Box Score
RENO, Nev. - UTEP ended Hawai'i's run at the 2005 Western Athletic Conference Tournament with an 80-62 victory, Thursday, in the day's first quarterfinal game. The Rainbow Warriors likely ended their season with a 16-13 record.
The trio of Omar Thomas (21), Filiberto Rivera (19), and Jason Williams (18) combined to score 58 points to lead the Miners (25-7) to victory. Reserve guard Miguel Ayala scored all 10 of his points in the first half. UTEP will face the Rice in the semifinals.
UH forward Julian Sensley and guard Bobby Nash scored 13 points each for team-high honors. Guard Matt Gibson added nine points while guard Jake Sottos, who averaged 17.5 points in two games against UTEP, was held to seven on 2-of-7 shooting.
"You have to give UTEP credit," UH head coach Riley Wallace said. "Our goal was to come out and match their intensity. For these early games you have to have your people ready to play and I must have not done a good job of getting our guys ready."
The Miners controlled the tempo of the game surging out to a 10 point lead seven minutes into the game. The 'Bows trimmed the deficit to 20-14 after Nash's second 3-pointer but a 10-3 UTEP run over the next two and a half minutes, pushed the Miner lead back to double digits.
UTEP made 6-of-10 from 3-point range in the first half en route to a 45-33 halftime lead. Williams was a perfect 3-for-3 from long distance and scored 15 points to lead three Miners in double digits in the period.
The Miners extended their lead to 18 early in the second half before UH scored six unanswered to cut the deficit to 62-50 with 10:58 remaining. But over the next six plus minutes, the 'Bows could not capitalize and the Miners used a 12-2 run to put the game away.
UTEP out-rebounded the 'Bows, 40-26 and converted 90.9 percent of its free throws (20-22).
UH has a slim chance at receiving a third consecutive National Invitational Tournament bid. The announcement will be made on Sunday.
The team returns to Honolulu on Friday, March 11, at 2:07 p.m. on Aloha Flight #277.
-uh-
