Photo Credit: Sam Lewis (pictured - redshirt sophomore Cody Mann)

FIU Game Notes (PDF)

FIU (11-9, 3-2 C-USA) at Marshall (7-14, 1-5 C-USA)

Teams - FIU Panthers (11-9 overall, 3-4 away); Marshall Thundering Herd (7-14 overall, 6-4 home)
Date - Thursday, Jan. 30, 2014
Location - Huntington, W.Va.
Arena - Cam Henderson Center (9,043)
Tickets - 800-THE-HERD (843-4373)
Television - N/A
Twitter - @FIUMensBBall
Facebook - FIUMensBBall
Live Video Streaming - www.HerdZone.com
Live Stats - www.HerdZone.com
Records - FIU enters Thursday's game with an overall record of 11-9 (3-2 C-USA) following a 66-57 win over Florida Atlantic on Saturday, Jan. 25. Marshall enters Thursday's game with a 7-14 (3-3 C-USA) record following a 98-77 loss at Louisiana Tech on Saturday, Jan. 25.
Rankings - FIU is not ranked in either poll. Marshall is not ranked in either poll.
FIU Head Coach Anthony Evans - Coach Evans (St. Thomas Aquinas '94) enters Thursday's contest with a career record of 110-103 (.516 - seventh season overall) and 11-9 at FIU (.550 - first season).
Marshall Head Coach Tom Herrion - Coach Herrion (Merrimack '89) enters Thursday's contest with a career record at FAU of 63-59 (.516 - fourth season).
Series History - Thursday's game between FIU and Marshall will mark the second meeting all-time between the two teams with the Thundering Herd holding a 1-0 edge in the series history. The last meeting between the two teams resulted in an 88-79 win for Marshall on Nov. 29, 2010 in Huntington, W.Va.
Officials - Announced on game day

FIU Travels to Huntington, W.Va., for C-USA Road Game with Marshall
Having won two-straight conference games, the FIU men's basketball team (11-9, 3-2 C-USA) travels to Huntington, W.Va., to take on the Marshall Thundering Herd (7-14, 1-5 C-USA) on Thursday, Jan. 30. Game time is set for 7:00 p.m. ET. Thursday will mark the Panthers second-ever trip to the Cam Henderson Center and the first as a member of Conference USA.

FIU is coming off a 66-57 win over intra-state rival Florida Atlantic on Jan. 25.  Four players scored in double-figures to give the Panthers their 18th victory over the Owls.

Senior Tymell Murphy notched his eighth double-double of the season, leading the Panthers with 14 points and a team-high 14 boards. The Brooklyn, N.Y., native went 4-of-8 from the field and 6-of-7 from the line. Redshirt junior Dennis Mavin also added 14 points off a 5-of-9 performance from the field. Sophomore Jerome Frink (13) and redshirt senior Rakeem Buckles (12) also scored in double-digits. Frink had a season-high four steals, while Murphy added three. Murphy and freshman Dominique Williams also added two blocks each.

In a game where FIU never trailed, the Panthers saw its largest lead come in the first half (12 points). The team went 25-of-52 from the field (48 percent), with 42 points coming from the paint, besting the Owls by 20 in that category. FIU shot 67 percent (14-21) from the charity stripe and topped FAU, 43-29, in rebounds.

The Panthers enter this Thursday's action averaging 68.1 points-per-game, while shooting 44.8 percent from the floor and 30.5 percent from 3-point range. The Panthers are converting 66.4 percent of its attempts from the free-throw line. Defensively, FIU is allowing 69.1 points-per-game as the opposition is shooting 41.4 percent from the floor. The Panthers are out-rebounding their opponents 767-686, averaging 38.3 boards-per-contest.

Leading the Panthers in scoring is Murphy, who comes into Thursday's contest, averaging 16.4 points-per-game (No. 7 in the conference) on 60.1 percent shooting from the floor (No. 2 in the conference and No. 15 in the nation). The Brooklyn, N.Y., native is averaging 8.0 rebounds-per-contest (No. 8 in the conference). Leading the team in rebounding (9.1 rpg – No. 4 in the conference) is Buckles, who ranks 35 in the nation on the boards and is No. 17 in the conference in scoring (13.3 ppg).

FIU – Marshall Series History
Thursday's game between FIU and Marshall will mark the second meeting all-time between the two teams.
    - Marshall leads the series history, 1-0.    
    - The last meeting between the two teams resulted in an 88-79 win for the Thundering Herd on Nov. 29, 2010, in Huntington, W.Va.
    - Thursday will mark the first-ever meeting between the two schools as members of C-USA.
    - FIU owns a 34-60 mark versus teams from the current C-USA.
    - FIU is 3-5 in games played outside the state of Florida this season.
    - FIU is 3-2 on games played on Thursdays this season.
    - FIU owns an 1-1 road record in C-USA action this season.
    - Head Coach Anthony Evans has never faced the Thundering Herd.

An FIU Victory Would....
    - Improve FIU's record to 12-9.
    - Give FIU a 4-2 record in conference play.
    - Give FIU three-straight wins.
    - Improve FIU's record versus Marshall to 1-1.
    - Give FIU a 4-4 record in road games in '13-'14.
    - Give FIU a record of 4-3 in the month of January.
    - Improve Head Coach Anthony Evans' career record to 111-103.
    - Improve Coach Evans' record at FIU to 12-9.
    - Improve FIU to 35-60 all-time versus C-USA.
    - Give FIU its 388th win (actual on-court record).
    - Give FIU its 304th Division I win (actual on-court record).
    - Improve FIU to 4-5 in games played outside the state of Florida this season.

Movin' On Up
Senior Tymell Murphy enters Thursday's game with 796-career points. The Brooklyn, N.Y., native is four points shy of becoming the 13th player to score 800-career points at FIU. Currently ranked No. 13 all-time on the FIU scoring list, Murphy is averaging 16.4 points-per-game on 60.1 percent shooting from the floor. Murphy is 61 points shy of moving to No. 12 all-time (Darius Cook – 856 pts. – 1997-2000).

Lights Out
Senior Tymell Murphy enters Thursday's game shooting 60.1 percent (125-of-208) from the floor which ranks No. 2 in the conference and No. 15 nationally. The Brooklyn, N.Y., native's 60.1 percent from the floor is the third-highest shooting percentage by a Panther in a single season in FIU basketball history. For his career, Murphy is shooting 58.4 percent from the floor (321-of-550) good for No. 1 all-time at FIU.

Streaking
With back-to-back wins at home over East Carolina and Florida Atlantic, FIU has put together its first winning streak in conference play as a member of Conference USA. It also marked the team's first back-to-back victories since the team won six-straight during the month of November.

Career Blocks
Senior Tymell Murphy enters Thursday's contest having recorded 68 career blocked shots. The total ranks No. 6 all-time in FIU history and is four blocks shy of the No. 5 spot -  Hector Rodriguez (1984-1986).

Dynamic Duo
Seniors Tymell Murphy and Rakeem Buckles enter Thursday's game with Marshall having combined for 62 blocked shots (30 – Buckles; 32 – Murphy). That is the most by any duo among all Conference USA teams. FIU currently ranks No. 2 in C-USA in total blocks (91). The two have also combined for a conference-best 341 rebounds (160 - Murphy; 181 - Buckles).
 
Raining Threes
Entering Thursday's game versus Marshall, the FIU Panthers have converted at least one 3-point basket in 165-straight games, dating back to Dec. 20, 2008