After scoring the game's first point, UTEP failed to lead the rest of the way, falling to UT-San Antonio 73-64 Nov. 11 at the Don Haskins Center in the 2011-12 regular season opener.
The Miners were within striking distance after a three by freshman guard C.J. Cooper made the score 43-37 with 14:43 remaining but the Roadrunners had an answer. UTSA went on a 10-2 run to blow the game open and never saw their lead dwindle below double digits until the 2:20 mark.
UTEP tried to make one last push but the deficit was too much. The Miners, down by their largest deficit at 66-48, went on an 11-2 run. After a three-pointer by junior guard Jacques Streeter that cut the lead to 68-59, UTEP failed to score over the next 90 seconds. The Miners finished 45 percent from the field, 33 percent from three-point range and 11-of-20 from the free-throw line.
"I felt like if we just go guard and go rebound in the second half, we'd have a legitimate shot to get back in the game," head coach Tim Floyd said. "But we didn't do that and they played with poise late, they took care of the basketball better than we did and they had big offensive rebound baskets."
After UTEP outrebounded UTSA 27-11, including 9-0 on the offensive side in the first half, UTSA had six more boards with a 7-4 advantage on offensive rebounds in the second.
"We came out with a lot of intensity right away," freshman forward Cedrick Lang said. "Our defense was actually pretty good, we were killing them on the boards but that second half we didn't come out like we should have and it hurt us."
Senior center Alex Vouyoukas made his presence known scoring 10 of his 12 points and four of his five rebounds in the second half. He sparked a 9-2 run for the Roadrunners during the second half when he had two put backs. He gave them their largest lead at 64-46 when he took a rebound away from Lang and laid it in.
"We had a great year last year and we returned almost every player from last year so we're an experience team and we can't afford to let teams come back," Vouyoukas said. "We were skilled enough and experienced enough to not let them come back."
The closest UTEP got in the second half was when sophomore guard Michael Perez cut the UTSA lead to five off a three on the Miners' first possession of the half.
The game never went in UTEP's favor after sophomore center John Bohannon scored the first point on a free throw. The Miners went down 13-3 right after and trailed by as much as 11 points at 18-7 with 8:58 to go.
UTEP cut the lead down to four when they answered with a 7-0 run but the Roadrunners rebutted with an 8-0 run of their own to give them their largest lead of the half at 26-14. UTSA led 33-25 at the half.
The Miners had 13 turnovers compared to three for the Roadrunners as UTSA held a 12-2 advantage in points off turnovers.
"I attribute the first half to nerves more than anything else. I was watching things that I just couldn't believe I was watching. In term of some of the turnovers I was asking, ‘who's that guys?' and ‘what's going on?'" Floyd said.
UTEP will have a quick turnaround when they play UC-Riverside Nov. 13 at the Don Haskins Center.
William Vega may be reached at prospector@utep.edu.
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