Roberts scores 28 points to lead Florida International past Arkansas-Little Rock 96-81

Florida International beats Ark.-Little Rock 96-81

MIAMI — Marvin Roberts scored 28 points to lead Florida International to a 96-81 victory over Arkansas-Little Rock on Saturday night.

The Golden Panthers (7-16, 4-6 Sun Belt Conference) never trailed after a 7-0 run for a 65-59 lead with 7:50 left in the second half.

The Trojans (5-15, 1-8) cut Florida International’s lead to 74-69 on Alex Garcia-Mendoza’s two free throws with 4:21 left. Garcia-Mendoza led the Trojans with 20 points.

Roberts was 5-for-8 on 3-pointers and J.C. Otero finished with 18 points for Florida International.

Roberts hit three consecutive 3-pointers late in the first half, the last one with 2.3 seconds left to give the Golden Panthers a 39-38 halftime lead.