MINERILLUSTRATED

MBB: Assists will lead to legacy 6

WBB: Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde? 8

MBB: Around the League 7

Duo Provides Better Defense Than Law Firm 10

The Final Word 14

VOL 1 ISSUE 2 JAN. 19, 2010

MARCH MADNESS begins IN EL PASO!

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f i n d m o r e i n f o a t c o n f e r e n c e u s a . c o m

MINERILLUSTRATED

VOL I ISSUE 2 JAN 19, 2010

Anytime you go to a UTEP sporting event, you always see something different. That’s the goal of the Miner Illustrated Magazine, allowing our readership to find something different inside every issue we publish.

Our hope is that you’ll find feature stories and commentary you won’t find anywhere else, letting you to delve into the minds of the players and coaches and allowing you to build a strong relationship with them.

I feel we accomplished that goal with the first issue, as a short answer.

In our first edition, we introduced you to UTEP’s confident and brash center, John Bohannon, while in our “Final Word” column Alex Morales delved into some of the early season problems that popped up once again with the men’s basketball team this season.

This week we’re going past the statistics and bringing to light two players, Jeremy Williams and Gabriel McCulley, who have stepped up their games on defense to help the Miners surge to a 15-4, 3-1 Conference USA record. Alex will also voice his opinion on a few Don Haskins Center traditions that may have been lost over the last few years.

Both will provide good reading material.

Were there some growing pains throughout the planning, writing, editing and implementation process? You better believe it, but that’s where the learning and improvement begin. The staff’s immensely excited about this new venture, and we hope the same can be said for our readers.

So expect the unexpected and enjoy the second edition.

Carlos Silva, Jr.

a publication of Shamrock Media LLC

CHRIS AVILAPRESIDENT

CARLOS SILVA, JR.EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

JEFF TAYLORCHIEF PHOTOGRAPHER

GUS CONTRERAS ANGEL LUNA

ALEX MORALESJOSH PUGA“UTEP66”

STAFF WRITERS

DANNY LEVARIODIRECTOR OF BUSINESS

OPERATIONS

SUZETTE THOMPSONMAGAZINE DESIGN

Letters to the editor, general feedback and advertising

inquiries:show@minerillustrated.com

Cover photo: Randy Culpepper

attempts a layup last Saturday

night against Rice at the Don

Haskins Center. Jeff Taylor

From The EDITOR

The men’s team isn’t the only squad focused on playing defense. Erika Warren stepped up her game last Sunday afternoon when the women took on Houston. UTEP rotated multi-ple defenders on the Cougar’s Court-ney Taylor, but it wasn’t enough as she recorded 18 points and led her team to a 70-62 victory. Jeff Taylor

THE BIG PICK

M I N E R I L L U S T R A T E D . C O M

ROUTINE PLAY GOESLARGELY UNNOTICED

6

the-legs bounce pass, to a wide-open Christian Polk who drained a three-point shot. The record setting assist came thanks to an aggressive drive toward the basket. Stone was inside the paint and kicked the ball out to an open Jeremy Williams, who hit another 3-pointer, extending the Miner lead to 23. They were both brilliant and looking back, the sequence of events epitomize Stone’s game. Since his first day in a Miner uniform, the 6-foot 7 inch guard has constantly said that his goal was to make the team better, first, and if he got better along the way; it was an added bonus. He was here to do the dirty work, something legendary coach Don Haskins would have appreciated. Stone is regarded by Tim Floyd as a special and unique player, who has become even more of a leader throughout his senior year. “I just love him as a player,” Floyd said. “He’s starting to become more vocal. He was a little casual early in the year

practice-wise in terms of what I felt was of his intensity and passion to practice.” That hasn’t been the case, as of late, as Stone has found time to continue working on the little things: analyzing tape and asking in-depth questions in preparation for the next opponent. “We have to play off of him. We know it and he knows it and I love what I’m seeing out of him,” Floyd said. Stone’s increase of intensity has allowed him be the kind of player that is able to draw a defense to him with a rare long shot and then drive the ball and look for other players with kick-out passes.Stone has done the dirty work but hasn’t rested on his laurels, as there is still plenty of season left to be played. And when it does end – whenever that might be – Stone will be remembered not for his scoring prowess, but as a player whose selflessness led him to mark his place in the record books. Then he’ll smile once more.

theNOTEBOOKSenior guard Randy Culpepper scored 22 of his game-high 26 points in the first half to lead the Miners to a 69-58 win at Tulane. Three others scored in double-figures for UTEP: seniors Jeremy Williams (13 points), Claude Britten (12 points) and Christian Polk (10 points).

