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UTEP-Texas Tech Preview

Jan 2, 2010 - 9:41 PM By ALAN FERGUSON STATS Writer

UTEP (9-2) at Texas Tech (11-2), 3:00 p.m. EDT

A pair of lackluster performances have threatened to push Texas Tech out of the Top 25 for the first time in nearly a month.

Poor starts have been a problem for the No. 20 Red Raiders, and another one Sunday against visiting UTEP could lead to them dropping from the poll.

Texas Tech's 9-0 start got the team into the Top 25 on Dec. 7, the first time it was ranked since end of the 2004-05 season.

The Red Raiders (11-2), though, split their past four games and trailed at halftime in three of them. They could not overcome a 14-point deficit in an 85-83 loss at Wichita State on Dec. 19, and trailed by 12 after 20 minutes of a 90-75 defeat at No. 19 New Mexico on Tuesday.

"We just have to get off to a better start, more energy," coach Pat Knight said. "It's pretty much simple stuff. Our body language, kids' personalities, having an urgency. You gotta have an urgency every time."

Texas Tech was down by five at halftime against visiting McNeese State on Friday but rallied for a 76-75 win, needing Mike Singletary's two free throws with 18.4 seconds left to complete the comeback.

"These last four games we're giving up 40-45 points in the first half," Knight said. "At least this game, I give them credit, we only gave up 31 in the second half. We won because we played defense in the second half."

Singletary, averaging a team-leading 15.8 points, finished with 27.

Only two Red Raiders scored in double figures in a 96-78 loss in El Paso last Dec. 17, which snapped Texas Tech's seven-game win streak in the series. John Roberson scored a career-high 33 points, but none of his teammates had more than 10.

UTEP got 27 points from Randy Culpepper and 28 from the now-departed Stefon Jackson for its first win over Texas Tech since Dec. 5, 2000.

Culpepper, a junior guard, leads a balanced UTEP attack with 18.7 points per game. The Miners, among the nation's leaders with 82.1 a contest, have five players averaging at least 10.9 points.

However, only Culpepper and Christian Polk reached double figures in Tuesday night's 58-47 win over Air Force, scoring 14 points apiece. Derrick Caracter just missed his fifth straight double-double with nine points and 10 rebounds as the Miners won the Sun Bowl Invitational title.

"We needed a game like that - a grind-it-out, tough, ugly game," said coach Tony Barbee, whose team won its previous three contests by an average of 37.3 points.

UTEP, which averaged 94.3 points in those victories, is seeking its second five-game win streak of the season after opening 5-0.

The Miners and Red Raiders are meeting for the 11th consecutive season, with Texas Tech holding a 39-17 series lead.