MIAMI, Fla. – The FIU men's basketball team capped an undefeated week inside the Ocean Bank Convocation Center, finishing the weekend on a strong note with an 82-74 victory over Middle Tennessee (13-9, 6-5 C-USA) to collect its third straight Conference USA win on Saturday night. The Panthers hit 12 3-pointers on the night, while shooting 49.1 percent from the field and placing four in double figures to move to 11-11 overall and 5-6 in league action.   
 
The win over the Blue Raiders marked FIU's first since Jan. 9, 2021, while the win also marked the Panthers' 10^th this season at home (10-4).
 
FIU connected on 12-of-23 from beyond the arc for the contest (52.2%), marking its third straight game hitting 10 or more threes.
 
Sophomore Denver Jones led all scorers in double figures with a game-highs of 21 points and seven rebounds, in addition to three assists and a steal. Jones hit 3-of-7 from beyond the arc and went a perfect 6-for-6 from the stripe, as the sophomore guard leads the league in both scoring in-conference (20.1 ppg) and field goal percentage overall (.488) after tonight's performance.
 
A trio of Panthers finished with 12 points apiece, including Nick Guadarrama on 4-of-7 shooting from 3-point range to pair with six rebounds. Freshman Dashon Gittens added 12 points and five rebounds, followed by Javaunte Hawkins with his second straight game in double figures with 12 points, two 3-pointers and two assists.

Freshman Arturo Dean stuffed the stat sheet with six points, six rebounds, a career-high seven assists and four steals in 33 minutes of action. 
 
The Panthers finished the contest 49.1 percent from the field for the night, highlighted by a hot start through the first frame on 55.2 percent (16-for-29) shooting and 54.5 percent from three (6-of-11).
 
The surge would persist in the second half, as FIU hit 6-of-12 from three at a 50.0 percent clip. 
 
FIU led for 35:02 of the contest, as Middle Tennessee finished 48.1 percent from the field, though, shooting from distance and at the line ultimately made the difference – seeing the Blue Raiders shoot 33.3 percent (8-of-24) and 66.7 percent (14-of-21), respectively.

FIU finished with the edge on the glass, 37-29, for the first time in 17 games. Despite the win, MTSU thrived off 19 FIU turnovers in capitalizing for 28 points in return throughout the game. 
 
After busting a 44-39 halftime lead, FIU came out the break with the edge in notching 11 of the first 14 points to open its largest lead of the night at a MTSU timeout by the 17:52 mark, 55-42. The Blue Raiders answered with a 6-0 run out of the huddle to close in 55-50 prior to a Dashon Gittens and-one layup rekindling a double-figure cushion in sparking a 9-2 run for a 64-52 advantage.
 
Mohamed Sanogo took a steal coast-to-coast for a slam during the run, followed by a Nick Guadarrama three and Gittens tip in layup capping the run with 9:42 to play.
 
MTSU would close the gap once again using a 7-0 spurt to spark its momentum en route to coming within two points, 66-64, at an FIU timeout with 4:46 remaining. From there, the Panthers kicked into another gear, as Denver Jones and Nick Guadarrama nailed back-to-back shot clock beating threes that highlighted a 10-0 run to put FIU back in the driver's seat, 76-64, with 1:56 on the clock.
 
The Blue Raiders answered with timely makes, though, resorting to fouling FIU in the bonus down the stretch, as Jones and Javaunte Hawkins would finish the game at the line for the Panthers to come away with the 82-74 victory.

FIU additionally finished 82.4 percent from the line on 12-of-14 shooting for the night.

Postgame Press Conference - Head coach Jeremy Ballard, Javaunte Hawkins and Mohamed Sanogo:


 
UP NEXT
FIU returns to league action on the road next week, traveling to face Charlotte Thursday, Feb. 2, inside Halton Arena. Tip-off is slated for a 7 p.m. start to be broadcast on ESPN+.
 
TICKETS
For more information on FIU tickets to FIU basketball home games, including student ticketing, call 305-FIU-GAME or visit HERE.
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
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