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COLUMBIA, S.C. (Nov. 24, 2013) – Senior Tymell Murphy notched his second-straight 20-point game as the FIU men's basketball team (6-3) fell to the South Carolina Gamecocks (2-2), 84-72, on Sunday afternoon at the Colonial Life Arena in Columbia, S.C.
 
The loss snapped a six-game winning streak for the Panthers and dropped FIU to 0-2 all-time versus South Carolina.
 
Murphy scored a game-high 22 points on 9-of-13 shooting from the floor. The native of Brooklyn, N.Y., also tallied a team-high five assists. Junior Marco Porcher Jimenez tied his career-high in points with 15 on 5-of-8 shooting, including two treys. The Malaga, Spain native has hit at least one 3-pointer in each of the Panthers first nine games this season. Redshirt senior Rakeem Buckles grabbed a team-high eight rebounds to go along with 11 points on Sunday. The Miami native was a perfect 6-of-6 from the line. Redshirt junior Dennis Mavin added 10 points in the game, shooting 4-of-9, while dishing out three assists.
 
In a game that saw 12 lead changes and nine tied scores, it was a six minute scoreless stretch by the Panthers midway through the second half which proved to be the difference. Trailing by just two, 63-61, with 8:38 left in the game, FIU was out-scored 6-0 in a span until Murphy hit a pair of free-throws with 2:41 on the clock. The Panthers pulled within four, 69-65, with 1:53 left to play. However, the Gamecocks out-scored the Panthers 15-7 in the final two minutes to come away with the 84-72 win.    
 
FIU finished the afternoon shooting 48.0 percent from the floor (24-of-50) and 37.5 percent (6-of-16) from beyond the arc. The Panthers converted 18 of their 21 attempts from the free-throw line (85.7 percent). The Gamecocks held a 31-27 edge in rebounding and a 12-7 edge on the offensive glass.
 
A 15-point swing in the second half, erased a three-point lead for the Panthers heading into halftime.
 
A 7-0 run in the final 1:38 of the first half, gave FIU a 42-39 lead heading into halftime. A buzzer-beating bucket by Murphy as time expired capped off the run and marked the second-straight game in which Murphy hit a shot as the buzzer sounded (at Bethune-Cookman on Thursday, Nov. 21). The Panthers finished the half shooting 14-of-25 from the floor (56.0 percent) and 3-of-5 from beyond the arc (60.0 percent). The Panthers went to the line 13 times, draining 11 free-throws.
 
The Panthers return home to face the Georgia State Panthers on Saturday, Nov. 30. Game time from Lime Court at U.S. Century Bank Arena is set for 5:00 p.m. ET.
 
Men's basketball season tickets can be purchased by calling the FIU Ticket Office at 305-FIU-GAME or conveniently online at FIUSports.com
 
Fans are encouraged to follow @FIUMensBBall 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).
 
 
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 bachelor¹s, master¹s and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida¹s 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/