Game Notes In PDF Format

OPENING TIP
UTEP will play host to NAIA foe Northern New Mexico College at 7 p.m. MT Tuesday (Nov. 16). The Miners are 1-0 at home on the year while the Eagles are 0-2 on the road. The contest continues a busy stretch of playing six games over the first 15 days of the campaign. UTEP is coming off a hard-fought 77-71 setback at I-10 rival NM State on Nov. 13, while NNMC was bested at Vanguard, 78-64, on the same date. The game also continues the sequence of alternating home and road contests to begin the season, with the Orange and Blue venturing to Pacific on Nov. 19. Following that game, UTEP will play three straight and six of eight at the Don Haskins Center to conclude nonconference play on Dec. 22. The Miners will be looking to avoid back-to-back losses in the month of November in three years. UTEP is also shooting for its third straight start of at least 2-1.Jon Teicher (41st year) and Steve Yellen (19th year) will be on the call, which can be followed on 600 ESPN El Paso, the UTEP Miners App and CUSA TV (subscription required). For tickets, fans may call the Eisenberg Family Ticket Office at (915) 747-UTEP, email tickets@utep.edu, or visit www.UTEPMiners.com/tickets or in person (Brumbelow Building on UTEP campus, 201 Glory Road) Monday thru Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
 
SERIES HISTORY: FIRST MEETING
This is the first meeting between UTEP and Northern New Mexico. Head coach Joe Golding is 3-0 all time against the Eagles, with all three of those meetings coming when he was at Abilene Christian.
 
GET TO KNOW NORTHERN NEW MEXICO College (2-2)
Northern New Mexico College is an NAIA program that did not compete last year due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. In their last full season of action (2019-20), the Eagles forged a mark of 10-14 overall, including 3-3 within league action. This year they are 2-2, with a perfect record (2-0) at home and a winless mark (0-2) on the road. The Eagles are putting up 79 points per game, but are allowing 71.5 ppg. NNMC is under the direction of 12th-year head coach and also athletic director Ryan Cordova. He has nine returnees at his disposal. Early on it's been a high-octane offense for the Eagles, with three different players in double figures for scoring and five others putting up least 7.0 ppg. Marc Howard, Jr. (13.0 ppg), Keane Harris (13.0 ppg) and Ricardo Zambrano (10.8 ppg) lead the way, followed by Estevan Martinez (9.0 ppg), Tyrique Weave (8.5 ppg), Damione Thomas (8.5), Mohammad Jafari (7.8 ppg) and Joe Saterfield, Jr.,(7.3 ppg)-the brother of Miner guard Jorell Saterfield. Weaver (6.3 rpg) is the top rebounder while Jared Perez is accounting for 4.1 assists per game. It is a deep roster with 17 players having competed, including 11 playing in at least three of the four tilts. Northern New Mexico College was founded in 1909 as the Spanish American Normal School, with a goal of providing teacher training for the area's Spanish speakers. It has since grown to an enrollment of 1,200. The late Panama Red, a musician, attended the school and studied radiography.
 
GOING BACK IN TIME (at NM State 77 , UTEP 71, Nov. 13, 2021)
Souley Boum made his 2021-22 debut after recovering from an injury to tally a game-high 23 points and Jamal Bieniemy (13 points) and Keonte Kennedy (13 points) joined him in double digits, but the UTEP men's basketball team's frantic rally fell short in a narrow 77-71 setback at New Mexico State on Nov. 13. It was a five-point game (35-30) at the half and a nine-point affair with 11 minutes left before NM State ripped off nine straight points on the way to eventually leading by 19 (70-51) with 7:38 to play. It was still a 17-point differential (74-57) with 4:35 left before the Miners made their move. UTEP ripped off eight straight points to close within nine, eventually whittling It down to six before running out of time. UTEP connected on 42.6 percent (26-61) from the floor and committed only nine turnovers while forcing 16. The Miners were doomed though by NM State hitting 52.7 percent (26-50) from the floor, including 40.0 percent (8-20) on 3-point tosses. Rebounding (39-29 in favor of NM State) also played a factor.
 
