UTEP WBB starts two-game home stretch Saturday vs. Rice

EL PASO, Texas - The Miners have won five of their last six games entering a noon start time on Saturday inside the Don Haskins Center against Rice.

UTEP (11-3, 4-1 C-USA) holds an unbeaten 6-0 mark at home this season, while Rice (10-4, 1-4 C-USA) has played well on the road with a 4-2 mark.

In the meeting earlier this season in Houston, the Owls won 62-53 thanks to a late 12-1 run after they had trailed 52-50 with 4:25 remaining.

GAME COVERAGE

Fans can watch the game against Rice on CUSA.tv with Mando Medina calling the action courtside in the Don.

Live stats will be available on the UTEP SIDEARM Stats Portal.

SCOUTING RICE

Three regular starters average double figures for Rice, a team which went 9-0 out of conference before starting league play 1-4. Three of those losses have come by six points or less to Middle Tennessee, WKU and LA Tech. Second Team All-Conference forward Ashlee Austin leads the scoring for the Owls with 13.4 per game to pair with 4.4 boards. Destiny Jackson averages 13.3 points, 5.1 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.7 steals per game and Malia Fisher contributes 12.1 points and 7.9 rebounds per contest. Fisher had a double-double in the first game this season against the Miners with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Trinity Gooden was the high scorer in that one with 13 for Rice. Similar to UTEP, Rice is one of the best teams in the country at getting to the free throw line, averaging 23.9 attempts per game and hitting 17.5 of them. Each of those totals ranks seventh nationally. The Owls average 74.5 points per game and are shooting at an impressive 45.4 percent clip from the floor.

ALL-TIME SERIES VS. RICE

Rice has won 10 straight straight head-to-head against UTEP. The all-time series favors the Owls at 36-15. Rice won the meeting between the two sides earlier this season in Houston by a 62-53 tally after UTEP had led for nearly 30 minutes of the contest. Adhel Tac had a career-high 15 points in the defeat for the Miners.

QUALITY START TO LEAGUE ACTION

The 4-1 beginning to C-USA play for UTEP marks the best start to league action since going 4-1 at the onset of the 2019-20 conference slate.

SUCCESS IN RIVALRY GAMES

Against their two primary rivals, UTSA and NM State, UTEP has won 17 of the last 18 meetings combined.

MORE TO COME IN THE DON

UTEP will play five of the next seven games inside the Don Haskins Center, including a matchup on Monday with Charlotte at 1 p.m. The Miners also host North Texas (Jan. 28), Middle Tennessee (Feb. 2) and WKU (Feb. 4). This is the most home-heavy portion of the schedule this season for UTEP.

AGAINST TEXAS

UTEP is 3-1 this season against teams from the state of Texas, topping Texas State, Texas Southern and UTSA. The lone loss came at Rice, which the Miners will be looking to avenge on Saturday.

SEVEN STRAIGHT WINS AT HOME

Since an 86-79 overtime victory against Southern Miss last February, the Miners have won seven in a row at home, including a perfect 6-0 mark this year.  

PLAYING GOOD BALL

Dating back to a 57-52 rivalry win at NM State on Dec. 13, the Miners have won five of their last six games.

JACKSON HEATING UP

In the 74-67 handling of UTSA on Wednesday, Jazion Jackson was instrumental in UTEP earning the win, scoring 14 of her team-high 19 points in the fourth quarter. She also brought down five rebounds with two assists, a block and a steal. The 14 points in the fourth tied Jackson for the third most in a single quarter in program history with Zuzanna Puc, Najala Howell, Cameasha Turner and Lulu McKinney. The record is 18 for Sparkle Taylor on Nov. 11, 2016 in the third quarter against Northern Arizona. In her first season as a Miner, Jackson is averaging 10.7 points and 5.6 rebounds per game while leading the team with 30 steals. 

ERIN OFF THE BENCH

Erin Wilson helped lead key efforts from the bench in the win on Wednesday, netting 11 points.

ARIKE PERFECT FROM FLOOR

Elina Arike did not miss a shot at UTSA, going 5-of-5 on the way to scoring 15 points with five rebounds. The 15 points were just a point shy of her season high of 16 set on Dec. 13 at NM State. 

CONTINUING SUCCESS VS. UTSA

UTEP has now won nine of the last 10 games against the Roadrunners, including six straight in San Antonio.

MONEY FROM OUTSIDE

UTEP has posted back-to-back games with strong efforts from the perimeter. In the win over LA Tech, the Miners drilled a season-high 10 3-pointers on 21 attempts. The 47.6 percent clip was the best in a game for UTEP since a 75-62 win on Feb. 3, 2022 that saw the Miners go 6-of-11 (54.5 percent) from the perimeter. UTEP then followed that up by going 6-of-10 at UTSA, shooting at a clip that was the best since going 13-of-20 (65 percent) on Feb. 12, 2021 at FIU.

400 HOME WINS

With the victory against LA Tech, UTEP picked up the 400th win at home in program history. Overall, the Miners are 400-240 in the friendly confines dating back to the inaugural season for women’s basketball at the school in 1974-75.

REBOUNDING AND DEFENSE KEYS

UTEP is allowing just 61.4 points per game over the first five conference tilts, a total which is second in C-USA. Additionally, league opponents are averaging just 29.8 rebounds per game in league action against the Miners, which is the best mark in the conference by nearly four rebounds per game.

WHEN LEADING AT THE HALF

UTEP is 8-1 this season when taking the advantage into the locker room.

LIMITING TURNOVERS AT HISTORIC RATE

With just 13.9 turnovers per game this season, the Miners are keeping possession of the basketball at one of the best clips in program history. The only UTEP team to average less turnovers per contest was the 2008-09 team at an average of 13.0 per game.  

LOTS OF FREE CHANCES

UTEP averages 16.1 free throws made per game, ranking 15th nationally and third in C-USA. The Miners are averaging 22.7 attempts per game, ranking 16th nationally and third in the conference. Those numbers each received a boost after the win at UTSA in which UTEP attempted 39 free throws, converting on 26 of them.

BOYD AND JACKSON EQUAL HIGHS

In the win on Wednesday, N’Yah Boyd and Jazion Jackson each tied career highs with 10 free throws attempted.

CROUSE IN TOP-10 FOR GAMES STARTED

Avery Crouse has started 94 games in her career as a Miner, ranking ninth in program history. Kelli Willingham has the all-time record with 117 starts from 2010-14.

A HOST OF SCORING OPTIONS

Saturday marked the sixth time this season that the Miners have had four players reach double-digit scoring outputs.    

TURNOVER MARGIN MATTERS

One key area for UTEP this season has been a +4.9 turnover margin that is second in the conference and 30th nationally. The Miners are forcing opponents into 18.7 turnovers per game while committing just 13.9 of their own.

SEVEN STRAIGHT WITH SAME STARTERS

The starting lineup of N’Yah Boyd, Jazion Jackson, Avery Crouse, Adhel Tac and Elina Arike has taken the floor to begin seven straight games.

WHAT’S NEXT

The Miners remain home for a game on Monday at 1 p.m. against Charlotte.

HOME TICKET INFO

Tickets start at $8 for regular season games while groups of 10 can purchase tickets for $5 a piece. Fans can buy single-game tickets at the Eisenberg Family Ticket Office by calling (915) 747-UTEP, visiting UTEPMiners.com/tickets, by emailing tickets@utep.edu, or by stopping by in person at 500 W. University Ave., 79968 (Monday thru Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.).