UTEP Men’s Basketball To Host U-T San Antonio Friday

FOR STARTERS UTEP tips off the 2011-12 campaign against UT San Antonio on Friday at 7 p.m. in the Don Haskins Center. The Roadrunners were 20-14 last season, won the Southland Conference tournament title and went 1-1 in the NCAA Tournament, beating Alabama State (70-61) before losing to top seed Ohio State (75-46). The Miners are starting fresh this season with 10 newcomers, including a Division I transfer (junior guard Jacques Streeter), a junior college transfer (junior forward Malcolm Moore) and eight freshmen. UTEP returns just three letterwinners and one starter (senior forward Gabriel McCulley) from last year?s unit that finished 25-10 overall and tied for second place in Conference USA with an 11-5 mark. The Miners lost 82.5 percent of their scoring and 70.6 percent of their rebounding production from the 2010-11 squad, which had eight seniors.

SCOUTING UTSA The Roadrunners welcome back four of their top five scorers – junior guard Melvin Johnson III (14.9 ppg), sophomore forward Jeromie Hill (13.4 ppg), senior forward Stephen Franklin (6.5 ppg) and senior guard Sei Paye (5.1 ppg). Johnson was 47th nationally in free throw percentage last season (.859). UTSA?s top scorer from a year ago, point guard Devin Gibson (17.0 ppg/5.4 apg) has exhausted his eligibility. Gibson led the nation in triple doubles last season with two, and also finished eighth in the country in steals (2.7 avg.). UTSA played two road games versus Conference USA schools last season, winning at Houston (68-63) and losing at Tulsa (92-67). The Roadrunners finished with a 5-10 road record. UTSA is coached by former NBA first round draft pick and Oklahoma State star Brooks Thompson. Thompson and UTEP assistant coach Greg Foster were teammates on the Utah Jazz roster during the 1996-97 season.

THE SERIES UTEP leads the series 4-0, including 3-0 in games played in El Paso. The Miners hosted the Roadrunners during the 1981-82 (won 65-37), 1997-98 (won 71-62) and 1998-99 (won 78-61) seasons. UTEP played at UTSA during the 1982-83 campaign and prevailed 52-50. The Miners? all-time record versus Southland Conference opponents is 29-2, including 24-1 in El Paso. The lone loss came at the hands of Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, 77-72, on Dec. 8, 2001. UTEP?s Tim Floyd has never coached against UTSA.

THE LAST MEETING All five starters scored in double figures as UTEP topped UT San Antonio, 78-61, on Dec. 1, 1998 in the Don Haskins Center. Sharif Fajardo (19 points), Jarvis Mullahon (15), Brandon Wolfram (14), William Smith (13) and Eggie McRae (12) led the way for the Miners, who shot 60.9 percent in the first half and 57.1 percent on the night. UTEP also outrebounded UTSA 34-23, with Wolfram snaring 10 boards. McRae also had a double-double with a career-high 11 assists. The Miners held UTSA to .358 shooting, including .286 over the final 20 minutes. UTEP took the lead for good at 16-15 with 11:41 to play in the first half and extended its advantage to as many as 20 points in the second period.

?THE SHADOW? TO RETURN TO EL PASO Nevil Shed, a member of UTEP?s (then Texas Western College) 1966 national championship team, will be in attendance when the Miners host UTSA on Friday. Shed, however, will be a member of the Roadrunners? official travel party. He is a former UTSA assistant coach and also worked in student activities on campus prior to retirement.

ROGERS IS FRIDAY?S MINER LEGEND For the second year in a row, UTEP will be honoring past great players at halftime of this season?s games. First up is Gerald Rogers on Friday. Rogers played two seasons for the Miners (1950-52). He was the team?s leading scorer each year, collecting 18.0 points per game as a junior and 15.1 as a senior. Rogers shot 49.4 percent (290-for-587) from the field for his career. A 6-4 post player, he became the inaugural member of the Miners? 30-point club on Jan. 8, 1951. Rogers scored 33 points in a 64-62 loss to Northern Arizona. The native of Vega, Texas owns the ninth-best career scoring average in school history (16.5 ppg). He earned honorable mention All-American honors by the United Press after ranking second in the Border Conference scoring race during the 1950-51 season. He was third in Border Conference scoring as a senior. Rogers led the nation in field goal percentage for most of the 1951-52 season, finishing second by firing at a 50.4 percent clip. Rogers received the first annual Harry Shain Most Valuable Player Award at the first-ever Texas Western College Basketball Banquet in 1952.

