March 8, 2010
VIDEO CLIP of R.Culpepper & D.Caracter in the stands celebrating with fans, by Ivan Pierre Aguirre
UTEP's Randy Culpepper received first team All-Conference USA accolades and Derrick Caracter was a second team selection, based on a vote by league coaches and media. Results were announced on Monday.
Joining Culpepper on the first team were four other guards -- Houston's Aubrey Coleman, UAB's Elijah Millsap, Tulsa's Ben Uzoh and Memphis' Elliot Williams. Caracter teamed with Southern Miss forward Gary Flowers, Tulsa center Jerome Jordan and Marshall forwards Hassan Whiteside and Tyler Wilkerson to form the second team.
Culpepper was the C-USA Sixth Man of the Year as a freshman in 2008 and a third team honoree a year ago. He becomes the third UTEP player to earn first team All-Conference USA honors since the Miners joined the league in 2005, along with John Tofi (2006) and Stefon Jackson (2008 & 2009).
Culpepper, a junior guard, leads the team in scoring (18.1 ppg) and steals (1.8 spg), while ranking third in assists (2.0 apg). He is also averaging 2.8 rebounds while shooting 47 percent from the field, 38.3 percent from outside and 74.2 percent from the line. Culpepper has led UTEP in scoring a team-leading 14 times this season, with eight 20-point games and three 30-point games. He ranks second in Conference USA in three-pointers made per game (2.7), third in scoring, fifth in steals, seventh in three-point field goal percentage, eighth in minutes (33.4 avg.) and 11th in field goal percentage. A three-time Conference USA Player of the Week, he has the top two scoring games in C-USA this season (45 points versus East Carolina, 39 at UCF).
Culpepper ranks fourth in UTEP history with 1,597 points. He needs 27 points to tie Louisville's Marques Maybin for 15th place on the all-time Conference USA list. Culpepper is UTEP's all-time leader with 247 three-point field goals and 697 three-point attempts, and rates second in school history with 173 steals.
Caracter, a junior forward, is averaging 14.3 ppg, 8.4 rpg, 1.2 apg, 0.9 bpg and 0.9 spg with a .552 field goal percentage and .657 free throw percentage. He is first on the team in rebounding and blocked shots and second in scoring. He has led the Miners in scoring seven times and in rebounding on 16 occasions. He is second on the squad in double figure scoring games (19), including in nine of the last 10 contests. He has scored 20+ points four times this season. Caracter has had seven double-doubles in 2009-10 and 10+ boards in eight games. He needs seven rebounds for 200 on the year. Caracter ranks third in C-USA in field goal percentage, fifth in offensive rebounds (2.8 avg.), sixth in rebounding and defensive rebounds (5.6 avg.), 11th in scoring and 12th in blocked shots.
UTEP, the top seed in the GMC Sierra Conference USA Tournament, will face either SMU or UCF in a quarterfinal game on Thursday at 8 p.m. MT from the BOK Center in Tulsa. Tickets are available by calling (915) 747-6150.
