March 1, 2008
Season Stats in PDF Format 
Box Score vs. UTEP in PDF Format
DALLAS (AP) -- Jon Killen scored a career-high 33 points and hit a key 3-pointer, his seventh of the game, late in the second overtime to lead SMU past UTEP 99-96 on Saturday night.
Bamba Fall added a career-high 19 points for the Mustangs, including two go-ahead foul shots with 48 seconds left in the second overtime. UTEP's Stefon Jackson missed a 3-pointer with four seconds left that would have tied the game. Fall was 9-of-10 at the free throw line for the game and had six rebounds.
Marvin Kilgore scored 28 points and Jackson had 27 to lead UTEP (16-11, 7-7 Conference USA).
This was the most points by SMU in a conference game since a 104-87 home-win over UTEP on Jan. 20, 2000.
Killen, who was 7-of-11 from 3-point range, sank his final one with 2:16 left to give SMU (9-18, 3-11) a two-point lead. Killen also has nine assists.
Derrick Roberts added 17 points for the Mustangs. He also was charged with defending Jackson, who was held scoreless in the overtimes.
Papa Dia added 10 points and had a team-high eight rebounds. Paulius Ritter also had a career-high nine points for SMU. Dia and Ritter both fouled out late in regulation.
The Mustangs host No. 2 Memphis on Wednesday at 7 p.m. The game is carried nationally on CSTV. The SMU seniors of Killen, Roberts, and Ritter will be honored before the game.
SMU vs. UTEP March 1, 2008
Matt Doherty, SMU HEAD COACH On preparing after the East Carolina loss: We went after it. We went after it at 6 a.m. on Friday and then we went today at 1:30 and it was a practice. It wasn't a shoot around it was a practice for an hour and we'll do that again Wednesday.
On the starting lineup: We had some competition in practice and I told the team that won, would start. I wanted to make us more competitive. We haven't been competitive, especially on the road. Basically that's why I juggled the starting lineup. There were a couple of other juggles in the lineup too that we my decision. But I made practice very competitive, short, but competitive on Friday morning and, again, today we went after it. We didn't compete at East Carolina.
On Killen: It's an amazing story, really. Jon Killen I don't think was thinking he would have a big role in college basketball as a sophomore. He transformed his game and now he is one of the best in the league. He had 33 [points] and Stefon Jackson, one of the leading scorers in the nation, had 27 [points]. It's really neat. I challenged Jon because I think I was giving the guys excuses and saying, `Jon, I know you're tired you need to cut back on practices.' And then it hit me when I looked at the stats in minutes played in the league. Fatigue - no excuse. You have to step it up. And he knows that if he plays well we have a chance, but if he doesn't play well it is very difficult for us to win. And that's the pressure, but he embraces that.
On being down by 13: I laugh, I said 13 is like our magic number. When we get down by 13 [points] then the game is on. I think it was Rice we were down by 13, UCF we were down 13 and I think there may be one other game we were down 13 and came back and won. It's amazing how quickly the game can turn around. We went to a box-and-one and I think that changed the momentum of the game a little bit. That made them a little stagnate and that gave us the opportunity to get some momentum and then Jon coming off the ball screens and hitting big shots.
Jon Killen, SMU SENIOR GUARD On playing 50 minutes: Encouragement from my team mates, we had a great crowd, it was a necessity. It's not something you want to be thinking about it, making sure I have my legs for the next shot, or trying to stay on your man. You just play though it - you have so much adrenaline. You find a way to fight through.
On scoring 33 It's a lot of fun. It's nice to score those points, but It's better when you get the win. It's a lot like Central Florida. I had a career-high that night, but I don't remember it as much because we didn't get the W. It really kind of seals the deal and makes it a memory.
Derrick Roberts, SMU SENIOR GUARD On defending Stefon Jackson: I just had one thing in mind and that was to, I mean we came down and I think the first OT we were running a box-and-one on them and then coach went to a triangle-and-two and my goal was pretty much to make his life miserable on the offensive end. Any time he caught the ball I wanted to make him feel uncomfortable.
