Beard Jr. and Daye Jr. pace FIU to a 69-59 win over North Texas

Men's Basketball

By Brett Shweky/Editor

Brian Beard Jr. and Antonio Daye Jr. scored 22 and 20 points, respectively, to help fuel the FIU Panthers to a 69-59 victory over the North Texas Mean Green on Saturday, Feb. 16 at the Ocean Bank Convocation Center.

FIU (16-11, 7-7 Conference USA) got off to a hot start behind Beard Jr.’s 20 points in the first half of play. The senior point guard made seven of his nine shots in the opening half.

Daye Jr. scored in double-digits in the first stanza as well with the freshman having scored 12 points.

Devon Andrews continued his recent success by adding 15 points for the Panthers.

The Panthers shot 60.8 percent from the field in the first half to build a 45-34 advantage heading into halftime.

North Texas (20-7, 8-6 C-USA) managed to cut FIU’s lead to as little as four points, 49-45, with 14:52 remaining in the matchup, but failed to complete the potential comeback.

DJ Draper led the Mean Green with 19 points while Roosevelt Smart ended the game with 15.

Up next for FIU, the Panthers will learn who their Bonus Play opponents will be with the conference set to announce the schedule on Saturday night.

The final four outings for the Panthers will include two home games and also two road games.