EL PASO, Texas | Romelle Mansel and Jayme Mitchell Jr. scored in double figures for Jackson State in a 67-61 loss to UTEP at the WestStar Don Haskins Sun Bowl Invitational on Friday night.

Mansel finished with 17 points and six rebounds, while Mitchell finished with 13 points and seven rebounds. Juan Reyna III finished with nine points and seven rebounds, while Keiveon Hunt added nine points and Ebo Wilson finished with eight rebounds.

Jackson State took a 14-13 lead midway through the first half before UTEP went on a 9-0 run over the next four minutes to take a 22-14 lead. The run was ended with a pair of Mitchell free throws that trimmed the lead to 22-16 with 5:36 to play in the opening half. Despite being held without a field goal for nearly seven minutes in the first half, Jackson State pulled to within 26-20 when Mansel took a lob from Reyna with 2:45 remaining in the first half. The Miners were able to push the lead back to double figures before a pair of free throws from Mansel with under a minute trimmed the deficit to 30-22. The lead stayed the way before a free throw from UTEP pushed the lead to 31-22.

Jackson State climbed to within seven at 37-30 in the second half before UTEP was able to put the game away with a 14-5 run, extending the lead to 51-35 with just over 12 minutes to play in the game hitting on 81.8 (9-of-11) percent from the floor during the stretch. Meanwhile, Jackson State was shooting 33.3 (5-of-15) percent during the same time frame. The Tigers went on a 16-1 run over a span of 3:06 late in the second half to trim the deficit to 64-57 with 1:19 to play in the game before UTEP was able to hold on for the win.

Inside the Numbers
Jackson State finished the first half shooting 29.2 (7-of-24) percent from the floor and 9.1 (1-of-11) percent from beyond the arc. They also shot 87.5 (7-of-8) percent from the free throw line. Meanwhile, UTEP shot 47.8 (11-of-23) percent from the floor and 25.0 (2-of-8) percent from beyond the arc. The Miners also shot 58.3 (7-of-12) percent from the free throw line. UTEP won the turnover battle in the first half, forcing 13 Jackson State turnovers while committing just four of its own. Meanwhile, Jackson State dominated the boards in the first half, winning the rebounding battle 22-14.

Jackson State shot 37.1 (13-of-35) percent from the floor and 15.4 (2-of-13) percent from beyond the arc, while also shooting 61.1 (11-of-18) percent from the free throw line.

The Tigers finished the night shooting 33.9 (20-of-59) percent from the floor and 12.5 (3-of-24) percent from beyond the arc, while shooting 69.2 (18-of-26) percent from the free throw line. Meanwhile, UTEP finished the night shooting 52.2 (24-of-46) percent from the floor and 42.9 (6-of-14) percent from beyond the arc. They finished the night shooting 54.2 (13-of-24) percent from the free throw line.

Game Notes

• Former Milwaukee Bucks teammates Mo WIlliams and Earl Boykins met on the court as coaches for the first time, The duo played for the Bucks in the 2007 season with Williams averaging 17.3 points per game and Boykins 14.0 points per game.
• The Tigers played without Marcus Watson Jr. and Daeshun Ruffin on Friday night.
• The game was the first time the Tigers hit the floor since a game at Iowa State on December 8, and have yet to play this season with their entire team in uniform.
• This is the third appearance in the tournament for the Tigers having played in 2000 and 2006. They defeated UTEP in the lone meeting between the two schools in 2006 behind a tournament record 49 points from Trey Johnson.

Up Next
Jackson State will face Akron in the consolation game tomorrow night at 5 pm (MT).

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