Courtesy of LA Tech Athletic Communications
Louisiana Tech takes a four-game winning streak to El Paso as the Bulldogs open Conference USA play on tonight against UTEP at the Don Haskins Center.
Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. CT and the game can be heard on the LA Tech Sports Network with Malcolm Butler providing the call of the action.
LA Tech (11-2) closed out non-conference with an 11-2 record, its best since 2015. The last victory was a 108-60 win against Rust College, the second time this season eclipsing the century mark. The Bulldogs registered a program record 33 assists, breaking the previous mark of 31 set in 1971.
LA Tech shot 56.4 percent from the field versus the Bearcats, marking the fifth straight game eclipsing 50 percent shooting (first time done since 2016). The Bulldogs are one of only 19 teams in the country shooting over 50 percent from the field this season, ranking 11th at 50.9.
The Bulldogs scored a season-high 64 paint points against Rust College. LA Tech is averaging exactly 40.0 paint points per game, having scored 40+ points in the paint in each of its last four games.
Sean Newman Jr. was named CUSA Player of the Week for week seven after averaging 16.0 points and 14.5 assists in LA Tech’s two victories over WAC preseason favorite Grand Canyon and Rust College. The point guard scored a career-high 25 points to go along with nine assists versus the Lopes then broke the LA Tech and CUSA single-game assist record with 20 dimes against the Bearcats. He currently ranks first in the country in assists per game (9.8) and second in total assists (128), having posted six games with double-digit assists.
Daniel Batcho registered his fifth 20+ scoring performance, tallying a game-high 27 versus the Bearcats (has scored in double figures in 20 straight games). He also tied his season high with 11 rebounds, giving him his second double-double of the season. The CUSA Preseason Player of the Year is averaging 20.0 points per game while shooting 74.6 percent from the field, which leads the country. Defensively, his 35 total blocks rank fifth in the nation.
UTEP (10-3) is off to its best start in 14 years with a 10-3 non-conference record, having won four straight and seven of its last eight (lone loss was a narrow 77-74 defeat at Louisville). The Miners are undefeated in the Don Haskins Center this season, going 7-0 including two victories over Jackson State (67-61) and Yale (75-74) in the annual Sun Bowl Invitational. They have been on the winning side of a lot of close games this season, going 5-2 in matchups that were decided by two possessions or less.
UTEP ranks first in the country in steals per game (11.5) and turnovers forced per game (19.15). The Miners, who have finished top 10 in the nation in turnovers forced each of the past two seasons, have forced 20+ turnovers five times so far this season.
The Miners do not take a bunch of three-pointers, but they have been making them at a high clip. Averaging just 19.2 three-point attempts per game, UTEP is shooting 41.0 percent from beyond the arc which ranks sixth in the country. They recently made 11 of their 17 threes in the one-point victory over Yale.
Four Miners are averaging double-digit points including Otis Frazier III (13.6), Corey Camper Jr. (11.9), Ahamad Bynum (11.8), and Devon Barnes (10.4). The four have combined to make 79 of the team’s 102 three-pointers.
Frazier, a 2024 All-CUSA Honorable Mention and All-Defensive Team member, is also top two for the Miners in rebounds, assists, steals and blocks. Meanwhile, Bynum leads the country in three-point shooting percentage at 60.8 percent.
LA Tech and UTEP will meet for the 35th time on Thursday with the Bulldogs holding a 20-14 advantage in the series. The two programs met six times between 1952 and 1999 before becoming league foes in the Western Athletic Conference (2001-05).
The Bulldogs and Miners rejoined as conference opponents in CUSA in 2013 with LA Tech holding a 13-6 advantage in the series since then. The ‘Dogs have won five of the last seven matchups and are riding a series best three-game winning streak.
