SAN ANTONIO – UTSA men's basketball opens its march toward the 2018 Conference USA championship at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday. The fifth-seeded Roadrunners will play the 12th-seeded and in-state rival UTEP Miners in the tournament's first round.
Game overview
• UTSA, the fifth seed, opens the Conference USA Championship on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. against No. 12 seed UTEP. The game will air on the Roadrunners Sports Network (Ticket 760 in San Antonio) with Andy Everett providing play-by-play. The game will also be web streamed on Facebook Live with Steven Bartolotta (play-by-play), Kyle Youmans (analyst) and Hailey Sutton (sideline) on the call.
Series history vs. UTEP
• UTSA and UTEP have met 15 times on the basketball court with the Miners holding a 10-5 advantage. The first game of the series was played in 1981 with UTEP winning 65-37 in El Paso. The Roadrunners picked up their first win in the series on Nov. 11, 2011 with a 73-64 triumph in El Paso. Since joining C-USA, UTSA is 4-6 against the Miners with, including a sweep of this season's two meetings. UTSA won by a 65-61 margin back on Jan. 20 at the Roadrunners' Convocation Center, then secured its first win in El Paso since the 2011 season opener with a 63-59 victory on Feb. 10.
UTSA's conference tournament history
• UTSA is making its 11th straight and 29th overall conference tournament appearance in its 37th season. The Roadrunners are 25-24 all-time in league tournament games. UTSA has captured four conference tournament crowns in seven championship game appearances, claiming the 1988 Trans America Athletic Conference (now Atlantic Sun) title and winning the Southland Conference Tournament in 1999, 2004 and 2011. UTSA is 17-13 in neutral site conference tourney contests, including the 1988, 1999 and 2011 tournaments.
UTSA in the C-USA tournament
• The Roadrunners are 1-4 in Conference USA tournament play, earning its lone victory last season with a 56-52 upset of No. 8 seed Western Kentucky.
15 3-pointers x 5
• UTSA has made 15 3-pointers in five games this season (program record is 17). The Roadrunners first made 15 at Tulsa (Nov. 28), then against Bethany (Dec. 16), at Nebraska (Dec. 20), at UAB (Jan. 27) and at Rice (March 3).
• Deon Lyle led the Roadrunners' most recent barrage with a UTSA season-high eight 3-pointers. The junior finished the contest 8 of 19 from three. Keaton Wallace counted four against the Owls and Giovanni De Nicolao three.
Lyle Makes first starts
• After coming off the bench in each of UTSA's first 29 games, junior Deon Lyle made his first start of the season in place of injured Jhivvan Jackson at North Texas on March 1. Lyle finished the contest as UTSA's leading scorer with 15 points, including three 3-pointer, to go along with five rebounds in season-high 30 minutes of action.
• The Hastings, Neb., native made his second start in the regular-season finale. He scored a season-high 33 points with 24 coming by way of eight 3-pointers. He also grabbed six rebounds in his 32 minutes.
Exceeding expectations
• UTSA, which was selected ninth in the Conference USA preseason poll, finished fifth in the league standings. In Steve Henson's first two seasons, the Roadrunners have gone from a five-win program before he took over to 14 wins last year and 18 wins this year.
Up Next
• With a win UTSA will face No. 4 seed Marshall in the quarterfinal round on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. A loss would leave the Roadrunners awaiting possible NIT, CBI or CIT postseason invitations.
