March 17, 2008

Utah Faces UTEP Friday In Opening Round of Inaugural CBI
The University of Utah men's basketball team will play in the postseason for the first time since 2005-06. The Runnin' Utes will travel to El Paso, Texas for a Wednesday contest in the first round of the College Basketball Invitational. Tipoff at the Don Haskins Center is slated for 7:05 p.m. MDT.

Utah enters Wednesday's game with a 17-14 overall record. The Utes defeated New Mexico 82-80 in overtime in Thursday's Mountain West Conference Tournament quarterfinal. The Utes then fell to the host school -- UNLV -- 61-55 in the semifinals. Luke Nevill tied a season-high with 26 points in the win over New Mexico. He also led the Utes with 15 points in the loss to UNLV.

UTEP comes into Wednesday's matchup coming off a 64-62 overtime loss in the Conference-USA Tournament semifinals. The Miners are 19-13 overall. UTEP is 13-2 at home this season, with its only losses at the Don Haskins Center coming to New Mexico and Alabama-Birmingham. UTEP is 1-2 vs. the Mountain West Conference this season, losing to New Mexico and UNLV and defeating Wyoming.

Runnin' Ute Fast Breaks
• Two Utah players are averaging double-digit points per game, while three more average 7.6 or more.
• Utah has had the edge in bench points 26 times in 31 games this year. Utah held a 28-3 edge off the bench in Friday's loss to UNLV.
• Utah has held six different opponents to 54 points or less this season. The Runnin' Utes did not hold a single 2006-07 opponent to less than 55 points.
• The Utes' overall win total is up six from last season, after going 11-19 in 2006-07. Utah has assured itself of its first winning season since 2004-05.
• The Runnin' Utes currently rank No. 1 in the MWC in field-goal percentage. Utah is converting at a .479 clip from the field, which also ranks No. 21 in the nation in the latest NCAA rankings.
• Utah was No. 5 in the MWC in scoring defense this week, currently allowing 63.4 points per game. The Utes have held all but four of their opponents below their current averages in regulation play this season.

Take Two, They're Free
With an 23-of-30 performance during the MWC Tournament, Utah is still the top free-throw shooting team (by percentage) in the Mountain West Conference. The Utes are converting at a rate of .753 from the charity stripe. They are ranked No. 1 in the MWC and No. 16 in the nation in the most recent statistical reports. While Utah has shot the ball very well at the line for much of the season, the Utes have struggled somewhat getting there. Utah ranks last in the MWC in free throws attempted per game (15.3).

Notes On Nevill
Junior center Luke Nevill ranked ninth in the nation in field-goal percentage last season, shooting .637. The 7-1 Aussie hasn't been quite that hot this season. However, he has heated up since coming off the bench in the last five games, going 42-of-74 (.568) and has raised his overall field-goal percentage to .547 (No. 2 in MWC). Nevill has averaged 20.8 points since coming off the bench. Nevill's 1.68 blocked shots per game is No. 1 in the MWC. His 52 rejections this season are the most for a Ute since Andrew Bogut swatted 65 shots in 2004-05.

-UU-

University of Utah Men's Basketball

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