Men's hoops falls to Florida International in OT, 79-76

BLACKSBURG, Va. – Much like Friday night’s grueling overtime victory over Rhode Island, the Patriots struggled to find a rhythm against the Florida International defense and fell in overtime 79-76.

FIU guard DeJuan Wright scored a game-high 23 points, but it was sophomore guard Phil Taylor that controlled the game late as his 14 points allowed the Panthers to escape with a narrow victory and advance to the second round of the NIT Preseason Tipoff.

Four Patriots scored in double figures with Ryan Pearson leading the way again with 18 points. Sherrod Wright and Vertrail Vaughns posted 16-point efforts and Bryon Allen added a steady 14 points in the loss.