Box Score HOT SPRINGS, Ark. (March 9, 2013) – Junior Malik Smith scored a game-high 25 points, shooting 8-of-10 from 3-point range, and sophomore Deric Hill posted seven assists and six steals to lead the FIU men's basketball team (17-13) to a 69-54 win over the UALR Trojans (17-15) on Saturday evening. The victory earns the Panthers a berth in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament Semifinals.
 
Smith's eight treys were a career high for the Boston, Mass., native, who has scored in double-figures in three-straight games. The 6-foot-2 guard was one 3-pointer shy of tying the  SBC Tournament record for the most 3-pointers in a single game (9 by John Know – JU vs. ASU – 1997).
 
Hill set the tone for the FIU defense which totaled 13 steals in the contest and forced 21 UALR turnovers, resulting in 29 points for the Panthers. The Miami native has totaled 70 steals on the year, which are the most at FIU for steals by a sophomore, and rank No. 3 all-time in program history for steals in a single season. Hill also led the Panthers with a career-high-tying eight boards to go along with his 12 points.
 
Junior Tymell Murphy scored in double-figures for the 21st-straight time, posting 12 points on 5-of-8 shooting from the floor.
 
For the game, FIU shot 46.9 percent from the floor (23-of-49) and  42.3 percent from beyond the arc (11-of-26). The Panthers, which did not got to the free-throw line in the first half, converted 12-of-19 from the charity stripe (63.2 percent) for the contest.
 
FIU held UALR to 30.6 percent shooting from the field (15-of-49) and 16.7 percent shooting from 3-point land (3-of-18). The Trojans scored 21 of their 54 points from the free-throw line, shooting 70.0 percent.
 
FIU's only deficit came early in the game with 19:16 left in the first half, 3-0. However, a trey by freshman Jerome Frink with 18:59 on the clock followed by a layup by Hill, gave FIU a lead that it would never relinquish. Leading by as many as 20 points, the Panthers would go on for the 15-point victory.
 
The Panthers held a 22-14 edge in points in the paint despite UALR holding a slight 36-34 edge in rebounding.
 
The win improved FIU's record versus UALR in the SBC Tournament to 2-0 and 10-17 all-time. With the victory, the Panthers advance to the SBC Semifinals for the third time in program history.
 
The Panthers will take on the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders in the SBC semifinals on Sunday, March 10. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m. ET from Summit Arena and will be broadcast on the Sun Belt Network. Fans can also watch the contest via web streaming on ESPN3 as well as SunBeltSports.org.
 
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