UTEP AND OPENERS The Miners are 65-25 in season openers, including 46-4 in their last 50. Last year UTEP?s 11-game winning streak in season openers was snapped with a 66-61 loss to Pacific in the Haskins Center. The Miners haven?t dropped back-to-back openers since the 1985-86 and 1986-87 seasons when they lost to Washington (82-53) and Oregon State (83-72) respectively. UTEP hasn?t lost consecutive home openers since the 1950-51 (lost to Southern Mississippi 72-69) and 1951-52 (lost to St. Mary?s 79-44) seasons. Tim Floyd?s father Lee Floyd was coach of Southern Miss in 1950. The Miners are 30-3 in home openers in the Haskins Center. UTEP is opening a sea- son in El Paso for the 46th time in the last 50 years and the 10th time in 11 years.

FLOYD IN OPENERS UTEP Coach Tim Floyd is 10-7 both in season openers and home openers during his collegiate coaching career. Four of his last five teams dropped their season and home opener — USC to Cal State Northridge in 2005 (81-76), USC to South Carolina in 2006 (80-74 in overtime), USC to Mercer in 2007 (96-81) and UTEP to Pacific in 2010 (66-61).

TOUGH WAY TO START UTEP is opening a season versus a Divi- sion I team coming off a 20-win campaign for the second year in a row, and only the fifth time in school history.

Season First opp. Prev. season record Result 1983-84 Texas Southern 22-7 W 91-61 1985-86 Washington 22-10 L 53-82 2006-07 Penn 20-9 W 69-66 2010-11 Pacific 23-12 L 61-66 2011-12 UT San Antonio 20-14 ???

MINERS GETTING STARTED EARLY Of the 90 previous seasons in UTEP bas- ketball history, only twice have the Miners tipped off their season earlier than Nov. 11. UTEP opened the 2006-07 campaign on Nov. 10 versus Penn in the BCA Invitational in Syracuse, N.Y. The Miners played their first game of the 2007-08 season on Nov. 9 against Arkansas-Pine Bluff in El Paso. UTEP is 82-29 all-time in November games and 65-21 in November games in the Don Haskins Center.

UTEP IN THE HASKINS CENTER The Miners enter their 36th season play- ing in the Don Haskins Center with a record of 465-135 in the facility, including 19-3 a year ago. The 2010-11 Miners joined the 1983-84 (21-0) and 1985-86 (19-0) squads as the only teams to post 19 or more victories in ?The Don.?

STARTING OVER UTEP has the fifth-most inexperienced team in the country in terms of returning point production. The Miners are also one of 12 schools with eight or more freshmen.

SCHOOLS THAT RETURN LESS THAN 20 PERCENT OF THEIR POINTS St. John?s 3.7 percent (85-of-2,313) Towson 5.3 percent (109-of-2,053) Boston College 10.8 percent (263-of-2,440) Texas 17 percent (459-of-2,701) UTEP 17.5 percent (433-of-2,470) Fairleigh Dickinson 17.8 percent (333-of-1,866) Wofford 19.98 percent (500-of-2,502)

SCHOOLS WITH EIGHT OR MORE FRESHMEN Air Force 11 Navy 10 Boston College 9 Texas Tech 9 Boise State 8 Cal State Northridge 8 The Citadel 8 Northern Illinois 8 UC Irvine 8 UNC Wilmington 8 UTEP 8 Wright State 8

THERE?S A FIRST TIME FOR EVERYTHING With 10 newcomers on this year?s roster, there?s a good chance that a first-year Miner will lead the team in scoring in the opener against UTSA. Here?s a look at other UTEP players who have achieved the feat in season openers dating back to 1960.

