At other times, the Utes looked like they put a lid over it.
Both ways, it all added up to an 81-69 wire-to-wire victory for Utah on a night when the Miners shot 24 percent from the field in the first 31 minutes.
"That's been the key for us all year - our defense," said first-year coach Jim Boylen, whose team improved to 18-14 and will play at Tulsa in Monday's second round. "We were last in the conference last year, last in three-point shooting defense, last in field goal defense.
"This year we're at the top of the league. That's what you have to hang your hat on. We had a terrific defensive effort."
UTEP finished the season 18-14.
Eight Utes scored in the first half when Utah took a 34-24 lead into the intermission, with Johnnie Bryant eventually leading the team with 17 points to Luke Nevill's 16.
The bigger key was what Utah did on the other end. UTEP's Stefon Jackson came in averaging 23.6 points per game and had 20 Wednesday, but against a triangle-and-two defense designed to stop him, he didn't break into double figures until 5:03 remained.
"We came out in that triangle-and-two just to get him bothered," guard Lawrence Borha said of a defense that featured three players in a zone and two playing man-to-man on UTEP's guards. "We tried to stop him from scoring.
"I wouldn't say we shut him down, he had points, but he's a really good player and he's going to get his points."
Most of UTEP's came in the final nine minutes after Utah built a 59-38 lead. The Miners finally heated up, making 12 of their final 20 shots, but didn't get closer than seven and that was with 1:28 left.
"Offensively we weren't clicking," UTEP coach Tony Barbee said. "Utah did some things defensively, they stacked on some guys and played off of others they didn't think could hurt him. But we had guys with opportunities who didn't make plays."
For most of the first 31 minutes, the CBI game resembled a mid-tier football bowl with one team happy still to be playing and the other team checking its watch.
"We were fired up to play this game," Borha said. "This gives us a chance to play again, we have three seniors and it gives us a chance to play with them again.
"This will be a good thing for next year."
This year, however, still has at least one more game left.
Wednesday's CBI scores
Utah 81, UTEP 69 Bradley 70, Cincinnati 67 Tulsa 61, Miami (OH) 45 Valparaiso 72, Washington 71
Storylines
* IN BRIEF: Utah never trail and dominate early defensively, jumping out to a 21-12 lead and stretching it to 21 points by the midpoint of the second half.
* KEY MOMENT: After a 10-0 UTEP run gets the Miners within 59-48 with 5:57 remaining, Stefon Jackson fouls Luka Drca 20 feet from the basket, then gets a technical for arguing it. Utah make four free throws to end the run.
College Basketball Invite
Quartefinals
Monday, time TBA
Utah 81, UTEP 69
FG FT Reb
Utah Min M-A M-A O-T A PF Pts
Tillie 14 2-3 0-0 0-3 0 4 4
Green 32 3-8 1-1 0-11 3 3 8
Drca 19 2-5 4-4 0-3 1 5 9
Borha 25 1-4 5-6 2-4 2 1 7
Brown 21 2-3 5-6 1-3 0 0 9
Bryant 32 4-14 6-6 0-2 0 1 17
Kepkay 25 3-8 2-3 0-4 4 3 9
Grim 6 1-1 0-1 0-0 0 2 2
Nevill 26 5-12 6-6 6-12 4 3 16
Totals 200 23-58 29-33 9-42 14 22 81
Percentages: FG .397. FT .879. Three-Point Goals: 6-21, .286 (Bryant 3, Drca, Green, Kepkay). Team Rebounds: 3. Turnovers: 15 (Bryant 3, Drca 2, Green 3, Borha 3, Kepkay, Nevill 2, Tillie). Blocked Shots: 2 (Green, Nevill). Steals: 4 (Green 2, Tillie, Brown).
FG FT Reb
UTEP Min M-A M-A O-T A PF Pts
Watts 23 4-7 4-5 1-1 0 2 14
Ramalho 26 0-4 3-6 3-5 0 5 3
Stone 33 2-5 0-0 2-9 7 1 5
Jackson 20 9-20 0-0 2-8 0 3 20
Kilgore 27 2-12 4-9 1-6 5 2 8
Smith 2 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 2 0
Culpepper 30 6-14 1-2 3-7 0 4 14
Portalatin 4 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 1 0
McCulley 11 1-5 2-2 1-3 0 1 5
Britten 4 0-2 0-0 0-1 0 1 0
Sampson 2 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 2 0
Totals 200 24-69 14-24 13-40 12 24 69
Percentages: FG.348. FT.583. Three-Point Goals: 7-19, .368 (Jackosn 2, Watts 2, Stone, McCulley, Culpepper). Team Rebounds 3. Turnovers: 10 (Sampson, Jackson, Watts 3, Stone, McCulley, Britten, Culpepper). Blocked Shots: 3 (Sampson, Ramalho, Culpepper). Steals: 6 (Kilgore 2, Stone 3, McCulley).
Technical Fouls: None.
Utah 34 47 - 81
UTEP 24 45 - 69
A - 5,313. Officials: Sid Rodeheffer, Jerry Sauder, James Ferrari.
