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MIAMI (Nov. 30, 2014) - The women's basketball team dropped its final game at the FIU Thanksgiving Classic, 74-61, from Lime Court at FIU Arena. With the loss, the Panthers dip to 0-5 on the season, while the win lifts the Cavaliers to 5-1 overall.
 
Redshirt freshman Kiandre'a Pound led FIU in scoring with a game-high 18 points, while also adding a game-high 11 rebounds. She was joined in double-figures by senior Tynia McKinzie and junior Taylor Shade (12).  Shade also dished out a career-high tying eight assists.
 
For the game, the Cavs shot 51.6 percent (32-of-62), while the Panthers hit a season-high 47.8 percent (22-of-46) from the floor, including 54.5 percent (6-of-11) from behind the arc, also a season-best. FIU also out-rebounded Virginia, 36-21, but only converted eight second-chance points off 10 offensive rebounds.
 
UVA knocked down the first basket of the game, but both teams exchanged points over the first minutes of play. Virginia went on an 11-0 run, and FIU was held without a field goal for almost five minutes until a Marita Davydova layup broke the spell with 13:33 to go in the first. The Panthers went on a small 5-2 run over the next three minutes to pull within five, but back-to-back Cavalier buckets got them back within double-digits. McKinzie hit a long three as the shot clock expired to get back within eight, but the Cavs pulled back ahead by double-digits, this time by 14 after a 6-0 run. The Panthers answered with a 6-0 of their own. The FIU defense held the Virginia offense to only two field goals in the final 4:32, but went into the locker rooms trailing 37-25.
 
The first minute of the second half featured back-to-back Cavalier baskets, but the Panthers scored five consecutive points to pull back within 11. With FIU trailing 41-30 and 18:11 to go, UVA would embark on a 14-5 run to take a 20-point lead, 55-35. FIU cut it to nine after a 13-2 run that took under two minutes with 5:07 remaining, but would come no closer.
 
FIU finishes its four-game home stand on Saturday, Dec. 6 with a 6 p.m. matchup against in-state rival UCF.
 
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).
 
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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 FIU Arena and Ocean BankField at FIU Stadium.
 
About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. It is a public research university with colleges and schools that offers 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 contributes $9.8 billion each year to the local economy. FIU is Worlds Ahead in finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission. FIU has awarded over 200,000 degrees and enrolls more than 54,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell, FIU@I-75, and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. FIU also supports artistic and cultural engagement through its three museums: the Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum, the Wolfsonian-FIU, and the Jewish Museum of Florida-FIU. FIU is a member of Conference USA and has over 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.