Sunday, December 28
Miami, Fla.
2:00 PM ET
Liberty University
9-3,1-0CUSA
97
at
94
FIU
7-5,0-1CUSA
1
2
OT 1
F
Liberty
41
41
15
97
FIU
33
49
12
94
Flames Earn Gritty 97-94 Road OT Win at FIU in CUSA Opener
12/28/2025 6:46:00 PM | Men's Basketball
MIAMI, Fla. – The Liberty Flames earned a gritty 97-94 road overtime win over the host FIU Panthers, Sunday afternoon in their CUSA opener at Ocean Bank Convocation Center.
Liberty bolsters its overall record to 9-3 and is 1-0 to open CUSA play for the first time in its third season in the league. FIU drops to 7-5 overall and 0-1 in league action. The Panthers drop only their second home game of the 2025-26 campaign, falling to 7-2 in their home building.
Brett Decker Jr. (game-high 27 points) and Kaden Metheny (25 points) combined for 52 points the road triumph.
The back-and-forth game saw 17 lead changes and 10 ties.
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Brett Decker Jr. 27 points, 5-11 3FG, 4-4 FT, 3 rebounds; Kaden Metheny 25 points, 8-15 FG, 6-13 3FG, 6 assists, 3 steals; Colin Porter 16 points, 4-10 3FG, 7 assists; Josh Smith 13 points, 5-7 FG, 9 rebounds; Zach Cleveland 10 points, 5-8 FG, 5 assists, 3 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 block
FIU Individuals: Eric Dibami 21 points, 9-14 FG, 9 rebounds; Corey Stephenson 17 points, 11 rebounds; Hamed Olayinka 16 points, 6-10 FG, 6 rebounds; Zawdie Jackson 13 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists
Key Team Stats: Liberty shot over 50 percent for the eighth time this season, connecting on 35-of-69 attempts (50.7 percent). The Flames are 8-0 when shooting 50 percent or better and 9-0 when outshooting their opponents. Liberty shot 37.5 percent (15-of-40) from deep. FIU finished the game shooting 49.3 percent (36-of-73) and 35.3 percent (6-of-17) from three-point territory. After starting the game 0-of-3 from the free throw line, the Flames finished the game at 12-of-16 (75 percent). The Panthers were 69.6 percent (16-of-23) from the charity stripe. FIU held a big advantage on the glass with 20 offensive rebounds and 45 total boards. The 20 offensive rebounds are the most the Flames have given up this season. The previous high was 12 on three occasions. Liberty finished the game with 31 rebounds, 11 of which were offensive. The Flames held a sizeable edge in assists, 22-12. FIU led in points in the paint (56-40), second chance points (25-11), fast break points (10-8) and bench points (23-10). FIU entered the day ninth nationally in turnovers forced per game, but Liberty committed only 10 miscues in the 45-minutes game. FIU also came into the day sixth in the country in steals per game (11.2) but finished with only six today. The Panthers turned the ball over 14 times, leading to 15 Flames points. FIU scored 13 points off Liberty turnovers. FIU led for 22:32, and Liberty led by 17:17. The game was tied for 5:11.
Turning Point
Liberty led 41-33 at the break before FIU opened the second half on a 12-3 run to even the score at 44-all. A back-and-forth second half saw the Panthers take their biggest lead of the game, 63-55, with 9:04 remaining following a Corey Stephenson three-pointer.
Liberty clawed back into the game, evening it at 73-73 with 4:24 left following a JJ Harper finish at the rim. The Flames trailed 81-80 with less than a minute left in regulation before Eric Dibami split a pair of foul shots with 21 seconds on the clock. On the ensuing possession, Zach Cleveland found Josh Smith in the post, and Smith scored on a goaltending violation on a Panthers defender. On the final possession of regulation, Dibami's layup rimmed out with two seconds left, sending the game to overtime.
Liberty knocked down 9-of-10 from the foul line in the extra session, led by Decker Jr's 4-for-4 effort. Kaden Metheny's clutch three-pointer with 1:06 on the clock put Liberty ahead (92-91) for good. Porter (2-of-2), Metheny (1-of-2) and Decker Jr. (2-of-2) made a combined 5-of-6 free throws down the stretch to secure the win.
Key Stats & Notes
Liberty will play its Conference USA home opener this upcoming Friday against Kennesaw State (8-4, 0-1 CUSA). Game time is 7 p.m. from Liberty Arena. The contest will be a national broadcast on ESPN+.
The Flames and Owls squared off three times during the 2024-25 season, including in the CUSA Championship semifinal round.
Liberty is 0-2 all-time in CUSA home openers. Last year, the Flames were edged 71-70 by Western Kentucky at Liberty Arena in their first CUSA home matchup.
Liberty bolsters its overall record to 9-3 and is 1-0 to open CUSA play for the first time in its third season in the league. FIU drops to 7-5 overall and 0-1 in league action. The Panthers drop only their second home game of the 2025-26 campaign, falling to 7-2 in their home building.
Brett Decker Jr. (game-high 27 points) and Kaden Metheny (25 points) combined for 52 points the road triumph.
The back-and-forth game saw 17 lead changes and 10 ties.
