CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Brian Beard Jr. had 23 points, five rebounds, six assists and four steals and powered a late run to help Florida International beat Charlotte 89-83 on Thursday night.
The Golden Panthers (14-16, 8-9 Conference USA) needed Beard's late effort to get their third straight win as the 49ers led 79-78 on Jon Davis' layup with 2:47 left. Beard then scored all the points in FIU's 9-0 run to pull away for good.
Davis had 37 points and seven assists and Andrien White scored 28 for Charlotte (5-23, 1-16), which lost its 15th straight -- the third-longest active losing streak in Division I.