MIAMI (Jan. 7, 2013) – A pair of double-doubles by junior Tymell Murphy and freshman Jerome Frink guided the FIU men's basketball team (7-7) to a 74-72 win over the Bethune-Cookman Wildcats (5-11) and the team's third-straight victory on Monday afternoon at U.S. Century Bank Arena. 

Murphy, who posted his third-straight 20-point outing and third-consecutive double-double, led FIU with 20 points on 9-of-13 shooting, while grabbing 10 rebounds. Frink, who had a game-high 11 boards, scored 11 points for his fourth double-double of the season. 

Junior Malik Smith added 15 points on 4-of-10 shooting (3-of-7 from 3-point range) for his 11th double-digit performance of the season. Sophomore Deric Hill had a solid game at the point, notching a career-high eight rebounds and tying a season-high in assists (8) to go along with three steals. Over the past three contests, the Miami, Fla., native has totaled 21 assists and 13 steals.   

The Panthers fell behind early, as the Wildcats led for most of the first half, capped off by a 26-16 advantage with 6:37 on the clock. FIU stormed back to tie the game at 30-30, going on a 14-4 run that was capped off by a Murphy layup with 1:57 left in the half. Sophomore Juan Ferrales hit a trey with 1:17 on the clock to give the Panthers a 33-30 lead. 

With a 35-32 advantage heading into halftime, FIU extended its lead by as many as 12 in the second half, going on to defeat the Wildcats, 74-72.  

FIU finished the afternoon shooting 45.6 percent from the floor (26-of-57) and converted 5-of-16 from beyond the arc (31.3 percent). Seven different Panthers reached the free-
throw line versus B-CU as the team shot 70.8 percent from the charity stripe (17-of-24).

Bethune-Cookman shot 38.7 percent from the floor (24-of-62) and shot just 27.3 percent from downtown (6-of-22). The Wildcats made the most of their free-throw attempts, converting 18-of-25 (72.0 percent). 

The Panthers out-rebounded the Wildcats, 42-36, marking the third-straight game in which FIU has recorded 40-or-more rebounds. FIU held a 42-32 edge in points in the paint and converted 17 second-chance points to B-CU's 10. 

The win improved the Panthers to 4-2 at home this season and marked the program's 200th victory at U.S. Century Bank Arena. 

FIU will return to Sun Belt Conference action with a trip to Jonesboro, Ark., on Thursday, Jan. 10, to face the Arkansas State Red Wolves. Game time is scheduled for 8:05 p.m. ET.

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).

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/.