Box Score (HTLM) | Box Score (PDF) 

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (Mar. 5, 2015) – The women's basketball team fell 79-30 Saturday afternoon at Middle Tennessee from Monte Hale Arena. The loss drops the Panthers to 3-25 and 0-17 against Conference USA opponents, while the Blue Raiders improve to 19-8 on the season and 13-4 in the league.
 
Redshirt freshman Kiandre'a Pound lead FIU in scoring with 12 points. She was followed by senior Marita Davydova who added 10. Freshman Aajah Hawkins pulled down a career-high 10 rebounds to lead the Panthers on the boards, while Davydova and Pound produced seven each. Pound also had a career-best five blocks on the day. This was the second time this season a player has registered five or more blocks in a game as Davydova had five against Bowling Green earlier in the year.
 
The Blue Raiders jumped out to a 12-0 lead over the first three-and-half minutes action, but Pound got FIU back in it with back-to-back jumpers in the lane that sparked an 8-0 run. Trailing 15-4, the Panthers embarked on a 10-3 run to pull within three, but Middle hit its next three field goals and regained its double-digit lead. The Blue Raiders embarked on a 15-0 run over six minutes of the clock to take a 20 point advantage. FIU was held without a field goal for the rest of the half and the only two points scored were Davydova free throws.
 
The Panther offensive struggles continued on through the second after scoring a season-low 16 first half points. The first second-half field goal was not hit until the 16:26 mark and the second shot was not made until the 12:30 point. Turnovers and poor shooting sealed the deal for FIU as it fell, 79-30.
 
For the game, FIU shot a season low 43.8 percent (11-of-47), while Middle Tennessee finished the afternoon at 43.8 percent (32-of-73). The Blue Raiders had 44 of their points in the paint and outrebounded the Panthers, 46-36.
 
FIU will close out the 2015 regular season on Saturday when it travels to Birmingham to face off against the UAB Blazers. Tipoff is set for 3 p.m. ET from Bartow Arena.
 
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 offer 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 $8.9 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/.