Additionally, Culpepper’s 26 points against Tulane helped him become the No. 2 scorer in Conference USA history. He passed USF’s Altron Jackson (2,017 points) on the league scoring list and trails only former teammate Stefon Jackson, who posted 2,456 points from 2005-09. After Saturday’s game against Rice, Culpepper has 2,039 points.

Audio and video of Christian Polk and Randy Culpepper’s buzzer-beating shots that sent their game against UAB into the first and second overtimes, respectively, can be found online at YouTube thanks to Miner fan MinersWon. Jon Teicher, the voice of the Miners, is dubbed over the CBS College Sports broadcast. You can find it here: http://youtu.be/xvFWX1VfBzs.

Julyan Stone’s assists-per-game average after Saturday’s contest is 5.4 per game.

If he were to continue that pace for the remainder of the schedule, he could finish with 168 regular season assists and 698 for his UTEP career.

Imagine what might happen if the Miners play deep into the postseason?

CHRIS AVILA

As soon Julyan Stone made what looked like a routine pass during last Saturday night’s game against Rice, a subtle smile came to his face. He knew what had happened and as the 30-second timeout was called, he turned to the crowd and waved his arms in the air. Most fans may have thought he was doing it in celebration of the defensive clinic the Miners put on, but that wasn’t the case. Following his instance of bliss, he strolled over to the bench as if nothing happened at all. The moment was over and as he walked over to the bench, he was refocused. It wasn’t until the public address announcer made mention of the record-breaking assist that the fans stood in unison and applauded Stone’s accomplishment inside the Don Haskins Center. The record-tying assist was crisp, direct and eye-catching, being a between-

Julyan Stone had a tre-mendous week as a Miner. First, he led his team to a Wednesday night victory over the Tulane Green Wave recording a career-high 15 rebounds. He topped off the week by breaking the C-USA all-time assist record Sat-urday night against against Rice. Jeff Taylor

M I N E R I L L U S T R A T E D . C O M 8

ADAMS DEALING WITHTEAM’S EVOLVING ALTER EGOS

CARLOS SILVA, JR.

A year ago, today, the UTEP women’s basketball team was 11-7 overall and 2-2 in conference play. If you take a look at their current standing, (10-6, 2-2 Conference USA), the team is a few games off their pace from last season. But that’s not the only similarity. Following last Sunday’s 70-62 loss to Houston at the Don Haskins Center, it was evident head coach Keitha Adams saw the same thing as well: the team is getting outrebounded and outhustled. Once again, a bad trend is rearing its ugly head. Call it a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde syndrome that the team took on last season, but the Miners have been either really good in wins or really bad in losses. This season the team has embodied that same aura, outrebounding opponents by nine in wins and losing the battle of the boards by five a contest, but the

noteworthy stat is turnovers. In wins and losses the Miners have averaged about 16 per game; that’s around the number they averaged last season (16.7). That’s not a good trend, and it may not change with the absence of Whitney Houston and Briana Green. The veteran guards are lost for the year, due to injury. As a result, it has paved the way for freshman Kelli Willingham to play more minutes at the point. This has been a good and bad thing. On one hand it has been good because she’s earning valuable experience but adverse because she’s been forced to learn on the fly. That certainly wasn’t the plan before the season, but that’s the reality of the team’s season. The Miners are tied with four teams at the moment, Memphis, Rice, SMU and Tulsa, at 2-2 in conference play with 12

games left before the C-USA Tournament in El Paso. The remaining games are split between home and road, meaning UTEP will need to steal a few on the road to earn a higher seed for the tournament. A tough task when the Miners have a 2-3 road record.But that can change. Forward Ashley Milian has stepped her game up, along with Anete Steinberga, have averaged 11 points per game over the last four games. Both players had been nonexistent on the offensive end but turned on their games due to their tenacity on defense. Could this be the spark to a turnaround? No one knows. The two things Adams knows is that her team must rebound and keep turnovers to a minimum for the rest of the season. If not, she’ll be looking at the scoreboard – a few more times – as she walks back to locker room after a loss.

