Kenton Paulino is in his second season as he was announced to the UTEP men's basketball staff April 12, 2019.
UTEP won 17 games during the 2019-20 campaign, nine more than the previous season, while more than doubling its Conference USA wins. The Miners posted their first winning season in four years, and made a return to the C-USA Tournament during the 2019-20 season. UTEP finished with a 13-4 record in the Haskins Center, the most home wins in four years.
Other highlights during the season included UTEP’s largest comeback in program history. The Miners found themselves down 24 points to UTSA, only to rally and win 80-77 in overtime on Jan. 15. The historic victory also ranked tied for the 24th biggest comeback in NCAA history. UTEP scratched out another big comeback victory, this time against Rice on Feb. 22. The Miners rallied from 19 points down, flying past the Owls, 68-62.
The Miners made multiple improvements from year one to year two under Terry. UTEP shot 74.9 percent from the foul line, ranking fourth in C-USA and 54th nationally. Last season, UTEP shot 66.1 percent from the free-throw line. UTEP’s 451 made free throws ranked second in C-USA while its 602 free-throw attempts ranked fourth. The defense also improved, as the Miners allowed 66.1 points per game from 69.0 the season prior. UTEP also decreased its turnovers, while forcing more turnovers. The Miners’ ranked fourth in blocked shots (103) after ranking 12th the season before.
Bryson Williams was named to the 2020 All-C-USA first team and 2020 District 11 NABC first team, while earning a trio of C-USA Player of the Week honors. Souley Boum finished no. 1 in C-USA, shooting 87.8 percent from the free-throw line, and Daryl Edwards came up with clutch performances during the season, including averaging over 21 points per game the last eight contests of the regular season. Edwards also earned a C-USA Player of the Week honor.
Prior to coming to UTEP, Paulino served as an assistant at Tulsa. He was with the Golden Hurricane for two seasons (2017-18, 2018-19), helping them to back-to-back winning campaigns.
Paulino has a history with Terry as he served as his assistant at Fresno State from 2012-17 and played at the University of Texas while Terry was an assistant.
While at Fresno State, Paulino was primarily responsible for game preparation, recruiting and skill development.
In his first season at Fresno State, the Bulldogs won 11 games. Paulino was instrumental in the development of the program as Fresno State was victorious 21 times during the 2013-14 season and advanced to the CBI Finals. The Bulldogs made a big splash during the 2015-16 campaign as they won the Mountain West Conference Tournament and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2001. Fresno State tallied 20 wins during Paulino’s final season and competed in the NIT.
Paulino’s first assistant coaching job was at Lamar in 2011-12, where he mentored the Cardinals to the Southland Conference Tournament title and their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2000. Additionally, Lamar topped 20 wins for the first time in 24 years and its 23 wins tied for the third-highest single-season total in program history.
Prior to his time at Lamar, Paulino worked for three seasons (2008-11) as a special assistant at Texas under head coach Rick Barnes. The Longhorns won 75 games while advancing to three consecutive NCAA Tournaments and garnered the program’s first no. 1 ranking in the AP and ESPN/USA Today Coaches polls (2009-10).
Paulino was recruited to Texas by Frank Haith and played for the Longhorns from 2002-06 when Terry was an assistant coach. A two-year starter and four-year letterwinner, Paulino was a member of four NCAA Tournament teams and made trips to the Final Four (2003), Elite Eight (2006) and Sweet 16 (2004). He appeared in 106 games, playing both the point and shooting guard positions, and was a tri-captain as a senior.
During Paulino’s senior season (2005-06), he helped the Longhorns to a 30-7 record, the Big 12 Conference regular-season title and an Elite Eight appearance. He started all 37 games that season and earned the Lowe’s Home Improvement Most Improved Player award from the team. He also was a member of the conference’s All-Underrated Team as selected by the media and was one of six players nationally named to the Sports Illustrated “All-Glue” team.
The senior put his stamp on March Madness with a game-winning three-pointer as time expired that sent the Longhorns to the Elite Eight with a dramatic 74-71 win over no. 22 West Virginia.
After his senior campaign, Paulino played two years professionally. He spent a year oversees in Turkey and another as a member of the Austin Toros (2007-08), the NBA G League affiliate of the San Antonio Spurs.
Paulino earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Ethnic Studies from Texas in 2008. The Los Angeles native is married to the former Shelette Williams and the couple has a daughter, Kiera Meshell.
