FIU was the least talked about surging squad in the league before they dropped a 66-60 contest last Saturday at home against Southern Miss.
Boasting a top front court duo in C-USA with Daviyon Draper and Adrian Diaz will be problematic for UTEP to matchup with.
The 6'7 Draper has scored in double figures in 20 of his last 24 games dating back to last season, and is in a streak of six straight double figure scoring games.
The biggest matchup problem will be All-Conference center Adrian Diaz.
Coming into their weekend Texas road trip, Diaz led all D-1 players in blocked shots, and has shot higher than 66 percent from the field in six out of FIU's last eight games from around the rim.