Nov. 14, 2007

UTEP Notes (PDF)

The Tip-Off ... UTEP (2-0) faces 15th-ranked Texas A&M (2-0) in the South Region championship of the 2007 Dick's Sporting Goods NIT Season Tip-Off. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m. MDT on Wednesday in College Station. The winner of the game will advance to the tournament semifinals at Madison Square Garden in New York City on Nov. 21.

The Miners are making their first appearance in the preseason NIT since 1992, when they beat George Mason in El Paso (90-71) before falling at UCLA, 73-72. UTEP also played in the preseason NIT in 1985, dropping an 82-53 decision to Washington in Denver to christen the season.

UTEP advanced to the final by beating Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, 77-62, on Tuesday. The Aggies knocked off Oral Roberts, 67-53.

On The Air ... Wednesday's game will be nationally televised on ESPNU. Dave Armstrong (play-by-play) and Stephen Howard (color) are the announcers. English and Spanish radio coverage is available on KOFX 92.3 FM and ESPN Deportes 1150 AM, respectively. Jon Teicher (play-by-play) and Steve Yellen (color) are the English broadcasters, while Omar Ropele (play-by-play) will call the action in Spanish.

Scouting Texas A&M ... Junior swingman Josh Carter scored 15 points, leading Texas A&M to a 67-53 victory over Oral Roberts on Tuesday night. Senior forward/center Joseph Jones added 13 points and freshman center DeAndre Jordan chipped in with 12 for the Aggies, who have won 36 straight non-conference regular season home games. Texas A&M shot 45.1 percent from the field, while limiting ORU to .364 accuracy. The Aggies also had a 42-27 advantage on the boards led by Jordan (eight rebounds). Texas A&M opened the season with a 73-50 rout of McNeese State in College Station. Through two games, the Aggies have a scoring margin of +18.5 ppg and a rebounding margin of +9.5 rpg. Texas A&M has 10 letterwinners and three starters back from last year's 27-7 club that reached the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament.

Series Notes ... UTEP is 3-0 all-time against Texas A&M. The teams are meeting for the first time since the 1981-82 season on Wednesday, and for the first time ever in College Station. The 1963-64 matchup between the schools was an NCAA Tournament game in Dallas, with the Miners prevailing 68-62. UTEP hosted Texas A&M in Sun Carnival Classic tournament games during the 1974-75 and 1981-82 campaigns, winning by scores of 71-69 and 60-40 respectively.

Last Game: UTEP 77, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 62 ... Stefon Jackson scored 21 of his 27 points in the second half as UTEP beat Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, 77-62, on Tuesday.

Jackson picked up two fouls early and played only six minutes in the first half. Without him the Miners struggled, falling behind 15-11 midway through the first period before battling back to take a 30-24 lead at the intermission.

UTEP shot only 33 percent in the first half and was outrebounded 17-10, but the Miners stayed in the game by forcing 19 turnovers by the Islanders.

Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, a 2007 NCAA Tournament team with one returning starter in senior center Chris Daniels, hung around for the first 10 minutes of the second half. A three-pointer by Daniels pulled TAMUCC to within three points (50-47) with 10:11 to play before the Miners went on a 6-0 run to up their advantage to 56-47. Jackson scored five of UTEP's points during the spurt.

UTEP led by at least six points the rest of the night. A 7-0 run over 1:19 turned a 66-55 Miner lead into a 73-55 bulge and put the Islanders away.

Randy Culpepper scored 17 points, including five three-pointers, for the Miners, and Marvin Kilgore chipped in with 11 points and only one turnover in 38 minutes.

The Miners shot 53 percent in the second half in outscoring TAMUCC 47-38.

Daniels scored 30 points on 11-of-16 shooting for the Islanders. He made 3-of-4 shots from three-point territory. TAMUCC shot 40.4 percent to UTEP's 45.1 percent and finished with 26 turnovers.

