LAS CRUCES, N.M. — In a heated rivalry matchup, the UTEP Miners pulled off a hard-fought 66-63 victory over the New Mexico State Aggies Saturday, Feb. 8, at the Pan American Center. The win marked the Miners’ first road triumph against the Aggies in 14 years and avenged their 85-57 loss to NMSU Saturday, Jan. 11.
The Miners came out strong, leading from start to finish. By halftime, they held a slim 28-24 advantage, relying on a solid defensive effort to keep the Aggies in check. Despite multiple comeback attempts from NMSU in the second half, the Miners maintained their edge, holding off the Aggies in the final moments to secure the win.
UTEP’s Devon Barnes led all scorers with 18 points, shooting 9-for-11 from the free-throw line. Otis Frazier III and Kevin Kalu both played key roles for the Miners as well both ending up with near double-doubles. Frazier III put up 16 points and grabbed nine rebounds while Kalu contributed nine points and a team-high 10 rebounds.
The Aggies saw a balanced scoring effort with Emmanuel Tshimanga scoring a season-high 13 points, which led the team. He also snatched six rebounds and blocked two shots. Christian Cook put up 12 points and collected three steals, while Zawdie Jackson chipped in nine points.
Peter Filipovity has been a reliable asset for the Aggies all year long, especially in conference play. Despite this, Filipovity was not himself against the Miners, largely in part because he had the flu.
“We played like a team that practiced all week long without their best player because he had the flu,” head coach Jason Hooten said in the postgame press conference. “That’s exactly what we looked like tonight.”
With the win, the Miners improved to 16-7 overall with a 6-4 conference record. The Aggies fell to 12-11 and 5-5 in conference. The Miners will return to the Don Haskins Center to face Florida International University Thursday, Feb. 13. The Aggies will look to bounce back against Liberty the same night at home. Both games take place at 7 p.m.
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