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Brett Decker Jr. 27 points, 5-11 3FG, 4-4 FT, 3 rebounds; Kaden Metheny 25 points, 8-15 FG, 6-13 3FG, 6 assists, 3 steals; Colin Porter 16 points, 4-10 3FG, 7 assists; Josh Smith 13 points, 5-7 FG, 9 rebounds; Zach Cleveland 10 points, 5-8 FG, 5 assists, 3 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 block
FIU Individuals: Eric Dibami 21 points, 9-14 FG, 9 rebounds; Corey Stephenson 17 points, 11 rebounds; Hamed Olayinka 16 points, 6-10 FG, 6 rebounds; Zawdie Jackson 13 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists
Key Team Stats: Liberty shot over 50 percent for the eighth time this season, connecting on 35-of-69 attempts (50.7 percent). The Flames are 8-0 when shooting 50 percent or better and 9-0 when outshooting their opponents. Liberty shot 37.5 percent (15-of-40) from deep. FIU finished the game shooting 49.3 percent (36-of-73) and 35.3 percent (6-of-17) from three-point territory. After starting the game 0-of-3 from the free throw line, the Flames finished the game at 12-of-16 (75 percent). The Panthers were 69.6 percent (16-of-23) from the charity stripe. FIU held a big advantage on the glass with 20 offensive rebounds and 45 total boards. The 20 offensive rebounds are the most the Flames have given up this season. The previous high was 12 on three occasions. Liberty finished the game with 31 rebounds, 11 of which were offensive. The Flames held a sizeable edge in assists, 22-12. FIU led in points in the paint (56-40), second chance points (25-11), fast break points (10-8) and bench points (23-10). FIU entered the day ninth nationally in turnovers forced per game, but Liberty committed only 10 miscues in the 45-minutes game. FIU also came into the day sixth in the country in steals per game (11.2) but finished with only six today. The Panthers turned the ball over 14 times, leading to 15 Flames points. FIU scored 13 points off Liberty turnovers. FIU led for 22:32, and Liberty led by 17:17. The game was tied for 5:11.
Turning Point
Liberty led 41-33 at the break before FIU opened the second half on a 12-3 run to even the score at 44-all. A back-and-forth second half saw the Panthers take their biggest lead of the game, 63-55, with 9:04 remaining following a Corey Stephenson three-pointer.
Liberty clawed back into the game, evening it at 73-73 with 4:24 left following a JJ Harper finish at the rim. The Flames trailed 81-80 with less than a minute left in regulation before Eric Dibami split a pair of foul shots with 21 seconds on the clock. On the ensuing possession, Zach Cleveland found Josh Smith in the post, and Smith scored on a goaltending violation on a Panthers defender. On the final possession of regulation, Dibami's layup rimmed out with two seconds left, sending the game to overtime.
Liberty knocked down 9-of-10 from the foul line in the extra session, led by Decker Jr's 4-for-4 effort. Kaden Metheny's clutch three-pointer with 1:06 on the clock put Liberty ahead (92-91) for good. Porter (2-of-2), Metheny (1-of-2) and Decker Jr. (2-of-2) made a combined 5-of-6 free throws down the stretch to secure the win.
Key Stats & Notes
- Brett Decker Jr.'s 27-point effort was his best scoring output against a Division I foe this year and sixth 20-plus point effort of the season. His season high was 29 points in the season opener against Kentucky Christian (Nov. 3).
- Decker Jr. knocked down five three-pointers and is up to 50 on the season. The sophomore guard is shooting 52.6 percent (50-of-95) from long distance this year.
- Kaden Metheny (25 points) notched his second 20-plus point game of the year. Metheny has 18 career 20-point games in his collegiate career, 13 of which are with Liberty. The guard knocked down a season-high six three-pointers.
- Josh Smith posted 13 points and nine rebounds in 25:39 of action coming off the bench. His nine rebounds are a season best. Smith was a team-best +21 on the afternoon, by far the best margin on the team (next best was +3 – Colin Porter and Brett Decker Jr.).
- Four Flames played more than 40 minutes today, led by Zach Cleveland's 42:34.
- Liberty improves to 8-2 in Conference USA road games since the start of last season.
- This is the Flames' first win in a CUSA opener. Prior to today, Liberty had lost its previous two CUSA openers by a combined three points.
- The Flames have won at FIU in each of the last two seasons and improve to 4-1 against the Panthers since joining Conference USA. Liberty is now 5-3 all-time versus FIU, having won three straight in the series.
Liberty will play its Conference USA home opener this upcoming Friday against Kennesaw State (8-4, 0-1 CUSA). Game time is 7 p.m. from Liberty Arena. The contest will be a national broadcast on ESPN+.
The Flames and Owls squared off three times during the 2024-25 season, including in the CUSA Championship semifinal round.
Liberty is 0-2 all-time in CUSA home openers. Last year, the Flames were edged 71-70 by Western Kentucky at Liberty Arena in their first CUSA home matchup.
Team Stats
Lib
FIU
FG%
.507
.493
3FG%
.375
.353
FT%
.750
.696
RB
31
45
TO
10
14
STL
7
6
Game Leaders
Pts
27
FGM
9
3FGM
5
FTM
4
Pts
25
FGM
8
3FGM
6
FTM
3
Pts
16
FGM
5
3FGM
4
FTM
2
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
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