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UTEP Miners
Current Record: 19-8, 11-4 C-USA
Projected Starters:
C.J. Cooper, Sr, G, 8.0 ppg, 3.2 apg
Earvin Morris, Jr, G, 10.8 ppg, .411 3PT%
Julian Washburn, Sr, G, 9.9 ppg, 4.3 rpg
Vince Hunter, So, F, 15.1 ppg, 9.3 rpg
Cedrick Lang, Sr, F, 10.2 ppg, 6.8 rpg
Team Stats
| Points Per Game | 69.3 |
| Opponents | 63.4 |
| FG% | .466 |
| Opponents% | .415 |
| 3-point% | .355 |
| Opponents% | .335 |
| Free Throw% | .649 |
| Rebounds Per Game | 34.7 |
| Rebounding Margin | +0.7 |
| Assists Per Game | 13.8 |
| Steals Per Game | 5.4 |
Southern Miss. Golden Eagles
Current Record: 8-19, 3-13 C-USA
Projected Starters:
Matt Bingaya, 6'5, So, G, 14.2 ppg, 5.9 rpg
Chip Armelin, 6'4, Sr, G, 16.0 ppg, 4.1 rpg
Keljin Blevins, 6'4, Fr, G, 1.7 ppg, 1.7 rpg
Kevin Holland, 6'1, Fr, G, 1.4 ppg, 1.3 rpg
Norville Carey, 6'7, Fr, F, 10.6 ppg, 5.6 rpg,
Team Stats
| Points Per Game | 59.9 |
| Opponents | 68.4 |
| FG% | .430 |
| Opponents% | .457 |
| 3-point% | .333 |
| Opponents% | .366 |
| Free Throw% | .630 |
| Rebounds Per Game | 29.5 |
| Rebounding Margin | -4.6 |
| Assists Per Game | 12.0 |
| Steals Per Game | 6.0 |
Even before the disaster that was Thursday night, Coach Tim Floyd showed concern on how the team would respond Saturday night against Southern Miss. way before LA Tech handled UTEP.
Now a test of whether they can respond from the depths of a fracturing loss, minus Floyd, is staring UTEP right in the face.
Chip Armelin and Matt Bingaya combined to score 18 of Southern Miss' 20 points in the final five minutes to upend UTSA 70-66 Thursday night.
Outside of Armelin and Bingaya there are no true threats after Rasham Suarez and Jeremiah Eason were declared ineligible at the end of January. The left handed duo does it all for Southern Miss., and will be key marks in coach Phil Johnson's game plan.
Doc Sadler has had his hands full in just having guys available to put together a rotation, although his team is still playing hard and with pride down the stretch of the season.
The reality for UTEP is, it's not about what Southern Miss. is doing or who they have, it's about how this team responds from a confidence standpoint after another disappointing no-show in a big game.
Cedrick Lang played his heart out with an 18 point, and 10 rebound output, but UTEP's guards were a combined 13/38 from the field, and 3/17 from behind the three point line.
A few shots go down early against LA Tech, and the outcome may have been a little more tested from a UTEP standpoint, but LA Tech was efficient, and able to pick UTEP apart with ball movement, and dagger three pointers.
LA Tech is a match up night mare for UTEP especially when Erik McCree is a factor, but the Miners didn't help themselves out with any adjustments to cure the early cold shooting, and the fact that LA Tech pretty much got any shot they want.
Only positive outside of Lang was the defensive and overall effort from Julian Washburn who held Alex Hamilton to 2/12 shooting, and also hauled in a season high nine rebounds.
Standings wise, UTEP drops into second place, but more importantly the overall confidence of this team will be heavily gauged when UTEP gets a chance to rebound against a team they beat by 34 points back in early January.
A-ROD's opening line: UTEP-12
| Game Information | |
| Who? | UTEP Miners at Southern Miss. Golden Eagles |
| Date/Time | Saturday, February 28th, 6:00 p.m. Mountain Time |
| Location | Reed Green Coliseum, Hattiesburg, Mississippi |
| TV/Radio | No TV Play-by-Play Available on the TuneIn App, or 92.3 FM In El Paso In English, Spanish 1650 AM In El Paso Also available on the TuneIn App. |
| Series Record | UTEP leads 13-9 |