EL PASO — Jhivvan Jackson poured in a game-high 24 points and UTSA overcame a 10-point second-half deficit in a 67-63 victory over UTEP in Conference USA action on Saturday night at the Don Haskins Center.
Jackson's ninth 20-point game of the season led three Roadrunners in double figures, as Keaton Wallace added 16 and Nick Allen scored 14 to help UTSA improve to 8-7 overall and 2-0 in league play for the first time since the 2013-14 campaign.
Jackson added five rebounds, five assists and a steal and Byron Frohnen grabbed a season-high 13 rebounds to help the Birds to their eighth win in the last 10 outings.
UTSA, which converted 16 UTEP turnovers into 28 points, used a 21-5 run in the second half to erase a 10-point deficit and reclaim the lead for good en route to its fifth straight triumph against the Miners (5-8, 0-2), who shot just 26.9 percent after halftime and 39.3 percent for the game.
After UTEP grabbed its largest lead when Nigel Hawkins converted a three-point play to make it 45-35 early in the second half, Wallace knocked down a three and a long jumper to pull the visitors to within five.
Evan Gilyard hit a pair of free throws, but UTSA got a layup from Frohnen, a short one-handed jumper by Atem Bior and a fast-break layup by Jackson to make it a one-point game with a little more than 14 minutes left to play.
Following a UTEP basket, Jackson was fouled while draining his first 3-pointer of the night. He made the free throw to give UTSA a 50-49 edge, its first lead since the six-minute mark of the opening half, capping a 16-4 run.
Jackson connected from downtown again near the midway point of the half to make it 56-50, putting a stamp on the 21-5 stretch.
FINAL! UTSA rallies from a 10-point 2nd-half hole to post a 67-63 win at UTEP, improving to 2-0 in @ConferenceUSA. Jackson, Wallace combine for 25 of our 34 points in final period. #BirdsUp🤙
— UTSA Basketball (@UTSAMBB) January 6, 2019
🔗 https://t.co/zkB9MUl40p pic.twitter.com/Fa9b18p1CE
UTEP trimmed the UTSA lead down to two when Gilyard hit a three from the left wing to make it 62-60 at the 5:33 mark, but the Roadrunners held the Miners scoreless for the next 5:21 while extending the lead to 66-60.
Paul Thomas hit a long three from the left wing with 12 seconds remaining to to end the drought for the Miners and make it a three-point contest.
However, Jackson was fouled and made his first attempt from the charity stripe to help seal the win.
Gilyard led UTEP with 18 points on the strength of four 3-pointers, while Kobe Magee and Thomas pitched in with 10 apiece. Efe Odigie added eight points and a game-high 16 boards.
UTEP drained 8-of-14 3-pointers and shot 50 percent from the floor in the first half to help open up a seven-point advantage at halftime.
Allen sank his first three and four of his first five shots from the floor, the last coming on a corner trey that put him into double figures and gave UTSA a 23-17 lead with 8:25 left in the half.
The Miners answered with a 19-4 run over the next four minutes that was spurred by five 3-pointers — two by Kobe Magee — to build a 36-27 advantage. That stretch ended with 10 unanswered points, five by Gilyard.
Giovanni De Nicolao, who finished with seven points, eight rebounds and three assists, ended a scoring drought of more than three minutes with a jumper from the left elbow at the 2:53 mark. A Jackson jumper and a Wallace layup in the final seconds of the half helped cut the deficit to 40-33 at the break.
The Roadrunners will return home to host Rice (7-9, 2-1) next Thursday, Jan. 10. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. at the Convocation Center and the game will air on ESPN+ and Ticket 760 AM.
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