UTEP Miners men’s basketball’s offseason revamp near completion with new coaches, players

• UTEP men’s basketball coach Joe Golding has rebuilt the team’s roster and coaching staff after a mass exodus of players and coaches.
• Seven new players have been added to the roster, including transfers from Division I schools and junior colleges, emphasizing size and physicality.
• Three new assistant coaches have joined Golding’s staff, including Jeremy Cox, who returns to UTEP after a year at Oklahoma State.

The UTEP men’s basketball team has largely been out of the spotlight since its season ended in March, but what may go down as the busiest offseason in program history is well underway.

Three quarters of the assistant coaching staff has been replaced, and eight of the 10 scholarships UTEP had available after an offseason exodus have been accounted for.

With the June 9 first day of summer practice three weeks away, the team that will take the floor in November is starting to take shape.

“It’s been a long two months for me,” coach Joe Golding said, starting with the turnover of his coaching staff. “I had to make some decisions after the conference tournament. I really enjoyed our staff, our staff had been together since I got here. They were really loyal to UTEP, they were loyal to me, they were loyal to our players.

“I just felt that it was time for change. And change is hard sometimes, but change is good. And so there were some long, lonely days, for me around here.”

Along with the departures of three-quarters of the coaching staff (Earl Boykins, Mike Roberts and Kevin Kaerwer), 10 scholarship players left (seven to the transfer portal, three to graduation).

UTEP has since hired three assistants, most notably Jeremy Cox, who was Golding’s top assistant in his first three seasons before spending last year at Oklahoma State, and given out seven scholarships. That latter total includes promoting Americas alum Jordan Hernandez from walk-on to a scholarship.

The Miners picked up another commit Friday from 6-foot-10 center Mouhamed Mbaye from Trinity Valley Community College, so only two scholarships (Golding is seeking a shooting guard for one of those) remain.

In the era before the transfer portal, that would all mean rebuilding for a program that doesn’t have that kind of time in the short-term (Golding is entering the final year of his contract), but this is no longer unusual. It’s how many teams operate these days.

“You don’t think of it as rebuilding, it’s become common,” Golding said. “Last year I was so comfortable because we had everybody back. Western Kentucky had a lot back, La. Tech had a lot back, Sam (Houston) had a bunch back, and for us all it didn’t work. Now we all are bringing in 10 new guys.

“Rebuilding is not the word anymore because you can get in the portal, find really good players that have a lot of experience that have played at a high level and you can change this thing in a hurry.”

That does present massive challenges.

“Obviously the worry is, how do the pieces fit, how do the personalities fit?,” Golding said. “I think you got to go find the best players that you can find, you get them here in the summer and you figure out how the pieces are going to fit.

“That’s coaching. Then you talk about what style we’re going to play.”

As for his early assessment of this new group, it will look different than the 18-15 squad from last year.

“The things we did try to put a point of emphasis on in recruiting this spring, and I think you can see it, is we wanted to get back to being bigger,” Golding said. “We wanted more length and size, especially with one through four (point guard through power forward), and I think you’ve seen that.

“We want size, and we want to get a little bit bigger, tougher, more physical. I think we’ve done a good job of doing that.”

Here is what UTEP looks like at the moment.

New coaching staff

Jeremy Cox

Cox is back as Golding’s right hand, the job he held for three years before spending last year at Oklahoma State.

“I missed (UTEP) from the day I left,” said Cox, whose son Austin is still the program’s chief of staff. “I missed the city, I missed the spirit, I missed UTEP, I missed my friendship with coach Golding.

“I knew from the first day I left, it’s where my heart was. With that being said I did enjoy a lot of things at Oklahoma State, I appreciated my time at Oklahoma State. But I love what the coaches are doing here, I love the city and I wanted to come back and finish the job we started.”

Said Golding: “He brings a toughness to us, a griminess to us that we missed last year. He wanted to come back, he enjoys this town and this university and there’s some unfinished business on the table we’re trying to get to.”

Steve Green

A veteran coach for most of the last 45 years, Green is an NJCAA Men’s Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Famer and a three-time national champion as head coach of South Plains College. His career coaching record is 705-192.

