UTEP falls to Bradley in SoCal Challenge title game, 63-59
SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO, California - The UTEP Miners will look toward better days ahead after suffering their first loss of the season.
UTEP came up short against the Bradley Braves, 63-59, in the championship game of the SoCal Challenge.
Miners' overall record now stands at 5-1.
The title game of the SoCal Challenge featured two teams that came into the game with unblemished records.
The Miners at 5-0, the Braves at 4-0.
The start of the first half was a good back and forth contest, but the Braves held on to the lead for a majority of the half.
Bradley would go into halftime with a 37-26 lead.
In the second half of the game, the Miners tried their best to jump out in front, but Bradley always had an answer.
The Braves never gave up their lead in the second half.
(Info below courtesy of UTEP Athletics)
The Miners (5-1), trailed by nine (57-48, 2:57 2H) before consecutive 3-pointers by Hardy in a span of 36 seconds made it a 3-point affair (57-54, 1:31 2H).
UTEP didn’t allow the Braves (5-0) to hit a field goal down the stretch, but enough free throws made from the defending Missouri Valley Champions allowed them to stave off the Orange and Blue.
Tae Hardy tallied a team-high 15 points, including two late 3-pointers,
“We didn’t finish the first half (well), we had two bad turnovers that led to four quick points for them and turned a seven-point game to 11,” UTEP head coach Joe Golding said. “I love the way we competed in the second half. We disrupted them. I love the fight of our guys. I don’t know why we didn’t have that in the first half. I don’t know if it was the nerves of being in this moment for the first time together against a veteran team. We weren’t ourselves necessarily in the first half, but I loved the fight and competition in the second half.
“Bradley’s a very good offensive team,” UTEP head coach Joe Golding said. “In the second half we turned them over 10 times and disrupted them. We were just not very good offensively. We forced too many things and were going in there trying to get calls that we didn’t get. We got to make the extra pass. We’ve got to learn from this. We’re six days in. Bradley won the Missouri Valley Championship last year. We’ll get better, and we’ve got a bunch of guys who want to win.”
UTEP will conclude its stay in California when it plays at LMU for its first true road game at 4 p.m. PT/5 p.m. MT on Saturday (Nov. 25).
The contest will be broadcast on 600 ESPN El Paso. It will also be streamed on ESPN+ (subscription required).
