MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (AP) — JaCorey Williams scored 23 points, Giddy Potts had 10 of his 15 points in the second half and Middle Tennessee rallied from a 19-point deficit to beat Florida International 70-67 on Thursday night.
Reggie Upshaw had 11 points and eight rebounds for Middle Tennessee (26-4, 16-1 Conference USA), which has won six in a row.
The Blue Raiders missed their first six shots and committed six of their 10 turnovers in the first seven minutes as FIU (6-24, 2-15), which made eight of its first 10 field-goal attempts, opened the game with a 20-1 run. The Panthers led 30-13 with 6 1/2 minutes left in the half, but Potts hit a 3 and then a jumper before Williams scored eight points during 17-5 spurt that pulled Middle Tennessee within five about six minutes later.
Williams converted a 3-point play and then hit a jumper to give the Blue Raiders their first lead, 46-44, with 12:20 remaining and FIU trailed the rest of the way. A 3 by Potts made it 65-58 with 4:28 to go and, despite going scoreless over the next 4:10, Middle Tennessee hit 5 of 6 free throws in the final 18 seconds to hold on.
Eric Nottage led the Panthers with 28 points.
Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.