FIU Panthers Prowl

FIU loses 77-61 to USF

It didn't get any better in the second half. FIU got to within to at 66-56 with 4:45 left, but the Bulls quelled that uprising.

Jerica Coley ended with 30 points and 14 rebounds for FIU. Jasmine Wynne and Andrell Smith had 15 each for South Florida.

FIU down 36-22 at the half

USF's full court pressure and FIU's nerves pushed the Bulls to a 36-22 halftime lead in their second round Women's NIT game at South Florida.

Jerica Coley has a game-high 11 points, but also a team-high four turnovers. Finda Mansare is zero for five from the field with no rebounds and two fouls. FIU's committed 12 turnovers as a team, have only four assists and shot zero for five from three-point range. More importantly, they've blown several uncontested shots inside 10 feet that would've changed the score and pace of the game.

FIU's used nine players. Eight South Florida players have scored in the game, led by Andrell Smith's nine.

Neither women's hoop or JoGus can gain easy entry

FIU's women's basketball team arrived at the University of South Florida's Campus Recreation Center, USF's temporary home with a gym that would be disdained by Eastbrook Elementary School, for Saturday night's Women's NIT second round game less than 2 hours before tipoff...and found the place locked. And nobody around to open things up.

Their heel cooling time wasn't long. But it being did nothing to dispel the notion that this was the Women's National Improv Tournament. Why the tournament chose USF's temp home with such modern accoutrements...

over The Branch -- especially as this game isn't exactly packing the house either place -- is quite the mystery. FIU did put in a bid for the second round.

Meanwhile, at Auburn...

SWIMMING

If freshman Johanna Gustafsdottir had swam her seed time of 1:54.40 in Saturday morning's 200 backstroke preliminary, she still wouldn't have made the final. But she would've been 15th and actually only .58 of a second from the final. But Gustafsdottir came home in 1:57.12, 36th best. Thus ends her season, which included three Sun Belt swimming titles and the conference's Swimmer of the Year honor. Her next major swims will be qualifying for Iceland's Olympic team.