If the Miners are to finish the season better than last year’s performance, then players like Kelli Willingham will have to continue to hustle after the ball. Jeff Taylor

M I N E R I L L U S T R A T E D . C O M 9

MBB: AROUND THELEAGUEMINER ILLUSTRATED STAFF REPORTS

Memphis 77, Marshall 61MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Will Coleman recorded his first double-double of the season (19 points, 11 rebounds) as the Tigers (13-4, 2-1 Conference USA) defeated Marshall, 77-61, Saturday afternoon at the FedExForum. Charles Carmouche ended the game with 16 points, while Tarik Black finished a rebound short of a double-double (12 points, nine rebounds). Will Barton made 7 of his 9 shots from inside the three-point line in a 15-point, five-assist effort. DeAndre Kane led the Thundering Herd (12-5, 1-2 C-USA) with 16 points while Tirrell Baines recorded 15 to go along with a team-high nine rebounds. Damier Pitts recorded 14 points.

Houston 70, SMU 68

Memphis forward Tarik Black (10) lays one in past Marshall’s Johnny Thomas (0). David C Minkin / The Daily Helmsmant

DALLAS, Texas - Adam Brown scored 22 points in a tightly contest in which Houston defeated SMU, 70-68, on Saturday at Moody Coliseum. Papa Dia finished with 23 points, 11 rebounds and a career-high seven blocked shots for the Mustangs (10-7, 1-2 C-USA), and Robert Nyakundi chipped in 22 points. Alandise Harris finished with 19 points and 11 rebounds, the second double-double of his collegiate career. Adam Brown came off the bench to pour in 22 points, while junior guard Darian Thibodeaux added a career-high 17 points. Houston’s (10-6, 2-1 C-USA) leading rebounder, Maurice McNeil, was benched for violation of team rules.(continued on page 13)

M I N E R I L L U S T R A T E D . C O M

BASH BOTHERS:DUO’S TENACITY FUELSMINER DEFENSE

1 0

USA and find ways outhustle and outplay them. This is what has helped the Miners through the first 19 games of the season, giving them a 15-4, 3-1 Conference USA record. “Gabe and Jeremy have continually gotten better and better,” assistant coach Phil Johnson said. “Gabe, early in the season, really wasn’t prepared for the demands we were going to place on him because Gabe has to guard different kinds of players every night.” Their versatility has been a godsend to the coaching staff. Williams, who has seen more playing time since arriving at UTEP than McCulley, has adjusted well to the new style of play that coach Floyd has instilled. Last year, when Williams was inserted into the starting lineup after the road loss at Houston, the team went 15-1 in conference play. There’s no question his defense, along with his ferocity were key attributes that his teammates acquired during that stretch. His new coaches have seen William’s commitment to a team mentality. He’s bought into the system that’ being taught and been a great senior leader. “Jeremy is a guy who is a great person and is going to buy in to whatever it is that we are doing,” Johnson said. “He is a tremendous teammate. He is a tremendous game-playing guy. He’s very bright.” Williams also realizes that he does not need to be the go-to scorer on the team because of the surrounding offensive talent. This enables him to focus on his defense and get the crucial stops that his team needs in a possession to possession game. His ultimate goal is to help his team win but, at the end of the day, winning is what is most important for him. “I have really been all about winning my whole career playing

unsungHEROESWho would have known a year ago that two players, with vastly different backgrounds, would become such a force for opponents this season? Gabe McCulley was recruited out of high school by Tony Barbee and his staff thanks to him averaging a double-double at Craigmont High School in Memphis, Tenn. He never received enough playing time to record the same output during Barbee’s tenure. He missed last season due to a wrist injury and was granted a medical redshirt, giving him an extra year with Tim Floyd and the Miners.

