UTEP Men’s Basketball Rallies Past Kennesaw State, 73-71, To Pull Into Tie For First Place In CUSA
EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- Otis Frazier III tallied 17 points to pace a quartet of Miners in double figures while also equaling the school record for steals (eight) as the UTEP men’s basketball team rallied back from a nine-point second-half deficit to defeat Kennesaw State, 73-71, in front of 5,300+ roaring fans at the Don Haskins Center Saturday night. The victory propels UTEP into a three-way tie for first place in Conference USA alongside Middle Tennessee and Jax State.
The Miners (15-5, 5-2 CUSA), who won for the first time this season when trailing at the half (1-3), were down by nine (50-41) with 16:32 left in regulation, but they would rally. UTEP went on a 15-4 run over the next seven minutes to pull ahead, and even though the Owls (12-8, 4-3 CUSA) kept fighting, they never regained the advantage. Simeon Cottle, who led KSU with 19 points, misfired on a potential go-ahead 3-pointer in the waning seconds and Frazier III pulled down the rebound and time expired.
Kevin Kalu (career-high 14 points) Elijah Jones (season-best 12 points) and Devon Barnes (10 points) joined Frazier III in double figures in scoring while pressure defense forced 21 turnovers (led to 26 points) by the Owls (12-8, 4-3 CUSA).
David Terrell Jr. did everything across the board with eight points to go along with team bests in both rebounds (six) and assists (six). He was even more impressive defensively, holding six-time CUSA Freshman of the Week Adrian Wooley (18.6 ppg) to seven points on 3-10 shooting. Ahamad Bynum tallied eight points, including a huge 3-pointer as part of a 9-0 run to regain the lead. He added steals two steals and two assists while starting in place of Corey Camper Jr.
Derick Hamilton and Frazier III both grabbed five rebounds to buoy Terrell Jr. in the department. KSU entered as the fourth-ranked rebounding ream in the nation (based on total rebounds per game). The Owls won the boards (43-29), but they had just a two-rebound edge (18-16) over the final 20 minutes of action.
KSU was limited to 45.6 percent (26-57) from the floor, including the Miners locking them down to 38.5 percent (10-26) in the second half. The visitors finished at 29.2 percent (7-24) from distance. UTEP was solid enough at 42.6 percent (26-61) shooting while making 16-23 (69.6 percent) from the line. The Miners were 10-12 at the charity stripe in the second half.
“Credit to our guys stepping up without him (Corey Camper Jr.). One of our best players was out, and I thought different people stepped and did some good things,” UTEP head coach Joe Golding said. “We got back to us defensively. We had some players step up, and player-led leadership is so much better than coach-led leadership. Our fight was better tonight, and we showed some grit and toughness on the glass. The crowd was tremendous. I can’t thank these people enough. Tonight’s crowd was terrific, and when (Ahamad) Bynum hit that three, the place was loud and going nuts. It forced them to call timeout. I cannot thank our crowd for sticking with us, and I think our crowd appreciated how hard our guys played tonight.”
KSU jumped out to the early 7-2 advantage, aided by scoring the first five of the tilt. Frazier III buried a corner 3-pointer to cut the lead to two, but the Owls responded with an old-fashioned three-point play to go back out by five. UTEP blitzed back with a 5-0 run of its own, with all five points from Bynum. He started it with a 3-pointer on a nice find from Terrell Jr. Bynum then came up with a steal and coasted in for the score, forcing a timeout by the visitors.
KSU had a one-point edge (13-12, 14:03, 1H) before UTEP ripped off nine straight points to vault out by eight (21-13, 11:13, 1H). Frazier III (five) and Barnes (four) had all the points in the stretch for UTEP. The Miners continued to be in control as the half wore on, leading by six (29-23, 5:15, 1H) before the Owls unleashed a 14-1 run over the next four minutes.
That allowed KSU to go out by seven (37-30, 1:55, 1H) as result. Frazier III drove to the hole and laid it in, halting the surge. UTEP got a stop and Kalu slammed it home to cut it to three. After a bucket from KSU, Terrell Jr. was pure on a triple, making it a two-point differential (39-37, 21 seconds left). The Owls got a score in the waning seconds to nudge their advantage to four (41-37) at the half.
KSU knocked down a 3-pointer on its opening possession of the second half to stretch the lead to seven. Two free throws by Barnes brought it to five, but back-to-back baskets by the visitors put the Miners down by nine (50-41, 16:32, 2H). A 6-0 blitz in less than two minutes brought UTEP within three (50-47, 14:41, 2H). Kalu had back-to-back scores to start it, including a dunk, before Hebb capped it with a layup.
KSU managed to inch it back to seven (54-47, 13:39, 2H), but the Miners refused to go away. UTEP countered with a 9-0 run. Jones kicked things off by slamming home a dunk. After a stop, he was fouled and calmly drained both tosses. Bynum then brought the roof off the Haskins Center with a corner triple to tie the tilt and force a timeout from the Owls. After Frazier III notched his eighth and final steal of the game, Barnes raced up court for the bucket that put the Miners back in front. They would never trail again, with several big plays down the stretch helping UTEP hold on.
After KSU had cut it to one (70-69), Kalu slammed home a dunk on a beautiful dime from Terrell Jr. The Owls again made it a one-point game. UTEP then misfired on a shot, but Jones fought for the offensive board. He was fouled and hit 1-2 at the line to give the Miners a two-point edge.
UTEP defended tightly at the other end, with Cottle having to put up a contested 3-pointers with only a few seconds left. It was well off the mark, and Frazier III did well to sky for the rebound to clinch the contest.
UTEP will play the first of three straight on the road when it competes at WKU at 6 p.m. MT/7 p.m. CT on Jan. 30. It will be a rematch of the 2024 Conference USA Championship game. Jon Teicher (44th year) will be on the call on “The Home of UTEP Basketball” 600 ESPN El Paso, with audio also airing on the UTEP Miners app. The contest will also stream on ESPN+ (subscription required).
