Following the first win of the season, the Miner Spirit was in full force at the Don Haskins Center on Nov. 10 as UTEP women’s basketball (2-0, 0-0 Conference USA) faced off against the Morehead State Eagles (1-2, 0-0 Ohio Valley Conference).
The Miners soared victoriously 68-41 against the Eagles, starting this season’s winning streak for the team. The 27-point difference marks the largest margin of victory since December 2023.
In the first half, the Miners shot 48.3% from the field, 40% from three-point range, and 87.5% from the free-throw line.
First half accomplishments also include 22 rebounds, six assists, seven steals, and blocked two shots.
Going into half-time, the Miners led 37-24, with sophomore forward Luisa Vydrova leading offensively scoring 12 points, followed by sophomore forward Dunja Zecevic and senior guard Ivane Tensaie both scoring seven points.
UTEP kept the pressure on Morehead as the team’s defense was especially strong in the second half, only allowing the Eagles two field goals and 11 points in the third quarter and six points in the final quarter.
Three Miners ended their game on a high note seeing their first career points in the fourth quarter. Freshmen forward Osadebamwen Igbinedion Omoruyi put up four, freshman guard Thelma Barbitch scored three, and as the clock ran out, freshman guard Yagmur Canguven went for a layup scoring the final two points for the team.
At the end of the night, UTEP held an advantage against Morehead in field goal percentage with 40.3, a three-point percentage of 26.3 and a charity-stripe percentage of 68.2.
“Tonight was a fun night, and we want to (thank) everyone that came out to support us and Kayla Thornton on her special day,” said Head Coach Keitha Adams following the game.
While Coach Adams said she was proud of the team’s performance, she did hope to improve and cut down the number of turnovers as UTEP finished the game with a total of 24.
Along with the win, Nov. 10was particularly special as El Paso’s own Kayla Thronton returned to UTEP to be honored as the first player in women’s basketball history to have her jersey retired in the rafters of the Don Haskins Center.
Thorton played for the Miners from 2010 to 2014, becoming UTEP’s all-time leading scorer and rebounder and leading the team to the 2014 Women’s National Invitation Tournament (WNIT).
Thorton became a WNBA champion on Oct. 20 as the New York Liberty won their fifth game against the Minnesota Lynx 67-62.
As her jersey was shown on the rafters, Thorton emotionally expressed her gratitude for the El Paso and UTEP community.
“From the bottom of my heart, this goes out to you guys, to El Paso, to the UTEP family, to everyone in El Paso, the 915 that has been supporting me throughout my years,” said Thornton. “You know, it’s been rough, but you guys just right by my side and there’s no place that I would rather do it than in the 915.”
Miner fans can look forward to the next women’s basketball home game against the University of Texas at San Antonio’s (UTSA) Roadrunners on Nov. 16 at 11 a.m. at the Don Haskins Center
Ximena Cordero is a staff reporter and may be reached at [email protected]
