SMU forward Mohammed Faye driving to the basket against Tulsa Jan 13 at Moody Coliseum. (MICHAEL DANSER/The Daily Campus)

The SMU men’s basketball team will shoot for their fourth consecutive win at Moody Coliseum against Conference USA leader UTEP tonight. The Mustangs are looking for revenge against their in-state rival after falling to the Miners 49-45 in El Paso, in the first conference game of the season on Jan. 6.
 

After defeating Tulane and improving to 11-11 overall and 4-4 in conference play, the Mustangs find themselves tied for sixth in league play. SMU’s last win at home was a 70-60 win over Memphis in January.
 

The Miners (17-5, 8-1) come to Moody riding a seven-game win streak since mid-January.
So far this season, the SMU’s defense has been the deciding factor, as the team has managed to hold off opponents by an average of 15.4 points. The Mustangs have also managed to hold three league opponents, including UTEP, to fewer than 50 points for the first time since the 1957-58 season. SMU’s defense also leads the conference allowing just 55.9 points per game.
 

Derek Williams leads the team with 17.3 points per game, putting him third in league standings.
 

The senior, and one of three team captains, has scored 20 or more points in eight games this season, including five out of the last seven games.
 

Papa Dia is looking for his eighth double-double of the season. He is currently ranked fourth in conference play, with nine rebounds per game. Averaging 14.5 points per game, Dia ranks seventh in scoring in the C-USA.
 

The Miners post the No.3 scoring offense with 76.9 points per game and have the No.6 scoring defense (64.3 PPG).
 

In league play, UTEP ranks last in free throw percentage, a category the Mustangs have excelled in during recent wins.
 

Derrik Caracter leads the Miners with seven double-doubles on the season and a 14.4 point per game average paired with a 9.1 rebound per game average.
 

In the 36th meeting between the teams, the Miners hold a distinct 21-14 advantage. The Mustangs lost 13 of the last 14 games. The last time SMU defeated UTEP was in a 99-96 double-overtime win in Moody Coliseum in March of 2008.
 

When both teams played in the Western Athletic Conference, SMU held a 9-5 advantage on the series, but have only gone 1-7 against UTEP since the teams joined C-USA in 2005.