MIAMI (Feb. 4, 2022) – FIU women's hoops continues its three-game road stretch this Saturday, Feb. 5, when the Panthers take on LA Tech in an afternoon showdown at the Thomas Assembly Center.

Tip-off is set for 3 p.m. ET against the Lady Techsters in Ruston, Lousianna.

FOLLOW LIVE
FIU versus LA Tech will be broadcast on ESPN+. Live stats can be found here.

LA TECH PREVIEW
FIU owns an 11-8 record (3-5 Conference USA) this season after falling narrowly to Southern Miss (64-65) this past Thursday in the final seconds of a competitive game. Last week, FIU swept UTSA (81-53) and UTEP (72-45) at home in two impressive defensive performances that saw the Panthers win by a combined 55 points.

LA Tech has earned a 12-8 record (4-5 C-USA) including an impressive 7-1 mark at home. The Lady Techsters have won four of their last five contests and are riding a two-game winning streak. LA Tech defeated North Texas (72-60) last Saturday, Jan. 29, and then downed the FAU Owls (64-49) this past Thursday, Feb. 3.

INSIDE THE SERIES
The Panthers and Lady Techsters have met 15 times in their history, with FIU's only win occurring during the 2017-18 season. FIU last saw LA Tech nearly two years ago on Feb. 22, 2020, with the Lady Techsters taking the contest 62-52 at home. LA Tech has won three straight over FIU and is undefeated in games played in Ruston (7-0). 

SCOUTING THE LADY TECHSTERS
LA Tech is led offensively by junior guard Keiunna Walker, who averages 17.4 points per game (ppg) and has scored in double figures in 21 straight games.

Forward Anna Larr Roberson ranks second on LA Tech with 13.2 ppg and leads the squad with 9.1 rebounds per game. Roberson has scored in double figures in 13 straight games. The sophomore is currently leading Conference USA in free throw percentage (.855), ranks No. 2 in rebounding, and No. 3 in field goal percentage (.513).
  
The Lady Techsters are on of C-USA's top defensive teams, ranking No. 3 in scoring defense (58.1 ppg), No. 5 in blocked shots (3.5 bpg), and tied for No. 5 in turnovers forced per game (18.7). LA Tech has held opponents under 50 points four times this season and is 10-1 when holding teams to under 60. 
 
The Lady Techsters rank No. 1 in C-USA in team free-throw percentage (.756). 

FIU BY THE NUMBERS
Emerald Ekpiteta is approaching the thousand career-point mark, as the fifth-year forward currently sits at 982 total points.

Sharpshooting forward Kyla Nelson is shooting 37 percent from beyond the arc and ranks second in C-USA with 2.47 made 3-pointers per game. Nationally, Nelson ranks 50th in 3-pointers per game and 86th in deep-ball percentage.

Nelson is six 3-pointers away from reaching 200 for her career. The fifth-year forward leads FIU in scoring with 12.47 points per game and ranks 17th in scoring average among all C-USA players.

As a team, FIU ranks third overall in C-USA with 134 made 3-pointers, including 7.05 per contest. The Panthers rank fifth overall in C-USA in 3-point percentage (.309).

On the defensive end, FIU ranks first overall in C-USA with 21.63 forced turnovers per game and 15th overall in the nation. The Panthers also rank third in C-USA with 10.68 steals per game, good for 26th in the country. FIU sits at fourth overall in the conference with a +3.89 turnover margin and 41st nationwide in the category. The Panthers also rank fourth in C-USA in scoring defense, holding opponents to 59.21 points per game.

Freshman guard Tanajah Hayes ranks 9th in the country among NCAA Division I freshmen with 2.47 steals per game. Hayes also leads all C-USA freshmen in the category, while ranking fourth overall in the league and 51st overall in the country.

Hayes is proving to be a two-way player in her first collegiate season, as the freshman leads FIU with 66 total assists on the season. Hayes ranks second among C-USA freshmen in assists per game (3.47) and 7th among all C-USA players. Hayes also ranks 12th in C-USA in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.03).

Sophomore Maria Torres leads FIU with 1.42 blocks per game and ranks fifth in C-USA in the category. Torres is averaging 2 blocks per game during league play, which ranks second overall in C-USA.

Ekpiteta leads FIU with 6.63 rebounds per game and ranks 15th in C-USA in the category, while also ranking 9th in the league with 2.79 offensive boards per contest.

UP NEXT
FIU wraps up its three-game road trip on Monday, Feb. 7, against Old Dominion. Tip-off against the Monarchs is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. ET from Chartway Arena in Norfolk, Virginia. 

TICKETS
For tickets to all upcoming women's basketball home games, click here.

SOCIAL MEDIA
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