HUNTSVILLE – The Conference USA men’s basketball tournament didn’t take long to produce an upset.
No. 10 Florida International (10-22, 3-15 CUSA) advanced to tonight’s quarterfinal round, upsetting No. 7 Western Kentucky (17-15, 8-10) 64-61 in the first round of the 2025 CUSA Championship Tuesday night at Propst Arena at the Von Braun Center.
In Tuesday’s other game, No. 8 Texas-El Paso (18-14, 7-11) advanced to the quarterfinals, taking down No. 9 Sam Houston (13-19, 6-12) 79-65.
FIU erased a 13-point deficit in the first half to knock off the defending tournament champions. Jayden Brewer poured in 17 points, eight rebounds and three steals, while Asim Jones also added 17 points and was 8-9 from the free throw line. FIU limited WKU to 1-18 shooting from beyond the arc with the one make coming with under 10 seconds left in regulation.
FIU is set to face off with No. 2 Jacksonville State today at 8 p.m.
UTEP 79, Sam Houston 65
The Miners used a balance attack with four players in double figures, led by Corey Camper Jr.’s 18 points, including fourthree-pointers. Kevin Kalu made his presence known down low as he collected 15 points and 15 rebounds (eight on the offensive end). The Miners held the Bearkats to 0-9 from deep in the second half and 2-19 on the game.
UTEP will play top-seeded Liberty today at 5:30 p.m.
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