TIP-INS VS. NM State
-    With just two days of practice under his belt, Souley Boum came off the bench to score a game-high 23 points in 36 minutes of action. He had been sidelined with an injury. Boum now has a 14-game streak with double figures in scoring.
-     The Miners' 71 points against NM State were the most when facing the Aggies in seven years when they had a 77-76 home win on Nov. 22, 2014. It was the most in the Pan American Center by UTEP since tallying 73 in an 86-73 loss on Nov. 15, 2013.
-    UTEP closed the game on a 14-3 run to make it a two-possession contest.
-     The Miners cut their turnovers in half, dropping from 18 vs WNMU (Nov. 9) to nine.
-    Four different Miners played 30+ minutes after no one did in the opener.
 
PUTTING UP POINTS
For the second straight season, UTEP has posted at least 70 points in each of its first two games. The Miners hadn't done that in back-to-back campaigns since 2015-16 and 2016-17. Souley Boum (23.0 ppg), Jamal Bieniemy (18.0 ppg) and Keonte Kennedy (12.0 ppg) are all in double figures for scoring to lead the way.
 
GIVE ME THAT BALL
UTEP is forcing 21.0 turnovers per game (third C-USA/18th NCAA), aided by 10.5 steals per contest (fifth C-USA/43rd NCAA). Jamal Bieniemy has been the main culprit with 3.0 steals per tilt (fifth C-USA/33rd NCAA).
 
TAKE CARE OF THAT BALL
Coupled with their tendency to turn the opponent over and doing a much better job in the turnover department with just nine in front of a hostile crowd at NM State, the Miners now have a +7.5 turnover margin (fourth C-USA/28th NCAA). UTEP is making 13.5 turnovers per game while forcing 21.0. NM State had 11 alone in the first half before finishing at 16 on Nov. 13.
 
STREAKING AT HOME IN NON CONFERENCE
UTEP has won 13 consecutive home games in nonconference action, including standing at 1-0 in the situation this year. Seven straight and nine of the 13 during the surge have come by double figures. The last non league home loss came at the hands of Norfolk State, 75-62, on Dec. 21, 2018.
 
THE BASIC FACTS ON The 2021-22 SEASON
-    This is the 101st season of UTEP men's basketball, with the Miners sporting an all time record of 1423-1095 (1-1 in 2021-22). There are 17 home games (1-0) and 13 road contests (0-1) prior to the C-USA Championships (March 8-12, 2022).
-    The Miners returned four starters (Jamal Bieniemy, Souley Boum, Keonte Kennedy and Tydus Verhoeven) and eight lettermen overall. Other returning lettermen are Christian Agnew, Cam Clardy, Gilles Dekoninck and Ze'Rik Onyema. Emmanuel White, who redshirted, is came back
-    UTEP has six newcomers in the fold in the form of Kezza Giffa, Alfred Hollins, Kevin Kalu, Bonke Maring, Jorell Saterfield and Jamari Sibley.
 -    The Miners brought back four of their five leading scorers from 2020-21 in the form of Souley Boum (18.8 ppg), Keonte Kennedy (8.6 ppg), Jamal Bieniemy (8.6 ppg) and Christian Agnew (6.1 ppg).
 
COMING SOON TO EL PASO
JUCO standout Jon Dos Anjos (nationally-ranked Florida SouthWestern State) has signed a national letter intent to enroll at UTEP and play for the men's basketball team beginning in 2022-23. Dos Anjos will have two years of eligibility for the Miners. He was a first-team all-league performer for the Bucs in 2020-21, helping them go 18-5 and advance to the semifinals of the FCSAA State Tournament. He averaged 10.3 points and 5.7 rebounds while playing in all 23 games, including 20 starts.
 
