Miners Wrap Up Homestand Versus FIU Saturday

UTEP Miners

UTEP Notes For FIU Game (PDF)

UTEP (6-11, 1-4 C-USA) aims to snap a three-game losing streak on Saturday against FIU (8-9, 2-2 C-USA). Tip-off for Saturday's game is set for 7 p.m. MT. The Miners are coming off a 73-66 loss to Florida Atlantic on Thursday, which dropped them to 6-5 at home this season and 1-2 in league games. FIU squared its C-USA mark at 2-2 by winning its first conference road game at UTSA, 79-76 on Thursday. The Panthers are 2-2 on the road in 2017-18 with wins over UTSA and USF (65-53), and losses to Milwaukee (66-51) and North Florida (87-85). This is the Miners' final home game in the month of January as they'll play three in a row on the road starting next Saturday at UTSA. UTEP hasn't lost back-to-back C-USA home games since February of 2013.

The Panthers scored 17 points off 14 UTSA turnovers in Thursday's win at San Antonio. FIU held the Roadrunners to 39 percent shooting, including an 8-for-26 night from three-point range. FIU built a 10-point (47-37) halftime lead, was ahead by as many as 12 in the second half, and held on despite making 6-of-14 free throws in the second half. Brian Beard Jr. led FIU with 20 points and eight assists. Trejon Jacob chipped in with 16 points, and Eric Lockett added 15. Coach Anthony Evans is in his fifth season at FIU and has six letterwinners returning. The most experienced returnee is junior guard Lockett, who made 13 starts in 2016-17 and averaged 5.1 points. Lockett has stepped up his game this year, averaging 14.0 ppg. Newcomers Jacob (16.5 ppg) and Beard Jr. (15.5 ppg) have bolstered the FIU backcourt. Jacob is a transfer from Seminole State College, and Beard was imported from Chaffey College. FIU is leading C-USA in steals (8.2 avg.) behind Beard, who paces the league with 3.4 takeaways per outing. The Panthers are also second in the league in turnover margin (+4.1).

UTEP is 9-1 all-time against FIU and 7-1 since the Panthers joined Conference USA for the 2013-14 season. The Miners knocked the Panthers out of the C-USA Tournament in 2015 and 2016. UTEP is 3-1 versus FIU in the Haskins Center, although the Panthers' 79-69 victory on Jan. 23, 2016 ended the Miners' 11-game C-USA homecourt win streak.

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