Jeremy Williams, who transfered from Southwest Tennessee CC, made an immediate impact with the Miners in his first season of play. He averaged 10 points and just under five rebounds a game. His breakout performance came against Memphis in which he posted his first double-double (18 points, 12 rebounds) as a Miner, helping his team end the Tigers 64-game winning steak. It also put him on the map as he was honored with the Conference USA preseason second team honors for the 2010-11 season and got him a thunderous YouTube dunk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3BcvaCcb_ds.

Together, the two have earned high praise from Floyd as they’re expected to provide help defense and shutdown the opponent’s two scoring options.

ALEX MORALES

It’s become routine. After all the grueling practices and rapid-paced games the Miners have gotten used to running down the court to get back on defense after missing a jump shot on offense. Each player calls out who they’ll defend on the defensive end, while Jeremy Williams and Gabriel McCulley locate their man last Saturday against Rice. Rice guard Tamir Jackson threw the ball into the paint, the duo anticipated the pass and collapsed on Owl forward Lucas Kuipers, causing him to press and turn the ball over. After the play Williams and McCulley smirked at one another, knowing they were the ones who caused it. “Jeremy and I are kind of like counterparts, we work together, we tag each other in and out,” McCulley said. “We talk about that in practice, we go at each other in practice and we just try to show that off in the game. We are like Batman and Robin almost.” That comparison is a bit trite, so we’ll go with “Bash Brothers”. Williams and McCulley bash each opponent’s offense with their in-your-face defense. The two players’ roles have had to expand to fit the team’s needs this year. Coming into the season, the two were on different paths, but intersected due to their similar skill sets on the defensive end. Williams had an immediate impact last year, but McCulley had to be redshirted due to a wrist injury he sustained following a dunk attempt. This year the duo has been vital, embodying the heart and soul of the defense. They play against the bigger frontcourt players in Conference

continued on page 12

Forward Jeremy Williams has been part of the one-two punch defen-sivly for the Miners this season. His partner in crime, Gabe McCulley, completes the effective partner-ship. Jeff Taylor

M I N E R I L L U S T R A T E D . C O M 1 2

has at that position, Williams takes it upon himself to make sure that is not the Miners Achilles heel. “That motivates me more to step up,” Williams said. “We have true bigs but at the same time, in Conference USA, you have a lot of bigs that are versatile. I’m versatile myself, so I do pretty good at containing those versatile bigs that like to drive (to the basket).” With the athletes continuing to grow, especially center with the ability to move around better and hit shots from anywhere on the court, Williams has had

to make sure that he gets better to stop them when asked to guard those types of players in Conference USA. “The newer big men now days are the ones that can drive and hit the 17 footer from time to time,” Williams said. “If I can contain that I feel that I put us in a better position to win the game.” So far Williams has been able to do that. The same goes for McCulley who had to watch his teammates win a conference title and get into the NCAA Tournament without his contributions. This has put a chip on his shoulder and made him humble, allowing him to come in with the attitude to contribute in any way he can. “That experience humbled me last year, watching those guys from the bench and not being able to play a lot,” McCulley said regarding his redshirt. “For them to win the championship and not be a part of that experience on the floor last year made a big difference for me. This year I am just trying to do whatever I can do to get us back to that point.” “That’s not a great feeling at all,” McCulley added. “It does a lot to you. It makes you grow, it makes you humble, it makes you hungry all that. That is a big part of why I’m playing different.” McCulley rehabilitated a majority of last year and wiped the rust off this season. During that time he matured as a player and improved his defensive game. Little did he know that change would make the largest impact for his team this season. This team may look cosmetically different from a year ago, and it isn’t because of who they lost, but of the two makeovers two players underwent. The duo has brought the two things that were missing from the year before: physicality and team mentality. If the team can keep those mental aspects, another run at the conference title and a tournament berth can be achieved. Time to play some defense.

