Miners' Effort Not Enough Against Flames' Scorching Offense at Liberty Arena
The UTEP Miners faced a challenging contest against the Liberty Flames, culminating in a 68-87 defeat. The Miners now stand with an overall season record of 0-1, while the Flames boast a 1-0 record after this conference game.
The Miners started off trailing in the first quarter with only 13 points to the Flames' 21 and continued to lag behind throughout the game. Despite their efforts, they were outscored again in the second quarter, adding just 14 points against the Flames’ consistent performance of putting up another 14 points. The third quarter saw a slight improvement for UTEP with them scoring 15 points but it was overshadowed by Liberty's impressive tally of 23 points. In a final push during the fourth quarter, UTEP managed their highest quarterly score of 26 points; however, it wasn't enough to close down on Liberty's dominant final quarter surge of 29 points.
UTEP’s offensive efforts were led by their ability to score from inside, amassing an impressive total of 42 points in paint out of their overall score. They also capitalized on turnovers scoring twelve additional points and grabbed nine offensive rebounds which contributed to sixteen second-chance points. Their shooting accuracy from two-point range was notable at fifty-one percent success rate but they struggled beyond the arc with only twenty-seven percent accuracy from three-point attempts.
Defensively, UTEP managed six steals and blocked two shots but this was overshadowed by Liberty's five blocks and sole steal which proved sufficient given their strong offensive display. The Miners also committed seventeen personal fouls over the course of play compared to twenty by Liberty.
On individual statistics for UTEP, contributions across various aspects were evident though not enough to secure victory. They had ten assists reflecting some teamwork on offense but had an assist-turnover ratio slightly above one (1.11), indicating challenges in maintaining possession against a tough defense like that posed by Liberty.
The next opportunity for redemption for UTEP fans will be when they face off against New Mexico State Aggies at Pan American Center located in Las Cruces NM on February tenth at three o'clock PM Central Time Zone (CT). Fans can catch all action live as it unfolds on designated sports networks or streaming platforms that cover college basketball games.