Box Score MIAMI (Jan. 31, 2013) – The FIU women's basketball team dropped a 61-51 decision to Sun Belt Conference East Division leader Middle Tennessee on Thursday night at U.S. Century Bank Arena. With the loss, the Panthers fall to 13-8 (7-5 SBC) while the Blue Raiders improve to 16-5 (11-1 SBC).

In a game that saw seven lead changes and five ties, FIU would knot the score for the last time at 15-15 with 9:51 remaining in the opening stanza. MT would then go on a 17-4 run to close out the half, as the Blue Raiders went into the halftime break with a 32-19 advantage.

The second half saw MT push its lead to 19 at 53-34 with 9:32 left to play, and the deficit was too much to overcome for the Panthers, as the Blue Raiders went on for the 61-51 victory.

Junior Jerica Coley led FIU with 19 points on 7-of-17 shooting from the floor and 4-of-6 shooting from the free throw line, as she has now scored in double-figures in 20 of 21 games this season, and in 77 of 87 career contests. The All-America candidate also contributed four rebounds, two assists, one block and one steal in 35 minutes on the night.

Also scoring in double-figures for the Panthers was sophomore Tynia McKinzie with a career-high 10 points. McKinzie, who made her second-straight and second-career start versus MT, added five rebounds and one block in 33 minutes of action.

Junior Marita Davydova led FIU on the boards with eight rebounds, while senior Carmen Miloglav dished out a team-leading four assists and tied for the team lead in steals (2) along with junior Arielle Durant.

As a team, FIU shot 40.0 percent (20-of-50) from the field, while MT shot 48.1 percent (25-of-52) on the night. The Panthers out-rebounded the Blue Raiders, 33-31, but MT held a 36-18 edge in points in the paint.

FIU returns to action on Saturday, Feb. 2, when the Panthers continue SBC play versus ULM. Tipoff is set for 5:30 p.m. from U.S. Century Bank Arena.

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