UTEP rallies from 21 down, but falls short at Western Kentucky Thursday

The UTEP Miners got off to the worst start imaginable Thursday at Western Kentucky, but nearly managed to send the game to overtime after rallying from 21 down.

Western Kentucky, however, still walked away with a 65-62 win over the Miners at home.

The Hilltoppers jumped all over the Miners in the first few minutes of the game, posting a 25-5 lead before many fans could even find their seats.

They led by as much as 21, but UTEP rallied behind strong play from Matt Willms, who recorded a game-high 27 points in the loss. Willms scored 16 in the second half alone and ended the game making 13 of his 16 field goal attempts.

Pancake Thomas paced the Hilltoppers with 25 points, shooting 7-10 from downtown on the evening.

UTEP cut the deficit to just three with seconds to play and would have tied the game had Jake Flaggert’s three at the buzzer gone in. Instead, it was well-contested and fell short.

UTEP’s loss snaps a three-game winning streak, while the win for WKU puts and end to the team’s four-game losing streak.

The Miners fell to 3-4 in conference play and 5-14 overall. They next play at Marshall on Saturday.