UTEP Puts Aztecs, Crowd to Sleep, 77-58

SAN DIEGO — At halftime of the Aztecs’ basketball game against Texas El Paso Monday night, they had a contest called The Big Spin and a fan nearly won a sports car, just missing a shot from halfcourt.

And for the only time during the evening, the Sports Arena crowd of 1,641 roared its approval.

The rest of the night--which, translated, means during the game--the crowd could sit on its collective hands. Just call this Western Athletic Conference game The Big Sleep.

For the record, an experienced UTEP team easily defeated Smokey Gaines’ Aztecs, 77-58, in a game that was all but decided after the first 15 minutes of play.

By that time the Miners had a 36-22 lead and were well on their way to a 2-0 WAC record and 12-2 overall. SDSU is now 0-2 and 2-10.

As for the question, “Is there any light at the end of the ever-darkening tunnel for the Aztecs?,” Gaines said that he, for one, isn’t getting much sleep worrying about it.

“My job right now is just to try to keep my ballclub’s head up,” Gaines said. “It’s not an excuse to say we’re young--it’s just a real fact. They’ve (UTEP) got a good ballclub and we just couldn’t stay with them.”

For the first time this season, Gaines employed a three-guard starting lineup in an attempt to quicken the pace and improve his club’s poor shooting. But it didn’t work.

Freshman Tony Ross, the Aztecs’ best outside threat, made his first three-point attempt of the game, and then was never heard from again. Ross, who scored 31 points in his WAC debut Saturday against New Mexico, made just 4 of 15 shots Monday and scored just one basket in the second half, that coming with seven seconds remaining.

The smaller lineup produced only nine baskets before halftime (9 for 27, 33%) and opened the way for UTEP to dominate underneath.

The Miners outrebounded the Aztecs, 24-12, in the first half to take a 38-24 lead. UTEP’s first three baskets of the game came on rebound baskets.

“There’s no question that I feel for Smokey,” UTEP Coach Don Haskins said. “There’s really no substitute for experience. And they just don’t have much.”

SDSU’s only experienced player, Gerald Murray, did provide some moments, pulling the Aztecs within 42-34 early in the second half on a pair of inside baskets. Murray finished with a career-high 20 points.

“At halftime I told the kids that I wanted them to keep fighting and try to creep back into the game,” Gaines said. “I was happy that we were able to cut it to eight.”

As much as anything else, that explains just how bad things are going for the Aztecs. Cutting it to eight was the highlight of the night.

There were no more highlights. UTEP held the Aztecs without a field goal for the next 5:50, and by the time Juan Espinoza scored on a rebound basket with 10:03 left it was 60-39.

At that time, the usually vocal Haskins tugged on his light blue windbreaker, pulled up his slacks and for all intents and purposes called it an evening.

Afterward, he talked more about his windbreaker than anything else.

“I know everybody’s wondering about the new, casual look,” said the coach, who is in his 26th season. “But we lost our luggage three days ago on our way to Hawaii. I’ve been wearing these clothes for three days now.”

In the other locker room, Gaines was saying that, the way things are going, it’s been about that long since he’s slept.