Turn Up the Orange | UTEP sports talk

The spirit of Orangeville shortlived

On Friday night, the Don Haskins Center was sold out, filled with 12,000+ fans rooting on the UTEP men's basketball team. A week of Orangeville events led up to the big day. UTEP played well, but lost to Pacific, 66-61.

Two days later ... well, I look out the window and see the star on the mountain is still orange, but the fan spirit quickly died.

Slightly more than 2,000 fans (2,000 is not a typo) showed up Sunday afternoon to watch the Miners beat Mercer, 87-74. I talked to several people who said it was the smallest crowd they can remember ever seeing at a UTEP men's basketball game. Sold out on Friday to 2,000 fans on Sunday is an amazing drop and has to be disappointing for the players.

To be sure, there were some extenuating circumstances. For one, the game wasn't included in the season ticket package because it was a tournament game. So, a lot of season ticket holders probably skipped it. Also, in this NFL-centric city, a basketball game at noon on Sunday is going to be a tough sell.

This looks to be a good Miner squad, so I don't expect many more sad scenes like we saw Sunday.

Evidence of Sunday's sparse crowd. (Photo by Ivan Pierre Aguirre)

 

Tofi's three-pointer helped UTEP beat Pacific last time

UTEP sent out some game notes for their Friday basketball game with Pacific that had some interesting history:

SERIES NOTES
        Pacific leads the series 3-1.  The teams have had some exciting battles over the years.  On March 17, 1967, the Tigers knocked the defending national champion Miners into the consolation draw of the NCAA Tournament with a 72-63 victory in Corvallis, Ore.  On Feb. 19, 2005, Pacific dealt UTEP a 73-66 setback in an ESPN BracketBuster game at Stockton, Calif.  The Miners avenged the loss with a 72-66 overtime triumph on Dec. 20, 2005 at the Haskins Center, as John Tofi’s three-pointer at the buzzer sent the game to an extra session.  Pacific also defeated UTEP, 64-62, in El Paso during the 1953-54 season.

THE LAST MEETING
        John Tofi’s first career three pointer forced overtime, and UTEP outscored Pacific 11-5 in the extra period to upend the Tigers, 72-66, on Dec. 20, 2005 at the Don Haskins Center.  The Miners rallied from a five-point deficit (59-54) in the final 2:59 to tie the game at 61.  Tofi, who had been 0-for-4 lifetime from beyond the arc entering the game, buried the trifecta with four seconds to go.

Here is video of Tofi's shot. I think the announcer goes a little far in calling it an "impossible" shot, but still exciting:

 

UTEP-NMSU podcast: Will the Miners find a bowl?

Turn Up the Orange's UTEP-NMSU football podcast

Pablo Villa, Felix Chavez and Jay Koester talk about UTEP and NMSU football, looking at UTEP's upset victory of SMU, and the Miners' bowl chances now that they are eligible. They also discuss what teams may be coming to the Sun Bowl.

To listen to the podcast, click here. (right click, save-target-as to download)

Or better yet, subscribe the Times sports podcasts on iTunes! With one click of the subscribe button, you'll automatically get the weekly podcasts. Get signed up here: El Paso Times podcast page on iTunes.

Or, if you have 20 minutes to spare at work, you can just hit the play button below and listen right now. Let us know what you think.

 

Podcast: UTEP, NMSU, the BCS and the Sun Bowl

Turn Up the Orange's UTEP-NMSU football podcast

Pablo Villa, Felix Chavez and Jay Koester talk about UTEP and NMSU football, looking at NMSU's dramatic victory over San Jose St., and the Miners' embarassing loss to Marshall. They also throw down on the BCS and what teams may be coming to the Sun Bowl.

To listen to the podcast, click here. (right click, save-target-as to download)

Or better yet, subscribe the Times sports podcasts on iTunes! With one click of the subscribe button, you'll automatically get the weekly podcasts. Get signed up here: El Paso Times podcast page on iTunes.

Or, if you have 30 minutes to spare at work, you can just hit the play button below and listen right now. Let us know what you think.