(Bash Brothers, continued)

basketball,” Williams said. “We have a lot of offense on this team. I play my part on offense, but I really feel that I need to establish myself as being more of a defender and lead by example.(I need) to show teammates we all can do this if we put our minds to it. That is what I pretty much do. I try to set the tempo on (defense), especially down low.” In Conference USA, Williams said there’s a lot of depth at the five spot, and with the lack of depth that UTEP

Gabe McCulley, undoubtedly, is Tim Floyd’s “Sixth Man” be-cause of his versatility and ability to fiercely defend oppo-nents. Jeff Taylor

M I N E R I L L U S T R A T E D . C O M 1 3

MBB: AROUND THE LEAGUE (continued)(East Carolina 76, Tulane 67GREENVILLE, N.C. - Jontae Sherrod scored a career-high 24 points in a 76-67 victory over Tulane on Saturday.Jontae Sherrod led the Pirates (9-8, 1-1 C-USA) with 24 points, 18 scored in the second half. Darrius Morrow added 14 points and seven rebounds for ECU, while Erin Straughn recorded seven points and nine boards.

Southern Miss 86, (22) UCF 69HATTIESBURG, Miss. – For the first time this season No. 22 UCF has lost two game in a row, including a 86-69 upset loss to Southern Miss on Saturday at Reed Green Coliseum. Marcus Jordan led the Knights (14-2, 1-2 C-USA) with 20 points, while Keith Clanton added 14 points and seven boards. USM’s R.L. Horton scored 18 points and D.J. Newbill added 17 as the Golden Eagles beat a ranked team for the first time since 2004 and the first time on their home court since 1986. Gary Flowers and Maurice Bolden each had 16 points for the Golden Eagles (14-3, 3-1 C-USA), who used a 21-2 run midway through the second half to turn a four-point deficit into a 68-53 lead.

Tulsa 78, UAB 62TULSA, Okla. - Steven Idlet had 16 points and five rebounds in a 78-62 Tulsa victory on Saturday night at the Donald W. Reynolds Center. Jamarr Sanders led UAB (11-4, 1-1 C-USA) with 22 points, while freshman Preston Purifoy finished with a career-high 13 points and Cameron Moore added 11. Tulsa’s Justin Hurtt scored 14 of his 17 points in the second half and Scottie Haralson added 14 for the Golden Hurricane (9-8, 2-1 C-USA), but it wasn’t enough.

UAB 66, East Carolina 59GREENVILLE, N.C. – Jamarr Sanders scored a game-high 26 points as UAB (12-4, 2-1 Conference USA) rallied from a double-digit deficit in the second half to defeat East Carolina (9-8, 1-2 C-USA), 66-59, Monday night at Minges Colisuem. Jamar Abrams and Jontae Sherrod scored 16 points each, while Brock Young scored 10, for the Pirates.

Track and Field: Senior Dimitrios Fylladitakis has been named the Men’s Indoor Track and Field Conference USA Athlete of the Week as announced Tuesday morning by Conference USA officials. The All-American opened up the 2011 season with a top spot in the weight throw at the Lobo Open with a 19.35m (63-6”) mark. The honor is the first indoor award of Fylladitakis’ career.

Softball: With the spring semester comes UTEP softball. The Miners are 22 days away from the beginning of the season and home opener. Senior “Cami” Carrera hopes to lead her team to a Conference USA championship. Barring any issues, Carrera will be returning this spring after missing the fall season due to back surgery.

Football Recruiting: The clock is ticking for the Miners and as of this edition, there are exactly two weeks left before National Signing Day. The biggest news, in the last week, was last Tuesday’s signing of JUCO quarterback Nick Lamaison. Lamaison completed 300 of 499 passes (60.1 percent) for 3,993 yards, threw 30 touchdowns and only had 12 interceptions as a sophomore. Clearly, it’s the biggest addition in the offseason for Mike Price and his staff.

