UTEP women’s basketball moves to 2-0 with 74-68 win over UIW

EL PASO, Texas -- The UTEP women's basketball team improved to 2-0 on the season with a 74-68 victory over UIW Saturday afternoon at GECU Arena at the Don Haskins Center.

Four Miners scored in double figures, led by Isabel João with 13 points and a team-high 11 rebounds, recording her first double-double at UTEP. Mary Moses Amaniyo matched João with 13 points and added five rebounds, while Imani Warren contributed 11 points and three assists. Freshman Krista Lukasevica rounded out the double-figure scorers with 10 points. Armanda Sindalawa added eight points and a team-high five assists in the victory.

The Orange and Blue held the advantage in field goal percentage (45.8-40.9) and 3-point percentage (41.7-32.0), while UIW led in free throw percentage (70.6-62.5). UTEP shot 27-of-59 from the field while recording 36 rebounds, 17 assists and nine steals.

The Miners also scored 40 points in the paint, received 22 points from their bench and converted Incarnate Word's 17 turnovers into 15 points.

“This was a good win for us,” head coach Keitha Adams said. “We knew we had to come ready to play, and I thought we were very effective on the boards, took care of the ball and executed well down the stretch in the fourth quarter. We had balanced scoring, and overall, it was a great team win.”

UTEP overcame an early 5-2 deficit, using a 7-0 run to take a 9-5 lead with 6:38 remaining in the opening quarter. João led the early offensive effort with eight points, including two 3-pointers, as the Miners built a seven-point advantage before the visitors cut the deficit to 21-18 at the end of the period.

The Cardinals kept the contest close in the second quarter, cutting UTEP's lead to 29-27 with 5:01 remaining. The Orange and Blue responded with an 11-2 run, highlighted by four points from Sindalawa, to build their largest lead of the contest at 40-29 with 2:07 remaining in the first half. Incarnate Word closed the quarter on a 5-0 run, trimming UTEP's advantage to 40-34 at halftime.

UIW opened the second half with an 8-0 run to take a 42-40 lead with 8:07 remaining in the third quarter. Warren answered with a jumper to tie the contest before Aolani Woldai knocked down a 3-pointer to put UTEP back in front, 45-42. The Miners extended their advantage to seven points, but the Cardinals battled back to cut the deficit to 52-50 entering the fourth.

UTEP opened the final quarter with a 7-0 run, highlighted by another 3-pointer from Woldai, to extend its lead to 59-50. The visitors cut the deficit to three points with 4:15 remaining, but the Miners answered with timely baskets to maintain their advantage. The Cardinals pulled within four with 27 seconds left before Sindalawa added two free throws in the closing seconds to seal the 74-68 victory.