BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA (March 3, 2016) -- FIU began its final road trip of the year, but had trouble finding the net in a 71-42 Thursday night loss at UAB in Conference USA action. The Panthers set a new team season high with seven blocks in the contest.
 
FIU drops to 4-24, 2-15 in Conference USA. UAB leveled its record to 14-14, and is 7-10 in league games.
 
The Panthers and Blazers traded the lead six times in the opening quarter, with neither team able to get hold of the game early. A layup in the final second of the quarter gave UAB a one-point, 13-12 lead.
 
The second quarter did in the Panthers, going scoreless for over three minutes, while the Blazers posted 18 points to take a 31-19 lead to the locker room.
 
FIU posted its best quarter in the third, but so did the Blazers, outscoring the Panthers 26-13 in the period.
 
Junior Tianah Alvarado (St. Petersburg, Florida / Gulf Coast State) led the Panthers with 15 points and seven rebounds.
 
Nikolina Todorovic (Bosnia & Herzegovina) was one point shy of her career high with 11 tonight. Local product Kristian Hudson (Birmingham, Alabama), playing in front of dozens of her friends and family, added 10 points.
 
The Panthers shot .304 in the game, aided by a .321 fourth quarter. The Blazers shot .406 in the contest.
 
FIU ends the regular season on Saturday, with a 3 p.m. Eastern tip at Middle Tennessee before the league championship, which starts next Tuesday.
 
For women's basketball ticket information, contact the FIU Ticket Office at 305-FIU-GAME or log onto www.FIUSports.com.
 
Fans are encouraged to follow the Panthers on Twitter (@FIUWBB) 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 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/.