UTEP vs. Ranked Teams ... The Miners are facing a ranked opponent for the first time since dropping a 78-67 decision at home to sixth-ranked Memphis back in March. UTEP is 31-74 all-time versus ranked opponents, including 1-8 this decade. The only win was an 80-61 triumph over 20th-rated Fresno State on Feb. 17, 2001 in the Don Haskins Center. Overall UTEP has lost 22 of its last 25 games to ranked foes. The Miners are 5-38 against ranked opponents on the road. Their last road win over a ranked team came on March 12, 1993 at #15 Utah, 90-85 in overtime.

Fast Start For Jackson ... Junior guard Stefon Jackson has scored 20+ points in each of the Miners' first two games. He put up 22 points in the season opener versus Arkansas-Pine Bluff, and 27 against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi last night. Jackson has scored 37 of his 49 points in the second half this season. Against TAMUCC on Tuesday, he produced 27 points in only 25 minutes due to first half foul trouble.

Jackson's 21-point explosion in the second half against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi marked the third time he has produced 20+ points in a half at UTEP. He achieved this feat twice last season -- versus UC Davis (21 points in the second half) and Jackson State (22 points in the first half).

Jackson now has 19 career 20-point games, including eight in his last 12 outings. He is averaging 24.5 points in 2007-08 which, although it's early, would be the second-best seasonal scoring average by a player in UTEP history. All-American Jim Barnes, the #1 pick in the 1964 NBA Draft, averaged 29.1 points for the Miners during the 1963-64 season.

The Kid Can Play ... Freshman guard Randy Culpepper netted 17 points -- including five three pointers -- in the Miners' victory over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi last night. The five three pointers were just one shy of the UTEP freshman record of six, established by Henry Hall at BYU on Nov. 11, 1990. The five trifectas are also tied for the third-top single game total in school annals.

Culpepper has launched 15 three-point attempts in two games, putting him on pace to shoot 240 this season. The school record for three-point attempts is 236 by Antoine Gillespie in 1994-95.

Culpepper led the city of Memphis in scoring (33.4 ppg) as a junior at Sheffield High School, and finished second (31.3 ppg) as a senior.

Kilgore is Solid Early ... Senior guard Marvin Kilgore has scored in double figures in each of the Miners' first two games after doing so on only 13 occasions in 2006-07. More importantly, he has done a credible job of directing the UTEP offense. Kilgore has nine assists and only two turnovers in a team-leading 66 minutes this season. He turned over the ball only once in 38 minutes against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Tuesday.

Kilgore opened the season versus UAPB with one of his better games in a Miner uniform, finishing with 14 points, a career-high eight rebounds, six assists and only one turnover in 28 minutes. Last year Kilgore committed 77 turnovers in 31 games. He has started all 33 contests since joining the UTEP program for the 2006-07 season.

Newcomers Make Contributions ... UTEP has received 58 points, 25 rebounds, 15 assists, four blocks and 10 steals from newcomers in the first two games. Newcomers have been responsible for 38 percent of the team's points.

Freshman Randy Culpepper has been UTEP's top scoring newcomer (9.5 ppg), and junior forward Tavaris Watts has been the top rebounder (5.5 rpg).

Seven freshmen have seen action this season, most recently 6-11, 285-pound center Claude Britten who made his Miner debut on Tuesday against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. It marks the first time as many as seven freshmen have played for UTEP since the 1977-78 season, when eight earned playing time -- Roshern Amie, Anthony Burns, Tim Crenshaw, Earl Fuller, Joe Garrett, Kevin Jones, Darold Molix and Steve Yellen.

UTEP Getting to the Line ... The Miners shot 37 free throws versus Texas A&M-Corpus Christi last night, their second-most attempts in a game under second-year head coach Tony Barbee. UTEP went to the line 39 times against Texas State last season. UTEP has made more free throws (45) than its opponents have attempted (44) in 2007-08. The starting backcourt duo of Stefon Jackson and Marvin Kilgore has combined to shoot 37 free throws in two games. Jackson went to the line 10 times against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Tuesday, marking the 13th time he has had 10+ free throw attempts in a game since the start of the 2006-07 campaign. Kilgore's 12 free throw attempts versus the Islanders were a career high.

