UTEP Basketball to Play Without Fans Through Start of the Season

Less than 72 hours away from tip-off of the 2020-21 season, UTEP officials made the decision to play the start of the basketball season in the Don Haskins Center without fans in attendance.

UTEP President Heather Wilson said fan attendance for games would be "evaluated on a week-to-week basis" while Director of Athletics Jim Senter encouraged fans to cheer from home to improve the health conditions in the area.

The Miners basketball season gets started on Wednesday, Nov. 25, as the women's team hosts NM State (1 p.m.) while the men's program will face UTPB (7 p.m.) at the Haskins Center.

Fans can catch all the action of UTEP basketball on 600 ESPN El Paso and C-USA TV.

The only people that will be allowed inside the Haskins Center include coaches, student-athletes, medical personnel and media members. All season ticket holders and single-game ticket holders will be contacted for refund options.

“While the COVID numbers in our community have started to improve, we want to encourage all El Pasoans to continue to stay home, stay safe, and cheer on the Miners remotely in an effort to continue to improve the health conditions in our region,” Senter said in a release on Monday.

“We know of no spread of the disease at UTEP and have maintained safe campus operations throughout the semester,” Wilson added in a release. “While we test everyone in athletics and are confident in the safety of our campus, we are cognizant of the disease levels in the community around us. Decisions on fan attendance for future games will be evaluated on a week-to-week basis.”