Golding wanted him to be on his first staff in 2021, but Green’s wife was vice president at South Plains and not ready to retire, and Green instead took an assistant job at nearby Texas Tech. He was in semi-retirement the last year and a half before the UTEP position came open and the timing was right this time.

“He was looking for somebody he knew and trusted. Hopefully I’m that guy,” Green said. “I’ve been out for a year and a half and I’ve been eager to get back in. This is a good opportunity.”

Hunter Jenkins

Jenkins was the head coach at Frank Phillips College in Borger, Texas, last season where he led it to a 25-9 record and its first NJCAA national tournament appearance since 1958. The star of that team, guard LA Hayes, is coming with Jenkins to UTEP.

He was head coach at Clarendon College for four years before his one season at Frank Phillips. Jenkins was a graduate assistant at Texas Tech for Chris Beard in 2017. He has spent most of his life in Texas, including winning a state championship as a senior at Palestine High in 2010 when his father was his head coach.

“I’m a big fan of coach Golding,” Jenkins said. “I’ve known him a few years. I’ve had a good relationship with him. Then, just the tradition of UTEP basketball and I’m still in the state of Texas. I’m from the state.”

Returning coaching staff

Bryen Spriggs

Spriggs begins his fourth year on the staff and third year as an assistant.

UTEP basketball roster newcomers

LA Hayes 6-5, Jr. G, Frank Phillips College

Hayes averaged 17.2 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 2.0 steals per game in his only season at Frank Phillips to lead it to its first NJCAA national tournament appearance since 1958. He began his career at Kent State.

“He’s not your typical JUCO kid that hasn’t seen Division One,” Golding said. “He’s seen it for a full year. So I think his adjustment period will be a lot quicker.”

Kaseem Watson, 6-9 Jr. F, Delaware State

The Philadelphia native, not related to the Philadelphia native and fellow UTEP newcomer Tyreese Watson, was a third team all-MEAC selection last season after averaging 15.5 points and 5.8 rebounds.

Tyreese Watson, 6-4 Sr. G, Louisiana-Monroe

Watson averaged 12.0 points, 4.3 assists and 1.7 steals for ULM last season. He played there two years after transferring from Cochise College, and got an extra year of eligibility because of the Diego Pavia lawsuit.

Jamal West Jr., 6-6 Sr. F, Nicholls State

West averaged 12.3 points, 6.5 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game while earning second-team Southland Conference honors for a second straight season.

“He epitomizes everything we look for: The physicality, the toughness, the motor, the athleticism,” Golding said. “He’s a little undersized for what he does, but he doesn’t care about getting pigeon holed in a position. He just wants to play and win.”

Bobby Montgomery, 6-5 Fr. G Mt. Zion Prep

The only freshman on the roster at the moment, he continues a pipeline to the Maryland school Mt. Zion Prep. He comes to UTEP as a three-star recruit.

C.J. Smith So. F 6-7 Oklahoma State

Smith comes to UTEP along with assistant Jeremy Cox. He sat out last season as a redshirt at OSU after one season at Coffeyville Community College, where he averaged 8.3 points and 4.6 rebounds.

David Tubek, 6-7 Jr. F Seton Hall

The native of South Sudan averaged 10.4 minutes per game at Seton Hall last season (25 appearances) and contributed 2.6 points per game.

Mouhamed Mbaye, 6-10 Jr. C, Trinity Valley

The native of Senegal has committed and his paperwork is being processed, so he is not officially on the roster yet. He averaged 4.8 points on 61% shooting from the field last season for Trinity Valley.

UTEP basketball roster returners

33 Elijah Jones, 6-8 Jr. F 6-8

Jones averaged 3.5 points, 2.3 rebounds and 10.3 minutes per game last season. He led UTEP with 23 blocks.

11 Trey Horton III, 6-5 Jr. G

An occasional sixth man last year who got one start, Hornton averaged 2.9 points and 11.2 minutes last season.

1 KJ Thomas, 6-1 So. G

Thomas averaged 9.0 minutes per game as the back-up point guard last season. He averaged 2.1 points per game as a true freshman from Canyon Randall.

2 Jordan Hernandez, 5-11 Jr. G

The Americas alum by way of Cochise College was awarded a scholarship this offseason. He redshirted last year.

Bret Bloomquist can be reached at bbloomquist@elpasotimes.com; @Bretbloomquist on X.