This season, with its tallest player measuring 6-7, FIU has to rely heavily on its three-point shooting.

But shooting from beyond the arc was not the Golden Panthers' strength Sunday night against James Madison in the 2K Sports Classic benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer at U.S. Century Bank Arena.

FIU missed most of its three-point shots and James Madison did not, as the Dukes rolled to an 81-68 victory.

The Golden Panthers (2-4), going for their third consecutive victory, shot just 22 percent from three-point range while their opponent was hitting 54.2 percent of its threes.

``We're a small team,'' FIU coach Isiah Thomas said. ``We depend on our three-point shooting. When we shoot the ball real well and when we shoot the ball well from the three-point line, we're a tough team to beat.

``They did a better job knocking down threes [Sunday night], and we struggled from the three-point line. I thought that was the biggest difference in the game.''

FIU twice led James Madison (1-2), but each time the Dukes erupted on runs fueled by the three-pointer.

The Panthers led 24-22 in the first half before the Dukes took off on a 10-0 run sparked by three three-pointers.

Down 35-30 at halftime, FIU came out of the locker room and took a 36-35 lead behind a couple of baskets from forward Marlon Bright.

But that was the last time the Golden Panthers would see the lead Sunday.

James Madison and its leading scorer, Julius Wells, would engineer a 14-0 run. Wells, who scored a game-high 23 points, knocked down three consecutive three-pointers to make it 49-36 Dukes.

``They hit everything, and that was the main part of the game,'' said FIU point guard Phil Gary, who led the Golden Panthers with 16 points. ``Some games we are going to be hot, but there are other games like this when we are going to be cold, so we have to go attack with the basketball.''

FIU got only as close as six points to James Madison for the remainder of the second half.

The Golden Panthers forced the Dukes into 14 turnovers, while FIU had just seven. But it was not enough.

``I thought they were a little more desperate for a win than we were,'' Thomas said.

``They shot the ball really well and did all the things that we needed to do to win the basketball game.''

Before going on the road for the next 28 days, FIU wraps up the 2K Sports Classic with a game against Murray State on Monday at 7 p.m. at U.S. Century Bank Arena.