LYNCHBURG, Va.– Leading by five with 40 seconds left in regulation, FIU men's basketball (12-14, 5-10 CUSA) saw first-place Liberty  (23-3, 15-0)come back to tie the game and force overtime, but couldn't get a final shot to go at the buzzer, falling 90-89 in Lynchburg on Thursday.

Trailing by 11 with 5:04 remaining in the first half, FIU found its legs in front of the sold-out crowd, getting a few stops and scoring on the ensuing possessions. Zawdie Jackson sunk a three to cut it to a 37-34 deficit, and that was furthered to a one-point advantage for the home team after Hamed Olayinka converted on a Panthers' offensive rebound.

Liberty got it back to five, but another Olayinka layup followed by Jackson nailing both free throws at the line with five seconds left made it 41-40 Liberty after one half.

Eric Dibami stole the ball out of the break and rushed down to get the lead for the first time since early in the game at 43-42. Corey Stephenson then converted a pair of free throws to stretch it to three, which was the biggest lead the Panthers could get early as Liberty kept answering.

Trading blows over the next several possessions, Stephenson drilled consecutive three-pointers to go up three, followed by a euro-step dunk by Ibrahim Olajuwon and then a euro-step lay-in by Brit Harris to stretch it to five. It was a 60-55 lead with 13 minutes left.

Liberty rallied to get back up three, but not for long as Jackson and Thiago Sucatzky traded two-pointers heading into the under-eight. Continuing to go back-and-forth, Julian Mackey narrowly beat the shot-clock with a corner three, pushing it to 78-75 FIU.

Olayinka hit two free throws to go up by five with 1:11 left, but Liberty hit a three and then drew an offensive foul from Jackson to tie the game up. Stephenson got a good look from three as time expired, but it missed. It was deadlocked at 80, and for the second consecutive matchup between the two, overtime was needed.

The teams once again traded free throws and stops in overtime, even after Stephenson gave FIU the early lead on a mid-range jumper. Trailing by four with 19 seconds left, FIU got its own offensive rebound and Harris was fouled on a three-point attempt, making it a one-point deficit. After Liberty missed both of its free throws on the other end, Stephenson had an open look again at the buzzer but drew back iron, falling in a heartbreaker 90-89.

For the second time this season, a pair of Panthers scored 20 - Stephenson (23) and Jackson (21). Olayinka rounded out that scoring trio with 18 points, and Dibami added another 10-rebound effort to lead the team. FIU shot a season best 89.5 percent (17-19) from the line in the loss.

UP NEXT

FIU has to have a short memory headed into its next game as the Panthers have just one day off before hosting Missouri State Saturday.

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