MIAMI (Nov. 7, 2014) – Senior Tynia McKinzie led the Panther offensive attack with 25 points in addition to 12 rebounds to help FIU defeat Barry, 60-57, on a Friday night for its final exhibition game of the season.
 
FIU played nine players on the night, six of which scored. Junior Destini Feagin, senior Zsofia Labady and sophomore Nikolina Todorovic joined McKinzie on the board with nine points for Feagin and eight each for Labady and Todorovic. Senior Marita Davydova pulled down a game-high 18 rebounds, while Shade dished out four assists and had two steals. McKinzie also recorded two steals.
 
The Panthers never trailed in the first as Shade scored the opening basket to put FIU on the board first. A 14-4 run spanning 10 minutes through the first half seemed to give the Panthers a buffer, but Barry had other ideas as they held FIU without a field goal for almost five minutes as it climbed back into the game. With 3:19 remaining in the first, the Buccaneers hit back-to-back three pointers to put some pressure on the Panthers. Despite only shooting 31.4 percent from the field, FIU somehow went into the locker rooms ahead 26-23.
 
Barry came out of the break and could not miss as it made three-straight field-goals to open the second half to take the lead. FIU found themselves trailing for most of the second half, including a nine-point deficit with 13:09 left in the game. The game came down to the wire in the end. With the clock winding down, Feagin, McKinzie and Labady hit key free throw to take the lead and win the game, 60-57.
 
FIU finished the game shooting 34.5 percent from the field. The Panthers forced 15 turnovers, seven of which came from steals. FIU then converted the turnovers into 16 points. The Panthers also dominated on the boards with 46 total rebounds, 20 of which were on the offensive glass to produce 18 second chance points.
 
FIU returns to the court on Friday, Nov. 14, against Tennessee Tech for its first regular-season game. Tipoff is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. ET. Tickets are one sale and can be purchased online at FiUSports.com or by calling the FIU ticket office at 305.348.GAME.
 
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 4-00 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.