MIAMI, FL – It was 305 Day at The Bank, and the FIU crowd of 1,735 was loud all game long. For FIU Men’s Basketball, their magic number to clinch a Conference USA Tournament spot was 1. A win against Middle Tennessee, and they’re automatically in.
After starting off with back-and-forth basketball, the Panthers expanded their lead in the second half. After faltering late in the game, the Panthers lose to MTSU 73-67 with their CUSA Tournament spot on the line.
Action Packed Basketball
The Panthers jumped off to a hot 8-3 lead, with each point coming in the paint. Then the Blue Raiders connected on consecutive three-point shots to take a 9-8 lead.
A HIGH-FLYING START TO THE NIGHT 🫨@eric_dibami x @STBCOREY pic.twitter.com/oHxKMXpLoC
— FIU Men's Basketball (@FIUHoops) March 6, 2026
FIU retook the lead on a 7-0 run thanks to a five-point contribution from Corey Stephenson, giving them the 15-9 advantage. The lead wouldn’t last long, though, as both schools would go on to trade leads throughout the half.
Down by three, the Panthers finished the first on a strong note, scoring the half’s final four points, capped off by a dunk from Hamed Olayinka. They entered the locker room with a slight 34-33 edge on 43% shooting.
THE EURO-DUNK FOR THE LEAD 🌍@olayhamed pic.twitter.com/cCwgGhSDmS
— FIU Men's Basketball (@FIUHoops) March 6, 2026
The Game Slips Away
Up by three in the second, the Panthers went on a 6-0 run thanks to two consecutive drive-in layups from Zawdie Jackson, making it 49-40. However, the Blue Raiders would score six in a row of their own to bring it back to a close 49-46 contest.
the swipe and the score 🏃♂️@STBCOREY –> @zawdie1 pic.twitter.com/zb9bvFtWQf
— FIU Men's Basketball (@FIUHoops) March 6, 2026
Julian Mackey connected on a three-pointer to extend FIU’s lead to 54-48. Moments later, Middle Tennessee responded with back-to-back three-pointers to take a 59-56 advantage.
Up 62-61, the Blue Raiders scored six unanswered paint points to extend their advantage to seven. With under a minute to go, the Panthers were able to cut their deficit to three but never got close enough to retake the lead.
They missed three critical free-throw shots late in that period, or else the game could’ve been tied.
Final Tidbits
If there was one thing the Panthers dominated in this game, it was in the paint. At one point in the first half, they had 16 points unanswered in the paint. They finished with 44 compared to just 22 for their opponent.
FIU did not have a poor shooting percentage overall, as they outperformed Middle Tennessee, making 42% of their shots. Yet it was their three-point shooting that sunk them. As a team, they made just three, with Mackey making two.
The free-throw shooting was once again a fatal blow to their offense. FIU went 10/16 at the line, with some of those misses coming at a time when they were needed the most.
Despite outrebounding MTSU by one with 38, their defensive rebounding game was not there. The Panthers are now 6-10 in games decided by single digits this season.
Making his seventh start of the season, Mackey finished the game with 16 points and grabbed four rebounds. He scored his 1,000th career point in the process.
mac1Key ✅@julian3mackey pic.twitter.com/H0OBK3CBQ7
— FIU Men's Basketball (@FIUHoops) March 6, 2026
Eric Dibami had 13 points, six rebounds, three assists, and four blocks. Stephenson scored 13 points on eight rebounds and three assists. Zawdie Jackson scored 11 points, grabbed three rebounds, and dished out six assists. Hamed Olayinka had eight points and nine rebounds.
Up Next
FIU plays its last regular-season game this Saturday at 2 pm against Western Kentucky, where they will be celebrating Senior Day.
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