BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — No. 14 seed FIU rallied late in the fourth quarter to get past 11th-seeded UTSA, 61-56, on Tuesday afternoon in the opening round of the Conference USA Tournament.
UTSA (10-19) led through much of the game and led by as many as seven with 6:12 left to play in the fourth quarter. However, FIU (5-25) scored 13 of the next 19 points of the game to tie the score at 54 with 1:10 on the clock and then held UTSA to just a basket to advance to Wednesday’s second round.
Four Roadrunners reached double figures with Akunna Elonu registering her third double-double of the season with 11 points and 11 rebounds. She ends her career sixth in the all-time record books with 607 career rebounds.
Meanwhile, Crystal Chidomere led the team with 12 points to go along with six rebounds, three assists and one steal. Dempsey Thornton added 11 points with five boards and three blocks. Carlie Heineman netted 10 points.
UTSA closed out the first quarter trailing 12-11 and was held to 26.3 percent (5-of-19) shooting, but it turned things around in the second quarter. The Roadrunners fired 46.2 percent (6-of-13) in the second stanza and was helped by Heineman’s nine points from 3-point range.
UTSA eventually came back to lead the Panthers at the 4:11 mark on a layup by Alana Heard but FIU ended the quarter on a 7-0 run to tie the score at 28 heading to the locker rooms.
Momentum was high in the third quarter, as the Roadrunners used an 8-0 run to hold a 39-33 advantage at the 5:17 mark. The Panthers then scored eight unanswered with the help of back-to-back 3-pointers from Taylor Shade to tie the score at 41. Shade finished with a game-high 22 points on 8-of-19 shooting.
UTSA closed out the third with a pair of baskets from Elonu and Thornton to head to the final 10 minutes of play leading, 45-41.