Ruben R. Ramirez

UTEP WBB Hosts Perennial C-USA Power Middle Tennessee on New Year’s Day

New Year’s Day Ticket Special: Four Tickets for $22

12/31/2021 3:56:00 PM

UTEP Game Notes

EL PASO – Coming off a tough overtime loss on Thursday night, the UTEP women's basketball team (8-3, 0-1 Conference USA) will have a quick turnaround when it hosts Middle Tennessee (9-2, 1-0 C-USA) on New Year's Day (Saturday) at 1 p.m. in the Haskins Center.

UTEP is coming off a 76-74 overtime loss against UAB on Dec. 30, as Destiny Thurman led the way with 17 points. MT won its league opener by trampling UTSA, 85-56, in San Antonio on Dec. 30, as Blue Raiders' leading scorer Courtney Whitson poured in a career-high 31 points.

The matchup features the high-scoring Miners (74.5 ppg), who rank second in C-USA in that department, while the Blue Raiders clamp down on the other end of the court, ranking second in scoring defense (54.6 ppg).

TICKET SPECIAL VS. MT ON JAN. 1
UTEP will ring in 2022 with a contest against Middle Tennessee on New Year's Day (Sat., Jan. 1). The Miners and Blue Raiders will tip off at 1 p.m. in the Haskins Center. Fans can purchase four tickets for $22. Visit www.UTEPMiners.com/NewYear and use promo code: NEWYEAR.

WHERE TO WATCH & LISTEN
The Miners and Blue Raiders can be heard on a the UTEP Miners app and online with Mando Medina calling the action. The contest will also be streamed on CUSA.tv.

TICKET INFO
Tickets start at $8 while groups of 10 can purchase tickets for $5 a piece. Fans can buy single-game tickets and season tickets (starting as low as $65) for the new campaign at the Eisenberg Family Ticket Office by calling (915) 747-UTEP, visiting www.UTEPMiners.com/tickets, emailing tickets@utep.edu, or in person at 500 W. University Ave., 79968-0579 (Monday thru Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.).

UTEP'S PREVIOUS GAME
UTEP fell to UAB, 76-74 OT, on Thursday night in the Haskins Center. The Blazers shot a scorching – and efficient – 60.4 percent (29-48) from the field, including a 7-of-12 effort from downtown. The Miners struggled to shoot 32 percent (25-73) from the floor. UTEP trailed most of the game – 38:05 to be exact – and was down by as many as eight points. But the Miners battled as usual. Four Miners hit double figures led by Destiny Thurman's 17 points (7-14 FG) with a pair of steals and two assists. Katia Gallegos tallied 14 points, a team-high three assists and two steals, while Teal Battle and Elina Arike each hit 12 points. Arike added a team-high nine rebounds (eight offensive). Battle added two steals and four rebounds. UAB outrebounded UTEP, 37-35. The Miners also gathered 23 offensive boards, and outscored the Blazers 30-12 on second-chance points. UTEP even snagged 10 steals and forced 23 UAB turnovers. But it was in the paint where the Blazers torched the Miners, outscoring them 40-26.

UTEP TO THIS POINT
The Miners played in two consecutive overtime games for the first time in program history after defeating Air Force 93-85 in double overtime, and most recently falling to UAB 76-74 in OT. UTEP has now played in a program-most tying three overtime games this season. Destiny Thurman leads the Miners in scoring (14.7 ppg) while ranking ninth in C-USA. Katia Gallegos (14.5 ppg) ranks second in the team and 10^th in the league in scoring. Gallegos leads UTEP with 41 assists and ranks sixth in C-USA in assists per game (3.7). Elina Arike continues to impress in her second season as a Miner. Arike leads UTEP and ranks sixth in the league in rebounding (8.4 rpg), while averaging 9.9 points per game. Teal Battle ranks third on the team in scoring (11.0 ppg) and second in rebounding (4.6 rpg). The Miners are averaging 74.5 points per game, ranking second in C-USA behind North Texas (75.7 ppg). UTEP ranks fourth in C-USA in field goal percentage (42.4), shooting 284-of-670 from the floor. The Miners rank last in field goal defense, however, yielding 47.2 percent to opponents. The Miners ranks third in in C-USA 3-point field goal percentage (33.5).

