GAME NOTES: The Louisiana Tech Bulldogs will try to contain Vince Hunter as they invade the Don Haskins Center for a Conference USA battle with the Texas- El Paso Miners.

Hunter recorded his ninth double-double of the season on Sunday with 15 points and 10 rebounds in the Miners' 66-57 victory over Rice. The win was the fourth in a row for UTEP, which enter's Thursday's contest with a 10-4 overall record and a 2-0 mark in league play. Coach Tim Floyd's squad is 6-1 at the Don Haskins Center this season, with the only blemish being a 60-55 loss to Arizona on Dec. 19.

Louisiana Tech has a star of its own in senior swingman Raheem Appleby, who is the second-leading scorer in the conference at 17.1 ppg. Appleby poured in a season-high 30 points to lead the Bulldogs to an 83-70 decision over Southern Miss his last time out. Coach Michael White's team is hoping to pick up its third consecutive win to improve upon its 10-4 ledger and stay perfect in C- USA play.

This will be the 17th meeting in history between the Bulldogs and Miners on the hardwood. UTEP is 9-7 versus Louisiana Tech, including a 7-1 record in El Paso. These schools will square off again on Feb. 26, in Ruston.

Hunter is ranked third in the C-USA in scoring (16.7 ppg) and leads the conference on the glass with 10.3 rpg. The sophomore forward is clearly the most dangerous player on UTEP's roster, but Hunter has plenty of support. Senior forward Cedrick Lang is contributing 10.6 ppg and 5.9 rpg, Earvin Morris, Jr. is netting 10.1 ppg and Julian Washburn has stuffed the stat sheet regularly en route to averages of 9.8 points, 3.7 rebounds and 2.6 assists.

The Miners have the fifth-best scoring defense (64.0 ppg) and scoring offense (71.1 ppg) in the C-USA. Their 47.5 percent shooting from the floor on the campaign is the best in the league and their 36.4 percent efficiency from beyond the arc is the second-highest in the C-USA.

Louisiana Tech rose to 3-4 in true road tests with its 13-point triumph over Southern Miss. Xavier Stapleton and Alex Hamilton joined Appleby in double- figures with 17 and 16 points, respectively, while senior point guard Kenneth Smith racked up 11 assists and five steals. The Bulldogs attempted more shots from 3-point range (38) than they did from inside the arc (22) and assisted 21 of their 29 makes from the floor.

Louisiana Tech has one of the most potent attacks in all of college basketball, as it ranks 32nd nationally in scoring with 76.4 ppg. Hamilton is producing 15.4 ppg, Eric McCree is adding 10.8 ppg and Smith records a C-USA leading 7.6 helpers per outing.

The Miners are very good in their own building, but Louisiana Tech is not going to be a walk in the park. The Bulldogs are capable of taking any Division I program to the wire due to their scoring. They will need to keep Hunter and company off the glass to have a chance of handing UTEP its first C- USA loss.