MIAMI, Fla. – The FIU men's basketball team nearly came close to ending the nation's second-longest win streak in college basketball on Wednesday evening, though, coming up just short in a wire-to-wire overtime matchup with FAU, 77-73, inside the Ocean Bank Convocation Center. The Panthers led for 27:18 of the contest prior to the Owls (15-1, 5-0 C-USA) rallying to extend their streak to 14 games, as FIU moves to 8-8 overall and 2-3 in the Conference USA.
 
Sophomore Denver Jones led all scorers in double figures with a game-high 25 points – his fifth straight 20-point performance – four rebounds and two assists, followed by graduate forward Nick Guadarrama with 14 points, including two 3-pointers (2-for-3), three assists and two steals.
 
Freshman Arturo Dean rounds out the Panthers in double figures with 10 points, four rebounds, four assists and four steals. Sophomore Petar Krivokapic added eight points, behind 2-of-5 shooting from deep (40.0%), and a career-best nine rebounds, while classmate Mohamed Sanogo finished with six points, four rebounds and two blocks.
 
FAU entered Wednesday's contest No. 14 in the NET Rankings and No. 37 in the KenPom rankings, despite leading for just 10:04 of the game to come away with the win.
 
FIU held the Owls to 39.7 percent from the field on the night, though, burying 13-of-33 from beyond the arc (39.4%) and hitting 70.0 percent of its looks from the free-throw line (14-for-20). FAU's Johnell Davis led four Owls in double figures with 17 points and five rebounds.
 
Deadlocked at 66-66, Jones found Mohamed Sanogo for a big alley-oop to start the overtime period, though, Owl free throws and a layup flipped the lead at 70-68. Jones hit a pair of free throws at the line to knot the margin (70-70), as both teams traded blank possessions up until FAU free throws reclaimed a 72-70 lead.
 
The Owls found themselves with possession with 28 seconds left, as FAU's Michael Forrest hit a dagger corner 3-pointer to push a two-possession margin, 75-70, with 12 seconds left. Nick Guadarrama answered with a clutch three on the next trip down (75-73), though, the Panthers ultimately came up short on corralling a steal in the press to see FAU secure the victory at the line with a 77-73 final margin.
 
The Panthers finished the contest 41.7 percent from the floor and 41.2 percent from three on 7-of-17 shooting, while hitting 16-of-21 from the stripe for the night (76.2%).
 
FAU edged the Panthers on the glass, 44-35, while receiving 22 points off 11 Panther turnovers – FIU's third-lowest turnover mark of the season.
 
Additionally, the Owls' bench gave FAU a massive boost, responsible for 44 of their 77 points, compared to FIU's 10 bench points.
 
The Panthers led for 9:04 of the first half, though, FAU held a 34-33 edge at the intermission – highlighted by 8-of-16 shooting (50.0%) from beyond the arc through the opening 20 minutes.
 
Arturo Dean buried a corner three on the opening possession of the half to reclaim the lead, followed by a Mohamed Sanogo baseline dunk, at 38-34. Jones hit a fadeaway jumper and a floater to push the edge (44-42) prior to free throws from Petar Krivokapic and Nick Guadarrama holding a 48-44 cushion by the 11:58 mark.
 
The Owls nailed a three to trail by one (48-47), though, Guadarrama and Javaunte Hawkins answered with a pair of buckets to reclaim a 53-47 advantage. Another Guadarrama bucket ensued, as Dean then corralled a steal for a fast break layup, followed by a layup from Denver Jones, to hold FIU's largest lead of the night with 7:26 to play, 59-50.
 
A Guadarrama 3-pointer kept a seven-point cushion at 62-55 (5:34), though, the Owls would erase the deficit over a four-minute stretch to knot the game up at 64-64 with 1:41 remaining. Both teams traded scores up until a 66-66 deadlock with FAU having the ball with 9.9 seconds on the clock. The Panthers would successfully defend the Owls' final possession, as Dean raced up the court for a game-winning layup attempt that fell just off the rim at the final horn to force the extra period.

Postgame Press Conference - Head Coach Jeremy Ballard, Denver Jones and Nick Guadarrama:


 
UP NEXT
FIU travels to Bowling Green, Ky., slated to face off with Western Kentucky on Saturday, Jan. 14. Tip-off is slated for a 7 p.m. ET start to be broadcast on ESPN+.
 
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