ALL-TIME SERIES VS. MT
MT owns a 9-1 all-time record against UTEP. The Miners' lone victory came during the 2015-16 season when they defeated the Blue Raiders 84-73 in the Haskins Center on Jan. 7. The Miners are looking to snap a seven-game losing streak to MT, while posting an 0-3 mark in El Paso during that stretch. The Blue Raiders won the last meeting, 74-58, at the 2020 Conference USA Tournament (March 12). The two programs twice last season with MT coming out on top 76-60 on Jan. 30 in Murfreesboro, and 92-80 on Feb. 22 in El Paso.

SCOUTING MT
The Blue Raiders, who are one of the top 3-point shooting teams in the nation, are 9-2 and have won their last two games. MT won at UTSA, 85-56, on Dec. 30, and closed out its nonconference slate with a victory against Southern Illinois, 62-61, on Dec. 17. MT started 4-0 before falling against Marquette 59-55 in OT on Nov. 26. The Blue Raiders other loss came at Troy 77-76 on Dec. 11. Courtney Whitson, who came off a career-high 31 points at UTSA, leads the charge at 13.7 points per game, while she leads C-USA in minutes played (423:18) and minutes per game (38.5). Dor Saar (12.5 ppg), Kseniya Malashka (12.1) and Jalynn Gregory (11.5) also average double figures. Malashka leads MT in rebounding (7.0 rpg), while Alexis Whittington averages 6.6 boards per contest and Whitson averages 6.5 rebounds per game. Whittington leads C-USA with 2.7 steals per game. Saar leads the team with 35 assists in 11 games, while Gregory has dished out 25 dimes. Whittington has tallied 24 assists. MT is one of the top defensive squads in the league, ranking second in C-USA and 35^th nationally in scoring defense (54.6). Middle Tennessee ranks no. 1 in C-USA and top 15 nationally in multiple categories – 3-point FG defense (22.5, ninth nationally), 3-point FG attempted (368, fifth nationally), 3-point FG made (113, 15^th nationally) and 3-point FGs per game (10.3, seventh nationally). MT averages 10.3 steals per game, ranking third in C-USA.

MINER NOTABLES

DISHING DIMES
Katia Gallegos has dished out 41 assists this season (3.7 apg). The El Paso product ranks fifth on the school's all-time list with 320 assists. Ana Valtierra (2002-07) ranks fourth with 324 and Terri Pedregon (1991-95) ranks third with 326. Kellie Willingham (2010-14) ranks second with 373, and Jareica Hughes (2006-10) leads the list with 599.

STEALING THE SHOW
Katia Gallegos leads UTEP with 22 steals (2.0 spg) this season. For her career, Gallegos has tallied 116 steals in her three years at UTEP. She needs 25 steals to crack the program's top-10 list. Jareica Hughes(2006-10) leads the list with 277.

KATIA'S CHARITY STRIPE SUCCESS
Katia Gallegos scored a career-high 26 points at NM State on Dec. 15, while chalking up a career night at the free-throw line. The El Paso product sank a career-high 16 free throws on a career-most 20 attempts against the Aggies. Her previous best was a 9-for-10 effort at Southern Miss on Jan. 9, 2020. She ranks 11^th in Conference USA and leads UTEP free-throw percentage (76.6) hitting 49-of-64.

KATIA'S FT CAREER
Katia Gallegos has made 189-career free throws in 65 games as a Miner. She ranks t-22^nd on the program's all-time list, and needs 64 made FTs to crack the school's top-10 list.

KATIA DRAINING TREYS
Katia Gallegos has hit 82 3-pointers in 65 career games. Gallegos ranks 14^th on the school's all-time list, and needs 15 to crack the program's top-10 list.

CAREER-HIGH MINUTES FOR THURMAN
Destiny Thurman played a career-high 40 minutes against UAB on Dec. 30. Her previous high was 32 minutes on a trio of occasions – at Charlotte on Feb. 27, 2021, versus North Dakota on Nov. 13, 2021, and against Air Force on Dec. 21, 2021.

