There were the moments -- There were the moments - like a thunderous dunk off a rebound by FIU forward Marvin Roberts -- that made one of the largest FIU basketball crowds stand up and cheer.

And then there were the mishaps like when a Golden Panthers player passed the ball and no teammate was in the vicinity.

It's safe to say the team is a work in progress.

Tuesday's home opener for FIU and first-year coach Isiah Thomas against Florida Memorial certainly showed that.

FIU had to sweat it out against Florida Memorial to eventually garner an 88-82 win.

The Panthers needed a late 9-3 run to get some breathing room and put away the Lions.

The victory was the first of the season for the Golden Panthers and the first for Thomas as a college coach.

The pesky Lions came into U.S. Century Bank Arena and gave the Golden Panthers all they could handle.

But playing in front of 2,726 spectators -- one of the largest FIU basketball crowds in a while -- FIU took the lead late in the first half and barely held on.

Down 76-75 with less than three minutes to play, the Panthers tied the game on a pair of free throws from forward J.C. Otero.

FIU finally took the lead for good when Roberts hit a three-pointer with 2:17 left in the game. The Golden Panthers went ahead 80-79.

The Golden Panthers extended the lead to 86-79 with four free throws and a nifty pass from Stephon Weaver to Otero.

Florida Memorial guard Roderick Davis hit a three-pointer to make it 86-82 and silence the boisterous crowd with less than a minute to play, but the Lions would not draw any closer.

FIU got off to a ragged start on Tuesday night.

The team trailed most of the first half against the NAIA team from Miami Gardens.

Behind 5-9 point guard George Gray, the Lions picked up six steals and outhustled the Golden Panthers.

Gray led the Lions with 13 first-half points. Florida Memorial shot 42.4 percent from floor in the first 20 minutes.

The Lions took their largest first-half lead at 25-17 with 10:29 left in the first half.

Late in the first half, FIU rallied to take the lead from Florida Memorial.

Panthers point guard Phil Gary led the charge with 15 points in the first 20 minutes. Gary hit consecutive three-pointers to bring FIU within five points.

FIU took the lead on a 9-0 run highlighted by a three-point play by Gary.

WOMEN'S GAME

• FIU 67, Jacksonville 41: The FIU women's basketball team was without Monika Bosilj, the team's leading scorer from last season, against Jacksonville on Tuesday night in the Golden Panthers' home opener.

No problem for FIU.

Point guard Michelle Gonzalez took over the scoring load and led the team to a 67-41 win over the Dolphins.

Gonzalez scored a game-high 20 points as FIU (2-1) opened up an 11-point halftime lead and cruised in the second half.

FIU went on a 24-5 run in the second half to bury Jacksonville (0-2).

Guard Ashley Traugott scored 13 points for FIU, which had five players scoring in double figures.

Forward Marquita Adley added a double-double with 10 points and a game-high 15 rebounds. Fanni Hutlassa and Maja Krajacic each scored 10 points.