers, the FIU men's basketball team (2-3, 1-1 SBC) fell to the South Alabama Jaguars (4-3, 2-0 SBC), 79-68, on Saturday evening at U.S. Century Bank Arena.

Juniors Tymell Murphy (16 points), Malik Smith (11 points) and Ivan Jurkovic (13 points) and senior Gaby Belardo (14 points) each scored in double-figures. However, the Panthers shot just 36.9 percent (24-of-65) from the floor to South Alabama's 53.3 percent (24-of-45) from the field, resulting in the 11-point loss.

The Jaguars drained 13 treys in the game, including eight in the first half, as South Alabama went into halftime with a 41-33 advantage.

USA went on an 11-2 run to start the second half, putting FIU in a double-digit hole with 15:26 left in the game. South Alabama extended its lead to 68-48 following a layup by Mychal Ammons with 9:23 on the clock. FIU battled back, cutting the Jaguar lead to 74-66 following three free throws by Smith with 1:19 left play. However, the Panthers were unable to get any closer, falling to USA, 79-68.

FIU shot a season-low 25.0 percent (6-of-24) from beyond the arc but held a 37-31 edge in rebounding. The Panthers held the statistical advantage in points in the paint (24 to 16), points off of turnovers (22 to 11), second-chance points (14 to 6) and bench scoring (25 to 13) but, the one area that the Jaguars excelled in was 3-point field goals, draining 13 treys to just six for FIU.        

Murphy notched his first-career double-double grabbing 10 rebounds to go along with his team-leading 16 points. Jurkovic posted career highs in both points (13) and rebounds (7).

The loss snaps a two-game winning streak for the Panthers and drops FIU to 1-1 in Sun Belt Conference action.

The Panthers will next travel to DeLand, Fla., to take on the Stetson Hatters on Sunday, Dec. 9. Game time is set for 2:00 p.m.

Fans are encouraged to follow @FIUMensBBall on Twitter, and "Like" FIU men's basketball on Facebook (www.Facebook.com/FIU-Mens-Basketball) 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). 

For FIU men's basketball ticket information, contact the FIU Ticket Office at 305-FIU-GAME or log on to www.FIUSports.com.

About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports. 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 bachelors, masters 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 50,000 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. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.