GOLDING ERA UNDERWAY
Joe Golding has embarked on his first season with UTEP, and as the 20th head coach in program history. He is the eighth head coach for the Miners since legendary Hall of Fame Coach Don Haskins retired following the 1998-99 season. Golding is 159-145 in his 11th season as a collegiate head coach, including 1-1 at UTEP. He spent 10 years at ACU, helping it transition from a Division II to a Division I program. Golding led the Wildcats to the past two NCAA Tournaments played, including a stunning upset as a 14-seed of third-seeded Texas in the first round of the 2021 Big Dance.
 
LOOKING TO JOIN AN EXCLUSIVE GROUP
First-year head coach Joe Golding (1-1 thus far) is looking to be part of an exclusive group at UTEP as heads into the 2021-22 campaign. Of the previous 19 head coaches at UTEP, only three have put together a winning season in their first year on the sidelines in the Sun City. Don Haskins became the first when he directed the Miners to a mark of 18-6 in 1961-62. Doc Sadler (27-8, 2004-05) and Tim Floyd (25-10, 2010-11) also achieved the feat. Overall the prior 19 head coaches have combined to forge an average record of 9-13 in their first year with UTEP.
 
EXPERIENCED STAFF
The Miners have an experienced staff on the sidelines for the 2021-22 season, each of whom are in their first year in the Sun City. Between head coach Joe Golding (22 years), associate head coach Jeremy Cox (30 years) and assistant coaches Butch Pierre (37 years) and Earl Boykins (eight years), the Miner coaching staff has a combined 97 years of experience at coaches at 26 different stops along the ways at varying levels of competition. Boykins is the least experienced in terms of coaching, but he's the most accomplished on the court after playing 12 seasons in the NBA.
 
PRESEASON HONORS
Souley Boum was tabbed a Preseason All-Conference honoree, it was announced before the season by the Conference USA office. A 2021 All C-USA third team member, Boum ranked third in C-USA in scoring (18.8 ppg) and fifth in the league in total points (450). He also paced the conference and was 15th in the country with 130 made free throws. Boum knocked down his free throws at a rate of 81.2 percent, which was good enough for eighth in C-USA. He also led UTEP in steals (34) and dished out 60 assists. Boum set career highs in points (34) and assists (11) versus Sul Ross State. He scored 24 points and pulled down a career-high 12 rebounds in a win against LA Tech. The explosive scorer poured in 28 points, aided by a career-best 15 made free throws, in a win against FIU. He scored 20-plus points in five consecutive games from Jan. 22-Feb. 5, averaging 22.6 ppg during the hot streak. Boum buried a career-high six 3-pointers to help him finish with 23 points in a victory Charlotte.
 
PRESEASON PREMONITIONS
UTEP was predicted to finish 10th in Conference USA, according to the preseason poll that was announced prior to the season by the league office. UAB (190 points) was slated first, followed by LA Tech (second-184 points), WKU (third-162 points), Marshall (fourth-147 points), Old Dominion (fifth-130 points), North Texas (sixth-124 points), Charlotte (seventh-110 points), Rice (eighth-104 points), Florida Atlantic (ninth-84 points), UTEP (10th-82 points), UTSA (11th-48 points), Southern Miss (12th-42 points), FIU (13th-36 points) and Middle Tennessee (14th-28 points).
 
LOOKING TO REGAIN WINNING WAYS IN C-USA
UTEP entered the 2021-22 season in search of its first winning record in Conference USA play since 2017 when the Miners went 12-6 in the league to finish tied for third. That year capped a run of five straight seasons with winning marks in conference action, the longest since 11 straight such efforts under Don Haskins from 1980-90.
 
UP NEXT
UTEP hits the road for the second time this season, playing at Pacific at 8 p.m. MT Friday (Nov. 19).  Jon Teicher (41st year) will be on the call, which can be followed on 600 ESPN El Paso and the UTEP Miners App.