UTEP Throttles Loyola in Opener, 96-49
Lee Moore scored 17 points and Dominic Artis had a near triple-double with 16 points, nine rebounds and eight assists as UTEP opened its 95th season of basketball with a 96-49 dismantling of Loyola (New Orleans) on Saturday night in the Don Haskins Center.
The game was over early, as the Miners (1-0) went on a 19-0 run to build a 21-2 lead. The Wolf Pack (2-3) couldn’t get closer than 13 points as the lead grew to 30 (53-23) at halftime.
UTEP took its largest lead of 49 points, 96-47, on a tip-in by Paul Thomas with four seconds left.
“As far as openers go with so many new players, I think we have to be basically pleased,” UTEP coach Tim Floyd said. “We recognize that Loyola is not the caliber of team that we’re going to be seeing all year long. That being said, you still have to play against the game itself and try to compete and play really hard, and I thought our guys tried to do that.”
The 96 points were the most scored by the Miners in an opener since Nov. 22, 2003, when they hung 109 on Texas Permian Basin. It also marked the most points by UTEP in a regulation game under Floyd.
UTEP shot 31 free throws in the first half and finished 33-of-47 from the charity stripe. The 47 free throw attempts were the 10th-most in school history.
“I thought we did some nice things in the backcourt,” Floyd said. “I like the fact that we continue to get to the line with this team. One thing we’re not doing well is shooting the three [3-for-15 on Saturday], but I think that’s maybe the best thing that this team does. Our defense was active, much better in terms of collectively playing together than it was in the two exhibition games.”
The Miners crushed the Wolf Pack on the boards (56-29) and dominated the points in the paint (50-18), points off turnovers (28-11) and second chance points (22-2) stat lines.
All 12 active Miners saw action and eight scored six points or more. Hooper Vint collected 15 points and six rebounds, and Tevin Caldwell was close to a double-double with nine points and nine boards.
“I love Tevin’s energy. And I think when you watch Tevin, you’re seeing a guy four inches shorter than Julian Washburn who is every bit as active,” Floyd said. “That’s why we redshirted a walk-on a year ago. We are just thrilled with him. He is a key part to our team and we’re distributing minutes. In a tight game tonight, he’s probably out there more than some other guys. But this game tonight was very important to our team from the standpoint that we are trying to integrate new players. Those new players need these minutes in these games.”
Of the new players, none have dazzled more than Artis and Moore.
“Both of them do some really nice things and they’re both playing hard,” Floyd said. “They’ve both got some strength and size about them, physicality and they’re both anticipatory on the defensive end. Offensively, they both have the ability to get in the lane and they both have the ability to make a shot. They both pass the ball well. We really like what we’re seeing from the backcourt this year early on.”
Nick Parker led Loyola with 12 points. Jalen Gray, who was averaging 20 points coming in, was held to nine on 3-of-10 shooting. Loyola shot 30.4 percent and committed 21 turnovers.
The Miners will return to action on Saturday, Nov. 21 at 7:30 p.m. It’s the nightcap of a football/basketball doubleheader, with UTEP battling C-USA West Division leading LA Tech on “Senior Day” in the Sun Bowl at 1:30.
