Photo Credit: Sam Lewis

FIU Game Notes (PDF)

FIU (13-14, 5-7 C-USA) vs. Tulsa (14-12, 9-3 C-USA)

Teams - FIU Panthers (13-14 overall, 8-5 home); Tulsa Golden Hurricane (14-12 overall, 3-7 away)
Date - Saturday, Feb. 22, 2014
Location - Miami, Fla.
Arena - FIU Arena (5,000)
Tickets - 305-FIU-GAME (348-4263)
Television - N/A
Twitter - @FIUMensBBall
Facebook - FIUMensBBall
Live Video Streaming - PantherVision (www.FIUSports.com)
Live Stats - www.FIUSports.com
Records - FIU enters Saturday's game with an overall record of 13-14 (5-7 C-USA) following a 65-63 loss to North Texas on Thursday, Feb. 20. Tulsa enters Saturday's game with a 14-12 (9-3 C-USA) record following a 71-52 win at Florida Atlantic on Thursday, Feb. 20.
Rankings - FIU is not ranked in either poll. Tulsa is not ranked in either poll.
FIU Head Coach Anthony Evans - Coach Evans (St. Thomas Aquinas '94) enters Saturday's contest with a career record of 112-108 (.509 - seventh season overall) and 5-7 at FIU (.417 - first season).
Tulsa Head Coach Danny Manning - Coach Manning (Kansas '91) enters Saturday's contest with a career record at Tulsa of 30-28 (.517 - second season).
Series History - Saturday's game between FIU and Tulsa will mark the second meeting between the two teams with the Golden Hurricane owning a 1-0 edge in the series history. The last meeting between the two teams resulted in an 81-49 win for the Golden Hurricane on Nov. 15, 2009, in Tulsa, Okla.
Officials - Announced on game day.

Panthers Host the Golden Hurricane on Saturday
The FIU men's basketball team (13-14, 5-7 C-USA) will host the Tulsa Golden Hurricane (14-12, 9-3 C-USA) on Saturday, Feb. 22. Tipoff is set for 2:00 p.m. ET from Lime Court at FIU Arena.

A last-second bucket by the Mean Green handed the Panthers a 65-63 loss to North Texas on Thursday, Feb. 20.

Senior Tymell Murphy joined the 900-point club, finishing with career-high 31 points on 12-of-18 shooting from the floor. The Brooklyn, N.Y., native is just one of nine Panthers in the program's history to score 900-plus for a career.

Redshirt senior Rakeem Buckles recorded his 12th double-double of the season with a 13-point (6-of-18) and 13-rebound night to lead all players on the glass.

FIU shot 39.7 percent (23-of-58) for the game and went 14-of-19 (73.7 percent) from the free-throw line. The Panthers were out-rebounded slightly by the Mean Green 37-34, but forced 12 North Texas turnovers compared to FIU's nine. North Texas was held to just two treys during 40 minutes of action.

The Panthers enter this Saturday's action averaging 68.5 points-per-game, while shooting 44.7 percent from the floor and 29.7 percent from 3-point range. The Panthers are converting 66.5 percent of their attempts from the free-throw line. Defensively, FIU is allowing 70.3 points-per-game as the opposition is shooting 43.0 percent from the floor. The Panthers are out-rebounding their opponents 1000-928, averaging 37.0 boards-per-contest.

Leading the Panthers in scoring is Murphy, who comes into Saturday's contest, averaging 16.7 points-per-game (No. 4 in the conference) on 58.8 percent shooting from the floor (No. 4 in the conference and No. 14 in the nation). The Brooklyn, N.Y., native is averaging 7.3 rebounds-per-contest (No. 8 in the conference). Leading the team in rebounding (9.0  rpg – No. 3 in the conference) is Buckles, who ranks No. 37 in the nation on the boards and is No. 12 in the conference in scoring (13.7 ppg).

FIU – Tulsa Series History
Saturday's game between FIU and Tulsa will mark the second meeting all-time between the two teams.
    - FIU trails in the series history 0-1.
    - The last meeting between the two teams resulted in an 81-49 win for the Golden Hurricane on Nov. 15, 2009, in Tulsa, Okla.
    - FIU has never faced the Golden Hurricane in Miami, Fla.
    - FIU owns a 36-65 mark versus teams from the current C-USA.
    - FIU is 9-6 in games played in the state of Florida this season.
    - FIU is 5-7 on games played on Saturdays this season.
    - FIU owns a 3-3 home record in C-USA action this season.
    - Head Coach Anthony Evans has never faced the Golden Hurricane.

An FIU Victory Would....
    - Improve FIU's record to 14-14.
    - Give FIU a 6-7 record in conference play.
    - Improve FIU's record versus Tulsa to 1-1.
    - Give FIU a 9-5 record in home games in '13-'14.
    - Give FIU a record of 3-4 in the month of February.
    - Improve Head Coach Anthony Evans' career record to 113-108.
    - Improve Coach Evans' record at FIU to 14-14.
    - Improve FIU to 37-65 all-time versus C-USA.
    - Give FIU its 390th win (actual on-court record).
    - Give FIU its 306th Division I win (actual on-court record).

400+ for Murphy
With Tymell Murphy's 31 points versus North Texas, the Brooklyn, N.Y., native has scored 452 points this season. That is currently the 16th-most by an FIU player in a single season and it's the 25th time an FIU player has reached the 400-point plateau and 67th time a Panther has scored 300-or-more points in a season.

Get That Outta Here!
The FIU men's basketball team has totaled 118 blocked shots this season. That is good for No. 2 all-time in school history. The Panthers are currently No. 4 in the conference in blocks-per-game (4.37).

Lights Out
Senior Tymell Murphy enters Saturday's game shooting 58.8 percent (173-of-294) from the floor which ranks No. 4 in the conference and No. 14 nationally. The Brooklyn, N.Y., native's 58.8 percent from the floor is the sixth-highest shooting percentage by a Panther in a single season in FIU basketball history. For his career, Murphy is shooting 57.8 percent from the floor (357-of-618) good for No. 1 all-time at FIU.

More from the 300 Club
Redshirt senior Rakeem Buckles has totaled 371 points this season, marking the 68th time a Panther has scored 300-or-more points in a single season. His 371 points are the 34th-most in a single season at FIU.

Raining Threes
Entering Saturday's game versus Tulsa, the FIU Panthers have converted at least one 3-point basket in 172-straight games, dating back to Dec. 20, 2008.

There's No Place Like Home
The FIU Panthers have found success at home. So far this season, FIU has compiled a 8-5 record at home and is scoring 66.9 points-per-game on 45.7 percent shooting, while holding the opposition to 64.4 points-per-game on 40.2 percent shooting from the floor.

Movin' On Up
Senior Tymell Murphy enters Saturday's game with 920-career points. Currently ranked No. 9 all-time on the FIU scoring list, Murphy is averaging 16.7 points-per-game on 58.8 percent shooting from the floor. Murphy is nine points shy of moving to No. 8 all-time (Dedric Taylor, 883 pts. – 1995-1997).

31 for No. 15
Senior Tymell Murphy scored a career-high 31 points on 12-of-18 shooting versusNorth Texas on Thursday, Feb. 20. It marked the 19th time an FIU player had scored 31-or-more points in a contest.  

Career Blocks
Senior Tymell Murphy enters Saturday's contest having recorded 74 career blocked shots. The total ranks No. 3 all-time in FIU history and is 16 blocks shy of the No. 2 spot -  Russell Hicks (2007-2008).