noteWORTHY

M I N E R I L L U S T R A T E D . C O M 1 4

THE FINAL WORD:Fans Have Forgotten the Old TraditionsAlex Morales

I’ve attended UTEP basketball games since I was six-years old. During that time I’ve seen a lot of games and noticed the rich traditions that take place inside the Don Haskins Center. Sadly, those are fond memories. I hate hearing fans say how games were “much better” back in the ‘80s and early ‘90s, when crowds were always loud, making the Don one of the toughest places to play at in the nation. I cannot remember the crowds back in the ‘80s and early ‘90s so I did some research and found a few clips on YouTube. It showed a raucous, unrelenting crowd that cheered on during the 1985 game between UTEP and Georgetown. I was impressed, to say the least, and the videos pumped me up. That’s something I haven’t been able to enjoy over the last few years, consistently. We, as the current Miner fan base, are nowhere close to being as loud and in your face as the previous crowds were back in the hay day of Miner ball. Our fans wouldn’t understand tradition if it hit them in the face. Yes, we still stand until the opponents makes the first basket and yell the left, right, left, right, sit down chant when an opposing player fouls out, but that’s it. Most of the time the public address announcer needs to tell the crowd to stand up and cheer. That’s sad. Heck, the student section and the band have attempted to start their own traditions by raising a pickaxe, made by their hand, and being silent when the Miners attempt a free throw. While covering a game I‘ve even seen blown up faces of UTEP players, along with YouTube sensation Antoine Dodson, being waved around in the stands. But if you look around the arena there aren’t many fans that mirror their actions. It’s common sense to be quiet when the home team is shooting a free throw, and the same can be said if you see other

fans raising their pickaxes. Miner fans must turn into a unit; assemble into one solid fan base. That’s how traditions are started and are kept alive. It seems like fans go to games with hopes that a player from the opposing team fouls out, but that doesn’t always happen. What really irks me the most is the loss of the older traditions that made going to the Don a special time. Let me give you the lowdown. I’ll start with players introductions; I absolutely hate them. I think the video about Glory Road is a good idea, at the onset. But where is the background music to pump up the team and rile up the fans before tipoff? I use to love hearing ACDC’s “Thunderstruck” as it blasted from the speakers. It got the whole crowd singing the song and yelling “thunder.” Goosebumps formed on my skin, every time. Also, why did they stop incorporating the spotlights, like they did last year when they used to play Jay Z’s “Run This Town”. The second one, and most important to Miner purists, is the “Amen” chant. The crowd, especially the student section, use to sing it in unison along with the having the band playing it as well. It’s been attempted a few times this year, but hasn’t caught on which is disappointing. The Amen chant is UTEP’s version of jingling the keys in the final 30 seconds of the game when a game is well in hand. Fans would chant Amen, Amen, Aaaaaaaaamen, Amen, Amen, as the clock ran down to 0:00. What happen to this tradition? Miner basketball game was the hottest ticket in town. Now it’s second rate to Monster truck shows. Heck, it seemed like the NFL playoffs were more important than the Miners’ previous game against Rice. Which brings me to my third thing missing from the Don’s atmosphere, and that’s you. Yes, the fans who do not show up to support your Miners, who are 15-4 overall and tied atop Conference USA at

3-1 by the way. So, what gives? Floyd remembers a time when fans use to camp out and wait for tickets. This isn’t Duke I’m talking about; it’s UTEP. Now fans won’t go unless it’s on national TV, or shall I say ESPN? During the games I attended in my youth, the fans were into it, barking at referees and making it so loud my ears hurt. Now if you stand during the game, all you hear is, “Can you please sit down so I can watch the game?” That is unacceptable. If you want to sit down and enjoy yourself, go to the movie theatre or stay at home. This is a basketball game and you have to be loud and proud of being a Miner. Heck, that’s the unspoken rules of being a fan. Tradition is something that transcends generations of fans, no matter the circumstances. Whether a winning team is field or not, fans must do their part and make playing at home an advantage. With that being said, fans should embrace the new traditions with open arms but not forget about the old ones. If we can do those two things I believe the Don can still be the place to be on Wednesday and Saturday nights. But it is up to YOU to make this happen because we know that the team is doing their part. Can I get an Amen?

When was the last time you participated in the great Miner traditions? Jeff Taylor