JACKSONVILLE, Ala. – FIU men's basketball (9-5, 2-1 CUSA) returns to the road (outside of the city of Miami) for the first time since Nov. 13 when it takes on Jacksonville State (7-7, 2-1). The Gamecocks went 3-0 against FIU last season, including knocking the Panthers out of the conference tournament. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. Eastern.

The Inbound
The Panthers went a perfect 2-0 at home last week, knocking off two squads that have had the upper hand in the series history in New Mexico State and UTEP, winning by more than 10 points in both games. The Panthers used a strong second half to come back from a halftime deficit and beat the Miners 74-62 on Sunday.

Jacksonville State is 2-1, splitting a road trip up north last week. They took down Delaware 67-64 and were dispatched by Liberty by nine on Sunday.

Series History
Jacksonville State has never lost during the regular season to the Panthers since joining Conference USA, going 4-1 in the teams' five meetings. FIU is 5-6 overall against Jacksonville State, who was briefly a TAAC foe of the Panthers in the 90s.

Jax State won all three meetings last year: 71-67 in Jacksonville on Jan. 30, 84-79 in double overtime in Miami on Mar. 1, and 65-56 in the second round of the conference tournament.

FIU's last win was in the opening round of the 2023-24 conference tournament, winning 76-67 in Huntsville. Arturo Dean had 21 points and six assists as FIU came back from a four-point halftime deficit.

Notable Storylines
- Eric Dibami is firmly in the conversation for CUSA Freshman of the Year, averaging 15.2 ppg and 9.6 rpg over the last five, with double digits in every game. He's recorded back-to-back double-doubles for the first time in his collegiate career.
- Corey Stephenson had a quiet 17 points last game, but continues to spearhead the offensive attack for FIU. The Alabama native will return to his home state sporting an 18.1 ppg average and seven rebounds per game, and will have several fans in attendance supporting him.
- Hamed Olayinka has scored in double digits in four straight after 11 points against NM State. He joined Dibami with a double-double in the previous game, also tying his season-high by swatting four blocks against UTEP.
- Ashton Williamson has back-to-back games in double figures, scoring 10 and distributing the ball extremely well against the Miners.
- Ibrahim Olajuwon sparked FIU off the bench - scoring eight points in a five-minute span, grabbing six rebounds and swatting a pair of blocks. He's been a reliable bench presence this season, averaging 5.3 points and 3.2 rebounds in his first full Division I season.
- The Panthers are first in Conference USA in assists per game, blocks per game, turnovers forced per game and steals per game. In addition, they are second in scoring offense, averaging 87.3 ppg.
- Jeremy Ballard is two wins from breaking the program record set by Rich Walker.

UP NEXT

FIU has an extra day off between games, traveling to Springfield to take on Missouri State for the first time in program history on Saturday.

TICKETS
For more information on FIU men's basketball tickets, call 305-FIU-GAME or visit the FIU Athletics Online Ticket Office.

SOCIAL MEDIA
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General athletic news can also be found at @FIUSports on Facebook and @FIUAthletics on Twitter and Instagram.