Ball Security ... The Miners turned over the ball just 11 times in the season opener against UAPB, tying their fewest giveaways in a game under second-year head coach Tony Barbee. UTEP also had 11 turnovers versus New Mexico and Tulsa last season.

The Miners have 25 giveaways and 49 takeaways for a turnover margin of +24 this season. UTEP forced 26 turnovers on Tuesday against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. It marked the fifth time under Barbee that the Miners have recorded 25 or more takeaways in a game. Last year UTEP set a school record by forcing 572 turnovers, an average of 18.5 per contest.

Defense Does its Part ... UTEP limited UAPB to 50 points in the season opener -- tying the fewest points surrendered by the Miners in the Barbee era. Southern Miss also scored 50 points against UTEP in the Haskins Center last season. UTEP has now limited six teams to fewer than 60 points since Barbee took over as head coach, and the Miners are a perfect 6-0 in those games.

The Miners are yielding 56.0 ppg this season. Opponents are shooting 37.8 percent from the field against UTEP, which is 12-2 under Barbee when holding foes to less than 40 percent accuracy.

Note the Change ... UTEP's next game -- Sunday, Nov. 18 against Texas Southern in the Don Haskins Center -- has been moved from a 4 p.m. MST start to 6 p.m. MST.

Non-Conference Schedule is Challenging ... UTEP will play at least six games versus 2007 NCAA Tournament teams prior to tipping off league play. Besides facing at least two squads that appeared in last year's "Big Dance" in the NIT Season Tip-Off, the Miners will take on New Mexico State (25-9 last season) twice, play at UNLV (30-7) on Dec. 1, and play at Texas Tech (21-13) on Jan. 5.

The Miners will be home for seven non-conference games, including hosting the 47th annual State Farm Sun Bowl Tournament Dec. 21-22. This year's field features Buffalo, USC Upstate and Wyoming.

Miners Go Big ... UTEP is deeper, more athletic and simply bigger this season than it was a year ago. The Miners had only four players 6-6 of taller on the 2006-07 roster. The 2007-08 edition features nine players at least 6-6, including five 6-9 or taller who average 243 pounds. UTEP has outrebounded three of its first four opponents this season, counting two exhibition foes.

1,000 Points in Reach For Jackson ... Junior guard Stefon Jackson has scored 819 points at UTEP, leaving him 181 points shy of becoming the 30th member of the Miners' 1,000-point club. Jackson could become only the 12th player in school annals to tally 1,000 points in three seasons or less.

Last year Jackson set school sophomore records for 20-point games (16) and points (578). He garnered second team All-Conference USA honors, becoming only the sixth sophomore in school history to earn All-Conference recognition.

Jackson led the Miners in scoring (18.6 ppg), rebounds (6.4 rpg) and steals (1.5 spg) in 2006-07. He scored in double figures in 29 of 31 contests a year ago. Jackson was the only C-USA player to earn league player of the week honors on three occasions last season.

More on Jackson ... Stefon Jackson was third in Conference USA in scoring, sixth in rebounding, eighth in steals, 11th in minutes per game (32.0), 14th in free throw percentage (.726) and 15th in field goal percentage (.460) last season. He rated 50th in the country in scoring. Jackson tallied a career-high 33 points, four shy of the UTEP sophomore record, against Jackson State on Dec. 22, 2006.

Jackson set a school record for a guard by pulling down 17 rebounds against Houston on Feb. 3, 2007.

He attempted a free throw in 29 of 31 games in 2006-07, averaging 7.1 attempts per outing. Jackson became only the fifth guard in school annals to attempt 200+ foul shots in a season, finishing with 219 attempts.

2007-08 Roster a Mix of Old and New ... UTEP's roster has an interesting makeup this season, with four seniors and seven freshmen. All four of the seniors are in their second year with the Miners after transferring from junior colleges. Last year UTEP had just one senior, guard Kevin Henderson, who scored 569 points in two seasons with the Miners.

UTEP also has three juniors and no sophomores this season.

