Stephenson and Dibami shine as Panthers pound Dolphins

Corey Stephenson and Eric Dibami each scored 14 points to lead Florida International to an overwhelming 88-65 home win over Jacksonville on Saturday.

From the free throw line to the three-point line, the Panthers were proficient. FIU made 11-of-16 three-pointers and was 23-of-30 from the charity stripe. Brit Harris made all 12 of his points from beyond the arc, while Julian Mackey scored 11 points with nine coming from long distance.

Jacksonville, a team that tries to win from long distance, made 12 of 33 three-point shots, led by Chris Lockett Jr., who scored a team-high 15 on 5-of-15 shooting including 4-of-9 from three.

A three-pointer from Jacksonville’s Hayden Wood tied the game 9-9 five minutes into the game. The Panthers went on to outscore the Dolphins 26-5 in a 10-minute run to establish a 35-14 lead. A layup from Dibami and a free throw from Allen Udemadu ended the first half with FIU leading 41-23.

The Panthers picked up where they left off and started the second half on a seven-minute 19-7 run, highlighted by a Stephenson dunk and three-pointers from Mackey and Harris, to extend their lead to 30 (60-30) with 13:50 remaining. Ashton Williamson scored all seven of his points during that run.

Lockett drained two straight three-pointers and a free throw to highlight a 10-0 run that brought Jacksonville back to within 20, (60-40) with 12:17 left in the game. That was followed by a 9-0 run by FIU to negate the Dolphins’ gains.

Three three-pointers from Stephenson and Mackey helped maintain the Panthers’ 30+ point margin, leading the Dolphins 78-47 with 6:52 left in the game.

Jacksonville outscored FIU 18-10 through the game’s final minutes. Charles Caporaso was responsible for six of the Dolphins’ final eight points. Those six points represent a career high for the sophomore from St. Mary.

Season Outlook

The Panthers (5-3) have strung together a three-game winning streak leading up to renewing a rivalry road showdown on Dec. 16 with the Miami Hurricanes, who improved to 8-2 after defeating Southern Miss on Saturday.

The Panthers, split the first four games winning against non-NCAA competition at home and falling on the road to LSU and Nebraska, who are both currently 8-0 on the season. Against LSU, Stephenson (25 points) and Mackey (24) combined to keep the Panthers within 17 points against the Tigers.

The senior duo, who played at separate schools a season ago, have come together to power the Panthers’ offense. Stephenson’s 18 points per game is the fifth most in the C-USA, while his 8.3 rebounds rank as the second most in the conference. Meanwhile, Mackey is averaging 13.7 points off the bench, which is similar to his numbers at Houston Christian a year ago.

The Panthers finished last season with 10 wins and in last place in C-USA. FIU completely revamped its roster over the offseason to the point where the top five scorers of this year’s team arrived through the transfer portal and gave the Panthers new life.

FIU is a clear underdog against Miami but Stephenson gives the Panthers a chance in every game.