FIU Men’s Basketball Comes Up Short in Contest to Hilltoppers

The FIU Panthers trailed for the majority of the first half against the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers. However, in the final minutes of the half, the Panthers came back to life, going on a 12-2 run. The score was neck and neck for both teams in the opening minutes of the second half, but the fouls started piling up for FIU.

The continuation of turnovers didn’t help either, leading to free points for Western Kentucky. In short, these constant mistakes led to FIU Men’s Basketball coming up short in their contest to the Hilltoppers, 76-67.

Panthers Can’t Solve Top Scorers

Western Kentucky’s win was led by three players who contributed to a bulk of their scoring. Don McHenry led the team with 20 points and five assists, along with four rebounds. Khristian Lander had 19 points himself. Tyrone Marshall Jr. scored 11 from the floor and had a team-high nine rebounds.

FIU’s Offense Not Enough To Secure Victory

Compared to the Hilltoppers shooting 44%, the Panthers weren’t that far off shooting for 42%. FIU was led by Vianney Salatchoum, who matched his season high of 21 points. He hit all of his three-pointers and grabbed six rebounds. Jayden Brewer scored 14 points and had a team high of seven rebounds.

Dashon Gittens scored 11 points, grabbed five boards, and dished out four assists. Unfortunately, luck wasn’t on their side with the three-pointers, as they ended the game shooting for a disappointing 29%. They made six of them in the first half, but just one in the second half.

Mental Mistakes Threw The Game Away

Western Kentucky took advantage of FIU, stealing the ball 11 times. Turnovers were another monster, as the Panthers committed 16 of them compared to just seven for the Hilltoppers.

Once the second half kicked in, it was clear that Western Kentucky was running away with this one and were all over FIU’s game planning. The lost ball, bad pass, and out-of-bound turnovers were all becoming too common in this one.

The last game of the regular season will close off on the road this Saturday at 3:00 PM against the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders.

About Post Author

Ricardo Urrusuno

He’s a diehard 305 native who roots for his hometown teams in the good, the bad, and the ugly. Recently, he graduated from FIU with an MBA, but now he’s a Lemonhead covering UM basketball. Known to be anywhere and everywhere, you may catch him at a Miami sporting event.

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