A program-best 10-0 start to the conference season came to an end Saturday night as the UTEP Miners outscored Middle Tennessee 35-15 in the final 14 minutes to escape with a 57-54 win.
After shooting just 20.8 percent from the field in the first half, the Miners shot 63.6 percent in the second half while hitting 4-of-5 triples and 9-of-10 free throws.
“They came out in the second half with a lot of energy and give [UTEP] Coach [Tim] Floyd all the credit,” senior JaCorey Williams said. “He gave us a lot of different looks defensively in the second half.”
Turnovers were the story of the night for the Blue Raiders, giving the ball away 10 times in the first half and 19 times in the game.
“We were in the top 15 in the country in assist-to-turnover ratio and turnover margin, but I’ve never seen so many unforced turnovers – especially right at the beginning of the second half – as we had tonight,” head coach Kermit Davis said.
UTEP got on the board first with a free throw just four seconds into the contest, but wouldn’t sink their first field goal until more than five minutes had run off the clock in El Paso.
The Miners wouldn’t find another basket from the field until nine minutes had expired, but managed to keep the Blue Raiders at bay in the opening minutes as well, trailing MT 9-7.
UTEP stayed within two points as the game clock went under the 5:00 mark with the score at 14-12. After a 3-point play by JaCorey Williams and a jumper by Miner Dominic Artis, Middle went on a 10-0 tear to jump out to a 27-14 lead with 52 seconds remaining before the break.
Omega Harris, UTEP’s leading scorer at 17.5 points per game, closed the first half scoring with a pair of free throws and the Blue Raiders went into the locker room up 27-16.
Williams scored first out of the break on a free throw before a UTEP triple brought them back within nine. After cutting the lead to eight at 30-22, Middle Tennessee opened up a 9-0 streak to take their biggest lead of the game at 39-22.
Brandon Walters finished off the run with back-to-back baskets to force a UTEP timeout.
The Miners fought back out of the short break, going on an 11-0 run to climb within six before a lay-in by Williams broke up the streak. Freshman Tyrik Dixon buried a corner three on the next possession to push the lead back to double digits.
An 18-6 Miner run leading into the final two minutes saw the Blue Raiders surrender the lead for the first time since the score was 1-0.
Williams gave Middle the lead back with another basket in the paint, but UTEP answered to go up 53-52 with 56 seconds remaining.
The senior from Birmingham sank a pair of free throws on the next trip down the court but UTEP went on to sink four straight free throws and take a 57-54 advantage with under eight seconds on the clock.
A UTEP timeout gave Davis a chance to draw up a play, but the 3-point attempt by Giddy Potts came up just short to give Middle Tennessee its first conference loss of the season.
Williams finished the night with a game-high 24 points to go along with 10 rebounds. The outing marked his ninth double-double this season and the second time he has reeled off three straight double-doubles.
Walters added 10 points on 5-of-5 shooting off the bench while Potts added nine.
“Teams hit peaks and valleys throughout the year,” Davis said. “We’ve still got a really good team, we just didn’t have our best today. We’ll fly back tomorrow and try to turn it around on Monday.”
Middle Tennessee returns home to host Old Dominion on Thursday and Charlotte on Saturday at the Murphy Center.
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