At some point down the road, when UTEP's large freshmen class becomes more experienced and seasoned, when those bright flashes become more consistent and the mistakes fewer, they can be a contending basketball team.
The Miners got a good feel for what that will look like Thursday night against Western Kentucky. The Hilltoppers were supposed to be the best women's basketball team to come into the Haskins Center this season, and in a 71-54 victory that kept them in first place in Conference USA, they very much looked like it.
Playing patiently and together on both ends of the floor, they pulled away early with a 16-0 run and eased home to show why they are 15-5 (7-1 in C-USA).