Jan. 2, 2009
Final Stats
EL PASO, Texas - The UTEP women's basketball team was dispatched by Tulane, 57-48, in the Conference USA opener for both squads at the Don Haskins Center Friday evening. It is the Miners' first loss in a regular-season C-USA game since Feb. 24, 2007.
Things looked good for UTEP early in the second half, as the Miners (7-7, 0-1 C-USA) out-scored the Green Wave (9-5, 1-0 C-USA) 12-6 over the first four-plus minutes on the way to notching their largest lead (31-23) of the tilt. Freshman Dietra Caldwell capped what was in itself a 7-0 run by knocking down a triple, but the Green Wave would strike back.
It came in the form of a 19-1 run over the next seven minutes, with Tulane taking advantage of uncharacteristic play by the Orange and Blue. UTEP committed seven of its season-high matching 18 turnovers in the sequence, allowing the Green Wave the window of opportunity.
Sviatlana Trukshanina, who nailed 3-of-6 from behind the arc- halted the stretch by draining a long triple to make the score 42-35 with 8:55 left. The damage had been done, as UTEP would be forced to play catch up from that point on.
Tulane twice extended its advantage back to 10, but both times the Miners dug deep in an effort to claw back into the contest. The latter came in the form of a 7-2 spurt to bring the Orange and Blue within five (51-46) with 3:36 on the clock. The Miners would not get closer, though, as the Green Wave enjoyed a modest 5-0 run over the next 3:01 on the way to escaping with the nine-point triumph.
Jareica Hughes (12 points, six assists and five steals) and Caldwell (11 points, three boards) led the way offensively for the Miners, who never could find a rhythm throughout the tilt.
Tulane wasn't much better, with the Green Wave relying heavily upon the play of Bret Benzio and Indira Kaljo. The duo combined to score 32 of the Green Wave's 57 points (13-of-23), with the other seven members of the squad contributing only 23 points on a paltry 9-of-30 from the field.
UTEP was also challenged by the Green Wave's size, with Tulane out-scoring the Miners 30-18 in the paint.
The Miners will be idle for a week before welcoming Rice to town for a 7:05 p.m. tip-off on Jan. 9.