Season Leading Scorer Opener Pts 1961-62 Willie Brown at Iowa State 21 1962-63 Jim Barnes Sul Ross 19 1967-68 Nate Archibald UT Arlington 22 1972-73 Gary Brewster Doane College 23 1977-78 Earl Fuller Abilene Christian 19 1978-79 Terry White TX A&M-Commerce 20 1988-89 Jerry Johnson Fort Lewis 22 1990-91 Von Bennett Midwestern 13* 2000-01 Eugene Costello at Washington 26 2002-03 Giovanni St. Amant N.M. Highlands 21

* Tied for team high scoring honors

MINERS SPLIT PAIR OF EXHIBITIONS UTEP posted a 1-1 mark in its exhibition schedule, losing to Eastern New Mexico (75-64) and topping Sul Ross State (76-60). Ten players averaged between 19.5 and 22.5 minutes in the two exhibitions. Junior forward Malcolm Moore and freshman forward Cedrick Lang tied for the team lead by averaging 11.0 points per game, and Lang was the squad?s leading rebounder with an 8.5 average. The Miners shot 44.9 percent from the field and forced 46 turnovers in the two games, but had a -2.5 rebound margin and struggled at the charity stripe (37-for-69, 53.6 percent).

GETTING TO THE LINE WASN?T A PROBLEM While the Miners struggled shooting free throws in their two exhibitions, they did make more foul shots (37) than their opponents attempted (36). Three players went to the line 10 or more times — freshman forward Cedrick Lang (16 attempts), junior guard Jacques Streeter (14) and sophomore guard Michael Perez (10). Lang went to the charity stripe 10 times versus Eastern New Mexico, and Streeter did so 10 times against Sul Ross State.

FOLLOW THE LEADER UTEP?s leading rebounder in its two exhibition games was freshman forward Cedrick Lang (8.5 avg.). The Miners? other statistical leaders were sophomore guard Michael Perez in assists (3.5 avg.), junior forward Malcolm Moore in blocks (1.5 avg.), freshman guard C.J. Cooper in steals (2.0 avg.), Moore in field goal percentage (.692) and freshman swingman Jalen Ragland in free throw percentage (1.000).

McCULLEY IS LONE SENIOR Forward Gabriel McCulley is the only senior on the 2011-12 team. McCulley redshirted the 2009-10 season and begins his fifth year in the UTEP program. He has played in 106 games for the Miners and averaged 4.5 points and 3.2 rebounds, scoring in double figures 10 times. McCulley started the final seven contests of the 2010-11 campaign. The Memphis native is currently sidelined after undergoing surgery for a stress fracture in his leg, with his return targeted for mid to late December. McCulley is the only player on this year?s roster with a degree in hand. He graduated from UTEP with a degree in Criminal Justice in December of 2010 and is pursuing his Masters in Leadership Studies.

BOHANNON, PEREZ ALSO RETURN UTEP?s other returning lettermen are center John Bohannon and guard Michael Perez, both sophomores. Bohannon averaged 5.2 points and 4.6 rebounds in 18.4 minutes per game while shooting 51.9 percent from the field. One of only five freshmen in school history to post multiple double-doubles in a season, Bohannon collected 12 points/12 rebounds against Arkansas-Pine Bluff and 20 points/14 boards versus Western New Mexico. Perez came off the bench for 28 games and averaged 1.5 ppg and 0.6 rpg with a .471 (8-for-17) three-point field goal percentage. Bohannon is expected to see his first action of the season against UTSA after being suspended for both exhibitions.

STREETER IS MOST EXPERIENCED NEWCOMER Junior guard Jacques Streeter joins the Miners after playing for two seasons at Cal State Fullerton (2008-10). He started all 63 games for the Titans and averaged 11.1 points, 3.4 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 1.0 steals. Streeter had a composite assist/turnover ratio of 2.19 (289-132) and led the Big West Conference in the statistical category each year. He scored in double figures 35 times for the Titans with twelve 20-point games and four games with 10 or more assists. Streeter was also a member of Findlay Prep School?s 32-1 team that finished as the 2008 national runner up. Another newcomer with college experience is junior forward Malcolm Moore, a transfer from Tyler [Texas] JC. Moore averaged a team-leading 16.3 points on his way to garnering third team NJCAA All-American honors a year ago.

MINERS HAVE ROOKIE CLASS OF EIGHT The Miners have eight freshmen this season, tying the largest composition in school history (UTEP also had eight freshmen during the 1973-74 & 1977-78 seasons). UTEP?s freshmen are guards D?Von Campbell, C.J. Cooper & Tim Jacobs, forward Cedrick Lang, swingmen Darius Nelson, Jalen Ragland & Julian Washburn and center Hooper Vint. Washburn is the son of former N.C. State star and NBA player Chris Washburn and was rated the no. 24 small forward in the country by Rivals.com coming out of Duncanville [Texas] High School.

