FIU Defeats NM State, Wins First CUSA Road Game Of Season

One of the worst losing streaks in FIU Men’s Basketball history has finally come to an end. After 21-straight losses on the road to Conference USA teams, the Panthers finally got the job done, with the deed being done in Las Cruces against New Mexico State by a score of 81-78. It’s been a while since March 4th, 2023.

Not surprisingly, this contest went down to the wire, with FIU coughing up the lead with minutes to go, a la their loss to Kennesaw State earlier this season. However, the Panthers didn’t back down, and thanks to some late heroics from Corey Stephenson and late sturggles from the Aggies, FIU managed to hold on. ”

“It’s easy to get frustrated, point fingers, and have doubts,” said head coach Jeremy Ballard. “But they never did. They stayed together, kept believing, and trusted the process. Any time you can come into New Mexico State and get a win, it’s huge. To come in here, persevere, and handle the ups and downs of the game, I couldn’t be more proud.”

The first half was back-and-forth, with New Mexico State getting out to an early lead before FIU closed the gap. Then, the Panthers received some sharpshooting from Julian Mackey, with Zawdie Jackson contributing against his former team.

#SCTOP10 OFF THE BACKBOARD 😱@brita1_ x @STBCOREY pic.twitter.com/G91JYhtO0n

— FIU Men's Basketball (@FIUHoops) January 24, 2026

Corey Puts On The Cape

Ultimately, the biggest contributor of the night for the Panthers was Stephenson, who did a bit of everything. He racked up another double-double with 25 points and 12 rebounds, alongside a pair of assists, blocks, and steals.

The Panthers led 40-31 at the break, and FIU came out swinging in the second half. They led by as much as 15 points, but couldn’t pull away. An impressive rally from the Aggies (spearheaded by the Panthers going 3-9 from beyond the arc in the second half) successfully tied the game with minutes to go.

FIU actually saw themselves in a deficit late, going down 73-71, and then 78-75. However, Stephenson put on the cape and scored right afterward on both occasions. As a matter of fact, he scored the final ten points of the game for the Panthers. The game was tied at 78 with 57 seconds remaining.

Stephenson drew a pair of fouls late, including a technical foul that was reviewed for a whole. He sank three out of four shots from the charity stripe. Conveniently, the Aggies went cold with their final few offensive drives, as FIU FINALLY got a win on the road.

There’s a milestone brewing. Ballard is now tied with Rich Walker in coaching victories for FIU. One more dub will make Ballard the winningest coach in program history with 109 total.

Hopefully, the 10-10 Panthers can secure that in front of the home crowd on Wednesday, January 28th, at 7pm against Jax State.

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