Florida International Panthers
2019-2020 Overall Rank: #137
Conference Rank: #7 C-USA
Florida International had a solid debut season under Coach Jeremy Ballard. It was a young team that finished in the middle of a crowded Conference USA and managed to reach the CIT, where they beat Texas State before falling to Green Bay. This team grew up a lot last season and they return four starters. However, the one loss is point guard and leading scorer Brian Beard. The backcourt still has a ton of experience with players like Devon Andrews and Trejon Jacob, but it will be up to sophomore Antonio Daye to take over the point guard duties.
2018-19 Record: 20-14, 10-8
2018-19 Postseason: CIT
Coach: Jeremy Ballard
Coach Record: 20-14 at FIU, 20-14 overall
Key Departed Players:
Brian Beard, Guard, 17.5 ppg
Willy Nunez, Guard, 9.3 ppg
Elhadji Dieng, Center, 2.2 ppg
Michael Douglas, Forward, 2.3 ppg
Key Returning Players:
Devon Andrews, Senior, Guard, 15.4 ppg
Trejon Jacob, Senior, Guard, 10.8 ppg
Antonio Daye, Sophomore, Guard, 8.3 ppg
Osasumwen Osaghae, Senior, Forward, 8.1 ppg
Isaiah Banks, Junior, Guard, 6.1 ppg
Key New Players:
Tevin Brewer, Junior, Guard, JC Transfer
Dimon Carrigan, Junior, Forward, JC Transfer
Blake Furcron, Junior, Guard, JC Transfer
Sedee Keita, Junior, Forward, Transfer, St. John’s
Eric Lovett, Junior, Guard, JC Transfer
Dante Wilcox, Freshman, Guard
Projection:
The frontcourt returns Osasumwen Osaghae, who averaged 8.1 points and a team high 8.4 rebounds and 3.1 blocks during his junior campaign. The addition of junior college transfer Dimon Carrigan and Sedee Keita from St. John’s adds some much needed depth to the frontcourt. With more junior college transfers like Tevin Brewer, Blake Furcron and Eric Lovett, Coach Ballard has built this team to win right now. There is also enough depth for FIU to keep their high scoring offense going. However, they do need to be more efficient, especially when shooting from beyond the arc. The team was one of the worst in the country in three-point field-goal percentage. The newcomers will need to add that dynamic to this offense or the Panthers could find themselves meandering back in the middle of the C-USA pecking order.
Projected Postseason Tournament: CBI/CIT
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 82.3 (16th in nation, 1st in conference)
Scoring Defense: 80.4 (340, 13)
Field-Goal Percentage: 44.0 (195, 5)
Field-Goal Defense: 45.6 (283, 13)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 8.2 (121, 7)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 30.2 (338, 14)
Free-Throw Percentage: 64.0 (336, 14)
Rebound Margin: -7.4 (347, 13)
Assists Per Game: 14.4 (87, 2)
Turnovers Per Game: 14.0 (272, 10)