Freshmen Bring Impressive Credentials ... UTEP's freshman recruiting class -- center Claude Britten, forward Manuel Cass, guard Randy Culpepper, swingman Gabriel McCulley, center Wayne Portalatin and guard Julyan Stone -- was regarded as the 34th-best group of signees in the country by HOOP SCOOP Online.

Claude Britten (6-11, 285) was listed as the no. 39 center prospect in the country by Scout.com. He averaged 16 points, 12 rebounds and seven blocks last season at Genesis One Christian School in Mendenhall, Miss.

Manuel Cass (6-7, 205) was regarded as a top-50 prep school recruit by HOOP SCOOP Online. He was listed as the 29th-best small forward in the country and a national top-150 prospect by Rivals.com. He was also pegged the no. 21 power forward nationally by Scout.com. Cass attended South Kent (Conn.) High School as a prep senior after spending three years at Carbondale (Ill.) High School, where he was part of a run to three consecutive state titles.

Randy Culpepper (6-0, 160) was rated a national top-200 recruit by HOOP SCOOP Online, and the 38th-best shooting guard prospect in the class of 2007 by Scout.com. He was a finalist for Tennessee Class AA Mr. Basketball as a senior. Culpepper attended Sheffield High School in Memphis. He led the city in scoring as a junior (33.4 ppg) and ranked second as a senior (31.3 ppg).

Gabriel McCulley (6-7, 215) was a three-time All-District choice at Craigmont High School in Memphis. He was a teammate of Culpepper on the Red Team at the Memphis All-Star Classic in the spring of 2007. McCulley totaled 15 points and a game-high 13 rebounds in the Red's 78-73 victory over the White.

Wayne Portalatin (6-10, 250) was listed as a top-200 prep school recruit by HOOP SCOOP Online. He played his senior year at The Patterson School in Patterson, N.C. He previously played at Sacred Heart High School in Waterbury, Conn., and Maine Central Institute.

Julyan Stone (6-6, 185) was rated a national top-200 recruit by HOOP SCOOP Online. He earned first team All-Channel League honors as a junior and senior at Dos Pueblos Senior High School in Goleta, Calif. He was also a first team All-CIF Division II pick a year ago.

Watts Makes Long-Awaited Debut ... Junior forward Tavaris Watts, who sat out the 2006-07 season to focus on academics after transferring from Hillsborough Community College, has averaged 6.5 points and 5.5 rebounds in his first two games as a Miner.

Watts was a teammate of UTEP's Jeremy Sampson at Hillsborough CC. He earned first team All-Conference honors his sophomore year (2005-06), averaging 11 points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals.

Year Two For Barbee ... Former Memphis assistant Tony Barbee is in his second year at the helm of the UTEP basketball program. Barbee directed the Miners to 14 wins last season, the third-most victories by a first-year coach in UTEP history.

Barbee spent six years at Memphis (2000-06) during a span where the Tigers won 148 games and made six straight postseason tournament appearances. Memphis advanced to the NCAA Tournament in 2003, 2004 and 2006, reaching the Elite Eight of the "Big Dance" in 2006.

Foster Stevens Complex Update ... Construction is slated to begin this month on UTEP's new Foster Stevens Basketball Complex, with completion expected by the spring of 2009.

The state-of-the-art $14.3 million, 43,000-square foot facility will feature two practice courts, strength and conditioning center, sports medicine center, academic/film room, coaches' offices, locker rooms, equipment room and lounges for the UTEP men's and women's basketball programs.

The facility will be located on the corner off Mesa Street and Glory Road and will be constructed to reflect the Bhutanese architecture featured throughout the entire UTEP campus.

Miner Nuggets ... The Miners are 5-3 in the month of November under head coach Tony Barbee ... UTEP has scored exactly the same number of points in the first half (30) and the second half (47) in its first two games ... UTEP has made a three-point field goal in 207 straight games ... UTEP set a school record by forcing 572 turnovers last season, and the Miners' 627 three-point attempts tied the school standard ... UTEP led Conference USA in assists (15.3 apg) last season.