Miners
NCAAB UTEP Miners
General Team Information:
NCAA Division: Division I
Conference: Conference USA (2005-present)
Past Conferences: Border Intercollegiate Athletic Association, Western Athletic
City: El Paso, Texas
Stadium: Don Haskins Center
NCAA Tournaments: 17 (1963, 1964, 1966, 1967, 1970, 1975, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992, 2004, 2005, 2010)
Championships:
National Championships: 1 (1966)
Conference Tournament Titles: 5 (1984, 1986, 1989, 1990, 2005)
Conference Regular Season Titles: 11 (1957, 1959, 1970, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1992, 2004, 2010)
Team History
The UTEP Miners are a Division I program located in Texas. UTEP — also known as the University of Texas at El Paso — has been a member of Conference USA since 2005 and is coached by Joe Golding.
In 1966, the school known then as Texas Western became the first to win an NCAA championship with an all-Black starting lineup. The 72-65 victory over Kentucky, during the civil rights movement, was seen as a seminal moment for college basketball. It was chronicled in the 2006 Disney movie Glory Road.
In 2007, the team was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
The Miners returned to the NCAA Tournament in 1967, 1970 and 1975, and then made seven straight trips from 1984-1990. Their tournament appearances, however, became far less frequent following a run to the 1992 Sweet 16. They’ve qualified only three times since then, most recently in 2010.
Ten NIT Appearances
UTEP has also appeared 10 times in the National Invitational Tournament, with a combined record of 6-10. Its last win in the consolation event came in 2006. Additionally, the Miners have participated three times in the College Basketball Invitational and were runners-up to Oregon State in 2009.
Notable alumni include Naismith Hall of Famers Nate “Tiny” Archibald, Tim Hardaway, Nolan Richardson, 1964 NBA first overall pick Jim Barnes, and former All-Star Antonio Davis. Don Haskins, the school’s NCAA title-winning coach, is also in the Hall of Fame.
Golding, formerly at Abilene Christian, took over at UTEP in 2021-22. He guided the Miners to 20 wins in his first season, their most in seven years. They lost to Southern Utah in the second round of the inaugural Basketball Classic.
Despite that success, the Miners faced long odds entering 2022-23. They were ranked eighth out of 11 teams in the C-USA preseason poll.
All-Time Records
Points Scored
- Stefon Jackson: 2,456
- Randy Culpepper: 2,338
- Brandon Wolfram: 1,831
Rebounds
- Jim Barnes: 965
- Terry White: 948
- Anthony Burns: 923
Assists
- Julyan Stone: 714
- Tim Hardaway: 563
- Prince Stewart: 481