MEN’S BASKETBALL FEATURE: Viva Vila

UTEP Miners

Eric Vila can run the floor, shoot the rock, facilitate, rebound and play defense.

The native of Girona, Spain, is a 6-11 forward and comes to UTEP as a junior with two years of eligibility after playing a season at Northwest Florida State College. His squad last season advanced to the 2019 NJCAA Elite Eight, while the Raiders posted a 28-5 overall record.

Miner fans will get a glimpse of the future of UTEP hoops Saturday when the Miners host Texas Tech in a charity game in the Haskins Center.

Vila averaged over 10 points per game and 7.3 boards at NWF State, while he'll bring a winning attitude to the UTEP basketball program for the 2019-20 campaign. And with that, Vila is no stranger to UTEP Head Coach Rodney Terry's style as he suited up for him Fresno State after transferring from Texas A&M.

"Coach brings a lot of energy to practice and the style of play is really fast," Vila said. "He stresses playing hard on defense and we take a lot of pride on defense. It's one of the emphasis on this year's team to play really good defense but also run the floor, spread the floor and move the ball fast."

He knows what it takes to go hard every day while he also played at the international level in Europe. Vila competed for the FIBA U19 World Cup for his home country Spain in 2018, averaging 13 points and 11 rebounds per game.

After playing at multiple levels, Vila knows what the overall objective is at UTEP.

"The goal is to win," Vila said. "We're working really hard every day and the ultimate goal is to win championships. It starts with a foundation by setting the tone every day in practice, working really hard and playing defense. We have to work from day one to accomplish those goals."

Vila came on a visit last season and had the chance to experience El Paso. The Spaniard has been in the Sun City since the early summer and while the community has grown him, he already considers El Paso to be home.

"I love the community. I feel like I'm home to be honest," Vila said. "I got here recently, and with this Hispanic community I feel like I'm at home. Speaking Spanish is helping me with the transition. The community is united and you saw that when the tragedy happened. People came together and we supported one another. I really like this community, it's really friendly, they all love one another and I just really happy to be here."

Vila's first time suiting up in the Orange and Blue will be Oct. 12 in the Don Haskins Center against 2019 NCAA national runner-up Texas Tech.

"I'm really excited to step onto the floor here on Saturday," Vila said. "We'll have a great environment, and we're definitely excited to compete against a good Texas Tech team. But I'm just excited to see the fans in the Don Haskins Center."

Not only will Miner fans have the chance to see Vila and his squad, but the contest will also have a great impact. All proceeds for the charity game will benefit the families of the Aug. 3 tragedy that made world news.

"It's a great opportunity for this community and to raise money for the families who have been going through a lot of stuff recently," Vila said. "I think the people here on Aug. 3 felt what had happened, it was really painful for everybody. I got here this summer and I felt the pain. This game is an opportunity for the community to come together and support one another and help the families."

The Miners will officially open the 2019-20 season Nov. 5 against New Mexico Highlands. Fans will be in for a treat when they witness Vila run the floor, hit three-point shots, rebound and play hard-nosed defense.

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