Game Book In PDF Format
EL PASO, Texas – Jamal West Jr. tipped in a shot with 1.1 seconds left to lift the UTEP men's basketball team past upset-minded DIII member St. Thomas (Texas), 84-83, in overtime at the Don Haskins Center Wednesday evening.
The Miners (3-2) dug themselves an 11-point (41-30) deficit at the half. UTEP fought back to eventually lead by as many as five (61-56, 7:13, 2H). The Celts, who went 26-3 last year and hosted the DIII NCAA Tournament, rallied back to go up by three (72-69) with 8.2 seconds to play in regulation before
Elijah Jones drilled a corner 3-pointer as time expired to force overtime.
The visitors vaulted to a five-point cushion (81-76) two minutes into the extra session, but UTEP kept its composure and closed the contest on an 8-2 surge to pull out the victory. The final sequence was harrowing for the Orange and Blue faithful. A runner from
Caleb Blackwell didn't go.
Kaseem Watson's putback wouldn't drop as precious seconds ticked away. West Jr. managed to fully extend his right hand and tap that loose rebound back up and in. UST, which played the game as an exhibition, called timeout to set up a play but was unable to get a shot off before time expired.
"We respect St. Thomas. We watched them on tape, they're a really good team. They played terrific tonight and are extremely well coached," UTEP head coach
Joe Golding said. "We've got a long ways to go, but I'll say this. Our guys, at the end, found a way to win. We need some moments where we can come together. We could have easily lost that game, no question."
The Celts' Corey Thompson put on a show, erupting for 34 points (23 in first half) on 10-21 shooting (4-9 on 3-pointers), but a couple of missed free throws down the stretch left the door open for the home side to send things to overtime. He also couldn't convert on two chances at the line with 11 seconds left in OT and his squad up 83-82. West Jr. got the rebound and made an outlet pass as the Miners raced up the court. He then capped the comeback with the tip-in.
All five Miner starters reached double figures in scoring for the first time since it also happened at New Mexico on Nov. 24, 2018. West Jr. led the way with a season-best 20 points, followed by 15 each from
Kaseem Watson and Jones, and 11 apiece courtesy of Blackwell and
Tyreese Watson.
UTEP won the battle of the boards, 41-35, with West (season-best eight) and Jones (career-high eight) setting the tone in the department.
David Tubek also got after it on the glass with a career-most seven rebounds to go along with three points in an impactful 15 minutes off the pine.
KJ Thomas dished out five assists while
Tyreese Watson added four. The Miners had 15 offensive boards, none bigger than West Jr's that set up his game winner.
The Orange and Blue finished at 44.6 percent (29-65) from the floor, hindered by a readout of 25.0 percent (5-20) on triples, but got makes when they needed them both. UST shot it well at 44.8 percent (26-58), including a stout 47.6 percent (10-21) on triples. Both squads finished 21-29 at the charity stripe.
UST took a 5-0 lead three minutes into the tilt behind a triple and a pair of free throws. The sluggish start prompted Golding to swap out the entire lineup like a hockey change. The Miners got onto the board six minutes into the contest after Tubek split a pair of chances at the charity stripe.
A triple from the Celts was answered by a layup by Jones, UTEP's first field goal of the affair, making it a four-point differential (8-4, 12:41, 1H). The Miners made it a one-possession game (12-9, 11:04, 1H) following the old-fashioned 3-point play from
Kaseem Watson. UST had an answer, scoring seven of the next nine points in the contest to force a Golding timeout with the Orange and Blue trailing by eight (19-11, 9:23, 1H).
Cassius Brooks stopped the push with a triple out of the break, which sparked a run. West Jr. followed with the up and under for the hoop and harm to cut the margin to two. West Jr. scored again to tie the game. Brooks then picked the pocket of his defender and soared in for the breakaway dunk to put the home side ahead and a cap a 10-0 surge. The Celts, behind Thompson, struck back in the form of a 20-6 surge, and suddenly UTEP trailed by 13 (41-28).
Kaseem Watson got a lay-up late, but the Miners still found themselves down by 11 (41-30) heading into halftime.
The Orange and Blue opened the second stanza with five straight, including a trey from
Kaseem Watson to inch within six (41-35, 19:16, 2H). UST got on the board fittingly with a score from Thompson. The Miners then deployed a 6-0 push to creep within two (43-41, 16:33, 2H). UST knocked down a corner triple, stopping what was an 11-2 surge to initiate the half. UTEP immediately answered with a dunk by Jones, but two free throws from Thompson nudged the difference to five.
Trey Horton III curled off a screen to knock down a trey, bringing the Miners within two (48-46, 13:36, 2H). UST briefly stretched it to a multiple-possession contest on a couple of occasions, but UTEP remained encouraged. The Miners ran off eight straight, including a spinning layup for
Kaseem Watson, on the way to marching in front. A free throw by the visitors halted the sequence but another And-1 by West Jr. put UTEP up by five (61-56) with a little more than seven minutes to play.
To its credit, UST countered and went back out by a score of 67-65 with only three minutes left. The Orange and Blue had two looks to tie or retake the lead on the next trip down, but both shots were errant. UTEP got a key stop, and a strong take from West Jr. tied things at 67.
The Celts misfired on their next trip, but they got the offensive board and were fouled. After making the first shot, the second was errant, but UTEP batted the rebound out of bounds. UST was fouled again, and Thompson drilled both to put the Orange and Blue down by three (70-67, 17.8 seconds left). It remained a three-point differential (72-69) before Jones's heroics at the buzzer sent it to OT.
The two sides traded blows over the first couple minutes of OT before a 5-0 burst from the visitors let them go out by a count of 81-76. Two tosses at the charity stripe from Blackwell made it a three-point game. UTEP then got a stop and a bucket from Jones to creep within one. Jones, who was fouled on the play, missed the free throw but the carom went to the Miners. Blackwell split the defense for a layup as the Orange and Blue went back up by one (82-81).
UST used two free throws to regain the edge (83-82, 32.7), prompting a timeout from Golding. West Jr. had a good look on an out of bounds play, but it wouldn't go down. Thompson gave the Miners hope with back-to-back misses on the line after he was fouled. West Jr. then put the finishing touches on a strong night with the rebound and game winner.
UTEP will hit the road to take part in the Jacksonville Classic, presented by Just Play Solutions, with a pair of neutral-site matchups (vs. William & Mary and Vs. UAB) from Nov. 24-25.
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