Miami, FL - Sam Houston falls to FIU 64-49 behind Tanajah Hayes' 16 points on Thursday afternoon at the Oceanbank Convocation Center. The day was highlighted by FIU's annual STEAM day, where Miami-Dade area schools were invited for a day of learning, and cheering on their Panthers.

It was a gauntlet from the start, with the two teams trading blows for the entirety of the first quarter. FIU forced nine turnovers in the first frame of the game, going on to put up six points off those turnovers. The Panthers capitalized on Sam Houston turnovers the entire afternoon, forcing 26 turnovers and 23 points off turnovers in the game. FIU trailed 16-14 going into the second quarter despite the strong defensive start.

FIU's nationally recognized bench charged their offense in the second quarter, accounting for 20 points in the 10 minutes before the half alone. The dynamic offense off the bench ended the game with 26 points, doubling the Bearkats production from their bench. Olivia Trice led the Panthers into the break with nine points, going 3-3 from the field in the quarter, all of which were three-pointers. As a team, FIU shot the ball at a 75% clip in the second quarter, going 9-12 on field goals and 4-5 from three. Two Panther 9-0 runs from 5:02-3:36 and 3:15-1:01, gave FIU a large lead going into the half. Florida International outscored Sam Houston by 16 going into the break, and led 39-24 going into the break.

The Panthers kept the offense rolling in the third quarter, putting up 16 points in the frame, led by junior Tanajah Hayes six points and two steals. Hayes finished with a game high 16 points on 8-12 shooting, piling on two rebounds and two assists. On the defensive side Hayes swiped six steals, her most in a game on the season. Playing in 19 games so far this season, Hayes is averaging 10.1 points per game, the most through 19 games in her career.  FIU led 54-43 going into the final quarter. 

Stout defense and physicality closed out the win for the Panthers, allowing only six points on 2-13 shooting in the last frame, en route to a 64-49 triumph.

FIU allowed only a 28.3 shooting percentage in the victory, their second lowest margin of the season, with their win over Florida National being the only game where they allowed a lower shooting percentage (.138). The Panthers did not allow a single player on Sam Houston to score in double-digits, with their highest scorer putting up nine points. FIU (39.9) came into the contest as the best rebounding team in the conference, with Sam Houston (39.7) right behind them in second place. This contest was much of the same, with the Panthers out-rebounding the Bearkats 42-38 in the game.

Graduate student Courtney Prenger was the only other Panther to score in double-digits, ending the match with 10 points on 3-5 shooting and 4-6 from the free-throw line. The forward nabbed three rebounds, two assists and two steals in 22 minutes.

UP NEXT
FIU will stay home for their second round against LA Tech on Saturday, February 17th at 1:00 p.m.

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