MIAMI — FIU's men's basketball program was downed 68-66 by Conference USA (CUSA) opponent Middle Tennessee at home on Saturday inside the Ocean Bank Convocation Center. 

FIU (8-16, 3-6 CUSA) held a 39-32 lead at the halftime break on its Alumni Day and led the Blue Raiders (9-15, 3-6 CUSA) by 12 with 11:33 to go. MTSU, which went on a late run to close a victory in Murfreesboro, scored 30 of the game's last 46 points to complete a regular season sweep of the Panthers.

The Panthers ripped off a 9-1 run in the final two minutes of the first half to take a seven-point lead into the locker room. A Seth Pinkney dunk with over 11 minutes to go staked FIU to its largest lead of the game, a 12-point advantage. 

Middle Tennessee used opportunities on offense and at the free throw line to take its first lead since the first half with 4:42 remaining. Javaunte Hawkins laid in a basket with 2:56 to go to put FIU back in front momentarily before a timely Blue Raider three-pointer put MTSU back ahead. 

Arturo Dean tied the game with a layup and had a chance at the foul line to put FIU back in front. After a miss and an MTSU rebound, the Blue Raiders made a go-ahead basket that would keep them ahead for good with 44 seconds to go. 

Dean raced down the floor at the buzzer, but his layup fell short of the rim. Dean made 2-of-3 three-pointers and had a team-high 14 points, adding eight rebounds and two steals. 

Hawkins was also in double-figures with 10 points, adding four assists and three steals. 

George Pridgett, Jr. had seven points off the bench in 19 minutes. Petar Krivokapic had his second-consecutive double-digit game with 12 points on 5-for-12 shooting from the field. 

As a team, FIU forced 18 turnovers and had 10 steals. The Panthers only had eight turnovers, but shot just 5-for-21 (23.8%) from deep. MTSU also had a significant advantage shooting free throws, racking up 29 attempts, 19 in the second half. 

The Blue Raiders had 17 made free throws while FIU was 7-for-11. The Panthers' bench scored 31 points combined in the contest. The game featured six ties and 11 lead changes.

UP NEXT

FIU will hit the road for its second-to-last CUSA road trip, traveling first to Sam Houston on Feb. 15 and then to La Tech for a matchup on Feb. 17.