UTEP looks to bounce back against tough North Texas team

The UTEP men’s basketball team is off to an 0-2 start in Conference USA play after back-to-back losses against UTSA, but things don’t get easier in the team’s next game.

The Miners welcome a 15-1 North Texas squad to the Don Haskins Center at 7 p.m. Thursday.

The Mean Green are already 3-0 in conference play, and the only team to beat them so far in any game is Oklahoma, which topped North Texas 73-57 back on Nov. 27 in Norman.

But the Miners are confident that they can keep up with any team in C-USA, even one as hot as North Texas.

“When we’re doing what we’ve practiced and executing at the pace we want, we feel like we can compete with just about anybody in the league. We really do,” said UTEP head coach Rodney Terry. “And I think I said earlier in the year we could also lose to anybody in the league when we’re not.”

With UTEP already facing an uphill climb in conference action, home games become that much more important. After the game against North Texas Thursday, the Miners will then face Rice at home on Saturday at 7 p.m.

“Obviously, this time of year, you’ve got to do whatever it takes to win home games,” said Terry. “You know, I always say to my guys you’ve got to jump on a grenade to win home games because, you know, you go on the road, and it’s one of the more difficult things to do in college basketball, is to win on the road.”

Although UTEP lost Saturday at home to UTSA, the Haskins Center is the only place the Miners have won this season. They are 5-3 at home currently and 0-5 on the road. However, UTEP has played some tough teams away from home including Marquette, Arizona, and New Mexico State.