DENTON, Texas (Feb. 18, 2016) – The FIU men's basketball team headed into its second swing trip through Texas looking for the same success that it had the last time it visited the Lone Star State. The Panthers were also looking to pick up some momentum heading into the final five games of the regular season as they visited North Texas tonight in a key Conference USA contest. The Mean Green, however, protected their home court, and outlasted FIU, for a 77-75 come-from-behind win at the Super Pit.
Adrian Diaz paced four Panthers' players with 23 points while
Donte McGill added 21 points in a losing effort.
Daviyon Draper recorded his sixth double-double of the season with a 13-point, 10-rebound performance, and
Elmo Stephen chipped in with 10 points.
FIU shot 51.8 percent (29-of-56) from the field on the night and 47.4 percent (9-of-19) from behind the three-point arc. North Texas was hit just 40 percent (22-of-55) of its shots from the floor, and 40.7 percent (11-of-27) from three-point territory.
Neither team led by more than five points in a very tight first half. The Panthers shot 55.2 percent (16-of-29) from the field in the first 20 minutes, with McGill and Diaz accounting for the majority of that offensive production, combining for 18 of the 37 first-half points, and 12-of-13 shooting from the floor. McGill kept FIU in the contest, as the Panthers took a two-point edge, 37-35, into the locker room at the break, scoring 14 of the final 18 points of the half.
The beginning of the second half saw three ties and three lead changes in the first 6:14. Kahlil Fuller put the Mean Green up one, 49-48, with a layup with 13:46 left in the contest, only to have Diaz take a Stephens pass and convert on a thundering dunk on the next possession to put the Panthers back up one, 50-49 with 13:26 left. That dunk sparked a 12-0 run – with six of the 12 points coming from Draper – and catapulted the Panthers to their biggest lead of the game, 11 points, 60-49 with 9:56 remaining.
FIU eventually led by as many as 12 points, 68-56, with 6:04 left in the game when Stephen hit his third and final trey of the night.
Despite the 12-point deficit, North Texas blindsided the Panthers by scoring 20 of the last 27 points in the final 5:36 of the game; a run that was spearheaded by Deckie Johnson who scored 16 of his game-high 32 points during that stretch.
After Stephen hit the front end of two free throws to put FIU up five, 75-70, with 1:28 left, Johnson drained a three-point shot to cut the Panthers' lead to two points, 75-73, with 43 seconds left. Draper, however was called for a charge as FIU brought the ball up the court. Johnson took advantage, hitting another three for what became the game winner with 19 seconds left to put North Texas up 76-75.
FIU closes out its two-game Texas trip at Rice on Feb. 20 (2 p.m. ET). That game will be televised live on the American Sports Network. The Panthers' second swing trip of the season to Texas marks the first two games of three-straight on the road. FIU will travel to Florida Atlantic during that stretch to face the Owls on Feb. 27 at 2 p.m. (ASN).
The Panthers will return home on Thursday, March 3 at 7 p.m. when they meet UAB on Lime Court at FIU Arena, before welcoming Middle Tennessee to Miami on Saturday, March 5 at 6 p.m. to close out the regular season. For men's basketball ticket information, contact the FIU Ticket Office at 305-FIU-GAME or log onto www.FIUSports.com.
Fans are encouraged to follow @FIUHoops on Twitter, and "Like" FIU men's basketball on Facebook (www.Facebook.com/FIUMensBBall) for the latest Panther 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 at the FIU Football Stadium.
About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. Its colleges and schools offer more than 180 bachelor¹s, master¹s and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida's anchor institutions, FIU is Worlds Ahead in its local and global engagement, finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission. FIU has awarded 200,000 degrees and enrolls 50,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. FIU is a member of Conference USA and has 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.
