In games when players who are shooting can't get in rhythm and others who've made a shot don't keep shooting, the path to a win is made more difficult because the ability to spread the floor becomes limited for the offense.

The Miners finished 4-of-17 from three Saturday night versus Arkansas Pine Bluff, but 19 points from budding superstar Bryson Williams powered UTEP to a 59-50 win at the Haskins Center.

Williams -- without attempting a 3-pointer -- was the only Miner to score in double figures, but the rest of UTEP's scoring was spread among seven other Miners. Souley Boum led with 9 points, two players scored 7 (Nigel Hawkins, Efe Odigie), three put up 5 points (Daryl Edwards, Kaden Archie, Eric Vila), and Tydus Verhoeven scored 2.

Despite the single-digit win, the Miners led by as many as 13 points for 29:36 after being tied for 5:43 and trailing for the first 4:40.

Through the first 8:36, the teams tied four times and Arkansas-PB led by as many 4 points with no lead changes.

As the clock read 8:02, Nigel Hawkins hit a 3-ball that put the Miners up by 2 (14-16) and initiated a lead that UTEP held the rest of the way.

Through the next three minutes, UTEP used the Hawkins-initiated 15-2 run to put themselves up their game-high 13 points (29-16, 31-18) with four minutes before the break.

Arkansas-PB responded by finishing the half on 16-4 run to get within 1 point into the locker rooms (35-34).

In the second half, the Miners scored the first eight points to go up by 9 (42-35) as the clock read 12:30 -- and the tone was set for a finish whereby UTEP held just-enough control.

From then on out, the Miners' lead fluctuated between a high of 9 points and low of 4 before the 59-50 final.