Southern Miss produced a suffocating full-court press and outlasted the FIU Panthers, 82-55, Saturday afternoon at Reed Green Coliseum in Conference USA women's basketball action. The loss drops the Panthers to 2-14 on the season, 0-5 in C-USA. The Lady Eagles are 10-6 overall, 3-2 in conference.
FIU got in an 11-point hole early due to the press. Once they dissected it, the Panthers hit a season-best .889 percent (8-for-9) from the field in the first quarter, including nailing both three-point attempts. The offensive efforts were sabotaged by 10 turnovers and the Lady Eagles maintained a seven-point lead at the first-quarter break.