Halftime Report
Only one more half stands between UTEP and the win they were favored to collect coming into this evening. They have jumped out to a quick 31-30 lead against Jax. State.
If UTEP keeps playing like this, they’ll bump their record up to 15-4 in no time. On the other hand, Jax. State will have to make due with an 11-8 record unless they turn things around (and fast).
Who’s Playing
Jax. State Gamecocks @ UTEP Miners
Current Records: Jax. State 11-7, UTEP 14-4
How To Watch
What to Know
We’ve got another exciting Conference USA matchup on schedule as the Jax. State Gamecocks and the UTEP Miners are set to tip at 9:00 p.m. ET on Thursday at Don Haskins Center. The Gamecocks are strutting in with some offensive muscle as they’ve averaged 77.8 points per game this season.
Last Saturday, Jax. State was able to grind out a solid victory over Sam Houston, taking the game 71-62. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Gamecocks.
Quel’Ron House was the offensive standout of the game as he went 6 for 11 en route to 19 points plus three steals. He had some trouble finding his footing against La. Tech on Thursday, so this was a step in the right direction. Jaron Pierre Jr., on the other hand, was considerably less helpful: he went 0-5 from downtown.
Meanwhile, UTEP beat FIU 81-73 on Saturday.
Otis Frazier III and Ahamad Bynum were among the main playmakers for UTEP as the former went 8 for 10 en route to 22 points plus three steals and the latter went 6 for 11 en route to 18 points plus three steals. The dominant performance also gave Bynum a new career-high in assists (four).
Jax. State’s win was their seventh straight at home, which pushed their record up to 11-7. As for UTEP, they have been performing incredibly well recently as they’ve won eight of their last nine matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 14-4 record this season.
Thursday’s match is shaping up to be a scrappy contest: Jax. State has crashing the boards this season, having averaged 40.5 rebounds per game. It’s a different story for UTEP, though, as they’ve been averaging only 29.4. Given Jax. State’s sizable advantage in that area, UTEP will need to find a way to close that gap.
Jax. State is hoping to beat the odds on Thursday, as the experts think they’re headed for a loss. Be careful betting them against the spread as while they’re 11-5 ATS overall, they’re only 0-2 against UTEP in their most recent matchups.
Odds
UTEP is a solid 5.5-point favorite against Jax. State, according to the latest college basketball odds.
The oddsmakers were right in line with the betting community on this one, as the game opened as a 5.5-point spread, and stayed right there.
The over/under is 137.5 points.
See college basketball picks for every single game, including this one, from SportsLine’s advanced computer model. Get picks now.
Series History
UTEP has won both of the games they’ve played against Jax. State in the last year.
- Feb 29, 2024 – UTEP 72 vs. Jax. State 65
- Feb 01, 2024 – UTEP 79 vs. Jax. State 71
