Boise State 58, Louisiana Tech 53
BOISE, Idaho -- Ike Okoye led Boise State with 16 points as the Broncos defeated Louisiana Tech 58-53 on Saturday in a Western Athletic Conference game.
Okoye's layup with 1:42 gave Boise State (14-5, 5-2 Western Athletic Conference) its first lead since it owned a 27-26 advantage with 1:10 gone in the second half.
Anthony Thomas scored 12 points and had 10 assists and, Paul Noonan and Kurt Cunningham each scored eight points for the Broncos.
Magnum Rolle led Louisiana Tech (8-12, 2-5) with 23 points and 10 rebounds. The Bulldogs lost for the fifth time in six games.
Boise State won its second straight game to improve to 11-1 at home this season and 4-0 in conference games at Taco Bell Arena.
Utah State 67, Hawai?i 51
HONOLULU -- Tai Wesley scored 15 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead visiting Utah State to a 67-51 win over Hawaii on Saturday.
The Aggies (19-1, 7-0), who had four players in double figures, maintained first place in the Western Athletic Conference. The Rainbow Warriors (9-10, 1-6), who lost their fifth straight game, are in last place.
Gary Wilkinson had 15 points, Tyler Newbold scored 13 and Jared Quayle added 12 points, eight rebounds and five assists for Utah State.
The Aggies shot 64 percent (14 of 22) from the field in the first half and used a 16-0 run to take a 36-19 lead into the intermission.
Utah State, which led by as many as 20 points, shot 50 percent from the field for the game. Hawaii shot just 29 percent from the field and 16 percent (3 of 19) on 3-pointers. Hawaii?s Bill Amis led all scorers with 17 points.
Idaho 67, New Mexico State 57
MOSCOW, Idaho -- Mac Hopson scored 23 points to spark Idaho past New Mexico State University 67-57 Saturday night in a Western Athletic Conference game, reversing a loss to the Aggies in New Mexico this month.
The Vandals (9-10, 3-3) had a 31-29 lead at halftime, but the Aggies (9-11, 3-4) pulled ahead 44-43 when Gordo Castillo hit a 3-pointer with 11:59 left.
The teams traded the lead until Hopson made a reverse layup and was fouled by Troy Gillenwater with 5:32 remaining. Gillenwater was called for a technical foul for arguing the call, sending Hopson to the line for two technical free throws and his and-one. Hopson missed the two technical free throws, but made the and-one to give the Vandals a 55-54 lead.
Jahmar Young hit New Mexico State's final basket of the game when made a 3-pointer with 2:02 left to narrow Idaho's lead to 59-57. Idaho went on to score four more baskets, one a breakaway dunk by
Brandon Wiley, who finished with 16 points, four blocks and seven rebounds.
The Aggies were led by Young, with 14 points.
San Jose State 85, Fresno State 79
SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Guard Adrian Oliver scored 29 points to lead San Jose State over Fresno State, 85-79 on Saturday.
Oliver shot 10-of-17 from the field and had five assists as the Spartans (9-9, 3-4 WAC) swept the Bulldogs in a home-and-home conference series for the first time since 1991. Oliver made six of his first seven shots, helping San Jose State build as much as a 16-point first-half lead.
Guard Robert Owens supported Oliver with 17 points, including 4-of-10 from three-point range. Center Chris Oakes, with 11, and forward Tim Pierce, with 10, also scored in double figures for San Jose State, which had a 43-29 halftime lead.
Fresno State was led in scoring by guard Dwight O'Neil, with 21 points, 19 in the second half. Forward Paul George scored 20, 14 of them in the second half, as the Bulldogs wiped out the halftime deficit to tie the game, 57-57 with 8:32 remaining.
Fresno State worked its way back into the game shooting 11-of-19 from 3-point range in the second half.
The Spartans regained the lead with an 8-1 run capped by a pair of Owens three-point baskets to go ahead 65-58 with 6:58 remaining and were never threatened after that.
San Jose State outrebounded Fresno State, 41-25, and took advantage of its free throw opportunities making 18-of-25 compared to the Bulldogs' 9-of-10.