By Brett Shweky/Editor
Thursday, Feb. 7 will be a night that Jeremy Ballard and the FIU Panthers hope to quickly forget.
After beating Louisiana Tech on Feb. 2 to end a troubling two-game losing streak, the Panthers (14-10, 5-6 Conference USA) once again fell down the losing path as UTSA handed them their worst loss of the entire season, 100-67, in San Antonio.
FIU’s previous worst defeat of the 2018-2019 campaign was against Arkansas on Dec. 1 when the Razorbacks secured a 32-point victory over the Panthers.
The Roadrunners (14-10, 8-3 C-USA) came out of the gates firing on all cylinders as they began the game on a 15-2 run.
UTSA’s Keaton Wallace scored a team-high 27 points on 11-of-13 shooting and helped fuel their 50-30 advantage heading into halftime.
During the second half, the Panthers trailed by as many as 33 points and were outscored 50-37 to close out the contest. UTSA finished the game shooting 58 percent from the field.
The Panthers struggled offensively throughout the night with team concluding the night shooting 40 percent from the floor.
Devon Andrews and Brian Beard Jr. both recorded a team-high 14 points for the Panthers. Osasumwen Osaghae led FIU with nine rebounds and three blocks.
With the loss, the Panthers have now dropped four of their last six games.
Next up, for FIU, the team will continue the road trip in the Lone Star State as they face off against the UTEP Miners on Saturday, Feb. 9 in El Paso. Tipoff is set for 9 p.m.
