MIAMI– Getting up by 12 at halftime and never looking back, FIU men's basketball (15-16, 8-12 CUSA) emphatically clinched its spot in the Conference USA Tournament with a 92-67 win over Western Kentucky (18-13, 11-9) on senior day, the fifth-straight win over the Hilltoppers at the Ocean Bank Convocation Center.

"As I've said many times, one of the most special things about college athletics is the opportunity to honor your seniors and have a senior night. Even in this transfer portal world and this NIL world, these seniors are still special," head coach Jeremy Ballard said."I know a lot of coaches complain about it, but I don't have complaints about my guys. I'm so proud they chose to be with us. Almost all of our seniors, outside of Renato, were here for just one year, but every last one of them felt like we recruited them out of high school and like they've been part of Panther Nation for as long as I've been here. That's a testament to the impact they've had on everyone. I said in the ESPN interview that they truly represent what Panther Nation is all about. These guys embraced being Panthers from day one, going to every sporting event, being loud, and having enthusiasm for FIU. That's special. Of course we try to encourage that as coaches, but that's innate in them, and that's a credit to them."

The Panthers quickly trailed by six by the 16-minute mark, but were not down for that long. The Panthers took their first lead with 13 minutes left after an Eric Dibami free throw, and Dibami stole the ball on the next possession and found Ibrahim Olajuwon for the dunk in the paint. While the Tops quickly took the lead back, that would be their final lead.

A 13-1 run immediately followed for the Panthers, aided by Hamed Olayinka, Brit Harris and Julian Mackey, who all scored in the next stretch. Mackey's three at 8:28 extended the lead to 10 for the first time. Thiago Sucatzky hit a floater with 1:17 left to make the lead 12, where it would stay at halftime, 45-33.

The defense and offense continued to roll coming out of the break. Corey Stephenson and Olayinka traded layups to extend the lead to 16 early, followed by two more layups from Stephenson and Zawdie Jackson to make it a 20-point lead.

The closest the Hilltoppers got for the rest of the game was 12 points, and FIU put it in cruise control. Jackson's assist on Harris' three at 4:37 was the 500th of his career, gaining another assist when he found Stephenson on a lob on the next possession with the Panthers up 81-59.

Coach Ballard emptied the bench in the final minutes, allowing senior walk-on Renato Ruiz to play in his final game at Ocean Bank Convocation Center. Freshman Aydan Clinton got in on the action too, scoring the final bucket of the season - his first as a collegiate basketball player. This lay-in sealed the 92-67 win for FIU, their fifth-straight at home against the Hilltoppers, and the most lopsided FIU win in conference play this year.

In his final game of the season, Stephenson led the Panthers with 18 points, adding eight rebounds, three steals and two blocks. He's the 11th Panther in program history to surpass 500 points in a season.

"I said it earlier. There were real emotions going into this," he said. "We really wanted to win, and we knew it would secure our spot in the tournament. So we went out there and tried to get the win."

Olayinka notched his 5th double-double of the year, finishing with exactly 10 points and 10 rebounds. The senior had an outstanding regular season, a career-year for the transfer from Samford.

"I think it was a statement. Last game, they killed us on the offensive boards. So today we came in trying to get that back," Olayinka said. "We didn't want to get in the tournament by luck. We had to get out of the mud."

Ruiz played in his 15th game as a Panther on his senior day, getting to take the court one final time. The longest-tenured current Panther earned his chance to finish it out on the court.

"I feel like this team is really connected right now. Off the court we're all hanging out with each other and doing fun stuff together," Ruiz said. "Then in practice we're very competitive. We talk some smack, but we just love to compete. We want what's best for us and for FIU. I feel like this is a team that could go really far in the tournament."

Mackey (17), Jackson (11) and Dibami (10) also scored in double digits during the game. With the win, the Panthers clinched the eight seed in the conference tournament, taking on Missouri State in the first round, whom they split the regular season with. 

UP NEXT

FIU is the eight seed in the conference tournament, taking on Missouri State at 6:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday.

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