NEWCOMERS HAVE WINNING HISTORY C.J. Cooper, Cedrick Lang, Malcolm Moore and Jalen Ragland were all members of state title teams as preps. Jacques Streeter led Findlay Prep School to a 32-1 mark and national runner-up finish during the 2007-08 season.

FLOYD ERA RESUMES Tim Floyd begins his second season as UTEP?s head coach after directing the Miners to 25 wins in his initial year at the helm of the program. Overall Floyd is 353-190 in 17 years as a collegiate head coach at Idaho (1986-88), New Orleans (1988-94), Iowa State (1994-98), USC (2005-09) and UTEP. Floyd?s teams have made 12 postseason tournament appearances, including eight trips to the NCAAs and four visits to the NIT.

COACHING STAFF HAS A BIT OF A NEW LOOK While many of the faces are still the same, the responsibilities have changed for several members of the UTEP Basketball staff. Ken DeWeese (Director of Basketball Operations last season) and Greg Foster (Student Assistant Coach) have been elevated to assistant coaches. Keith Wilkinson has been elevated from Assistant Director of Basketball Operations to the director role. New to the staff is assistant director of basketball operations J.A. Anglin, who formerly played at Northwestern State and LSU Shreveport.

NON-CONFERENCE SLATE FEATURES TRIPS TO OREGON, UNLV, HAWAII The Miners will face Oregon for the first time in school history on Nov. 29, and will also play at UNLV on Dec. 14. UTEP will join Auburn, Clemson, Hawaii, Kansas State, Long Beach State, Southern Illinois and Xavier in the field of the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic Dec. 22-25 in Honolulu. The Miners will host the 50th annual Bank of the West Don Haskins Sun Bowl Invitational Dec. 28-29, with participating teams Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Colorado State and Jacksonville State. UTEP will tip off the 16-game C-USA slate at Marshall on Jan. 4.

MINERS IN ELITE COMPANY OVER LAST TWO SEASONS UTEP is one of only 21 Division I schools to post 25 wins or more in each of the last two seasons, joining Butler, BYU, Coastal Carolina, Duke, Gonzaga, Kansas, Kentucky, Oakland, Ohio State, Old Dominion, Pittsburgh, Purdue, Richmond, San Diego State, St. Mary?s, Syracuse, Temple, Utah State, VCU and Wichita State. The Miners are 51-17 since the start of the 2009-10 season. Overall UTEP has participated in postseason play seven times in the last eight years, reaching the NCAA Tournament three times (2004-05-10), the NIT twice (2006-11) and the CBI on two occasions (2008-09).

SWEET 16 SQUAD TO CELEBRATE 20TH ANNIVERSARY THIS SEASON This season marks the 20th anniversary of the 1991-92 Miners who finished 27-7 and upset top-seeded Kansas, 66-60, to reach the NCAA Tournament Midwest Region semifinals. That was also the last team in school history to win an NCAA Tournament game. The ?91-92 UTEP club was led by seniors Marlon Maxey (15.2 ppg), David Van Dyke (13.9 ppg) and Prince Stewart (11.5 ppg), and coached by Hall of Famer Don Haskins. The Miners tied for first place in the Western Athletic Conference standings with a 12-4 mark, but lost to BYU, 73-71, in the WAC Tournament final on a 54-foot shot by Kevin Nixon as time expired. Plans are in place to honor the 1991-92 squad at the home game versus Tulane on Feb. 11.

DEFENSIVE EXCELLENCE UNDER FLOYD In 543 collegiate games, Tim Floyd?s teams have allowed less than 70 points 364 times, less than 60 points 188 times and less than 50 points 52 times. Floyd?s teams are 164-24 when allowing fewer than 60 points, and 50-2 when yielding fewer than 50 points.

NOTING UTEP?S ILLUSTRIOUS BASKETBALL HISTORY The Miners have won seven undisputed conference regular season titles in their basketball history, including in 1941 (Border Conference), 1957 (Border Conference), 1970 (Western Athletic Conference), 1984 (WAC), 1985 (WAC), 1987 (WAC) and 2010 (Conference USA). Overall UTEP has won 12 conference championships, including five that it shared with other teams in 1959 (Border Conference), 1983 (WAC), 1986 (WAC), 1992 (WAC) and 2004 (WAC). To this day, UTEP is the only Division I school in the state of Texas to win a national championship in men?s basketball with the storied 1966 title. UTEP has made 28 postseason tournament appearances, including 17 trips to the NCAAs.

Source: UTEP Athletics