CAREER-HIGH DIMES FOR ARIKE
Elina Arike dished out a career-high six assists in UTEP's double overtime win over Air Force on Dec. 21. Here previous high was four, which she did on a trio of occasions – at Charlotte (last season), vs. North Dakota (Nov. 13), at New Mexico (Dec. 19).

CLEANING GLASS
Elina Arike is averaging a team-high 8.4 rebounds per game. Arike ranks sixth in C-USA and 97^th nationally. Arike, earlier in the season, pulled down a career-high 15 boards against North Dakota on Nov. 13. She registered 14 rebounds most recently against Air Force, and tallied 13 rebounds against NAU on Nov. 20.

ARIKE'S DRAMATIC IMPROVEMENT
Elina Arike is averaging 9.9 points per game and 8.4 rebounds per contest. She's added 19 assists, four blocks and 11 steals in nine games played this season. Last season, Arike averaged 4.3 points and 2.3 rebounds per game to go along with 23 assists, six blocked shots and eight steals in 25 games.

ARIKE'S EFFORT VS. AIR FORCE
Elina Arike played a career-high 43 minutes in UTEP's 2OT win against Air Force. Arike added a career-high six assists, while scoring 16 points and grabbing 14 boards. Arike set career highs in made FTs (6) and FT attempts (7).

FIRST EVER BACK2BACK OT GAMES
UTEP played back-to-back overtime games for the first time in program history. The Miners defeated Air Force 93-85 in double overtime on Dec. 21 and most recently fell to UAB 76-74 in overtime on Dec. 30.

MOST OT GAMES IN A SEASON
UTEP played in three overtime games so far in 2021-22, matching the school record. UTEP won at NM State, 82-78 in OT on Dec. 15, against Air Force 93-85 in 2OT, and fell against UAB 76-74 OT on Dec. 30. The Miners also played three OT games during the 2007-08 season (W 72-66 OT at NM State, W 67-64 OT at SMU, W 73-72 OT at Southern Miss); the 2017-18 season (W 93-79 OT vs. ECU, W 92-91 2OT at Cal State Fullerton, L 56-52 OT at ODU); and the 2020-21 season (W 80-76 OT vs. NM State, W 81-73 OT at NM State, W 68-64 OT vs. UAB).

FIRST 2OT GAME SINCE 2019
UTEP played in its first double-overtime game since a 64-58 win against Marshall in the 2019 Conference USA Tournament.

MOST POINTS SINCE 2017
UTEP scored 93 points in its double-overtime win against Air Force on Dec. 21. It was the most points since matching that number in a victory over ECU (93-79) in overtime on Dec. 17, 2017 in Myrtle Beach, S.C. It's the most points scored in the Haskins Center since hitting 93 points in a win over WNMU on Nov. 17, 2016.

MORE ON 93
UTEP scored 93 points for the fifth time in program history on Dec. 21 versus Air Force. The Miners are 5-0 when scoring 93 points in a contest. UTEP poured in 93 points vs. ECU (Dec. 17, 2017), vs. WNMU (Nov. 17, 2016), vs. Hardin-Simmons (Nov. 29, 1996) and vs. ACU (Dec. 7, 1979).

PUTTING UP THOSE POINTS
UTEP is accounting for 74.5 points per game, helped by a pair of 80+ point efforts and a 93-point outing. The 80+ scoring outbursts occurred in the first two games of the season, something that hadn't happened in two decades. The scoring average is second in C-USA and 59^th nationally. The 2013-14 Miners averaged a program-best 76.4 points per game (2,825 total points).

1,000-CAREER POINTS
Graduate transfer Teal Battle tallied 10 points at UNM on Dec. 19 and went over 1,000 points for her collegiate career. She scored 917 at her alma mater Arkansas-Little Rock and has tallied 121 points in 11 games as a Miner. Her 1,000^th point came at the 7:58 mark of the third quarter on a layup at The Pit.

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