Boise State 70, Hawai?i
HONOLULU (AP)-- Kurt Cunningham scored 14 points to lead Boise State to a 70-58 win over Hawai?i Saturday in the Western Athletic Conference opener for both teams.
The Broncos (10-3, 1-0 WAC) got a double-double from Mark Sanchez, who scored 12 points and grabbed 12 rebounds. Anthony Thomas added 11 points and eight assists for the defending WAC champions.
Roderick Flemings scored 21 points to lead Hawai?i (8-5, 0-1 WAC). Petras Balocka had 12 points and 12 rebounds.
Boise State drained six of its seven 3-pointers in the first half to take a 35-29 lead into the intermission.
Hawai?i knotted the game at 51 apiece at the 9:23 mark on Adhar Mayen’s 3-pointer, but the Broncos went on a 6-0 run to extend their lead back to six. The Rainbow Warriors got within a basket after Bill Amis hit the second of two free throws to make it 58-56 with 4:21 to play, but they could get no closer.
Idaho 78, Nevada 73
RENO, Nev. (AP)-- Mac Hopson and Luciano de Souza each scored 16 points and the Idaho Vandals turned back the Nevada Wolf Pack, 78-73, Saturday night in the Western Athletic Conference opener for both teams.
Kashif Watson added 13 points as Idaho (7-7, 1-0) snapped a nine-game losing streak to Nevada.
Nevada (7-7, 0-1) was led by Brandon Fields' 19 points. Malik Cooke added 13 for the Wolf Pack.
Idaho trailed 65-62 with 2:48 to play after a three-point play by Cooke. Hopson then drove the lane for a bucket and Watson hit a pair of free throws and a short jumper in the lane for a 66-65 Idaho lead with 1:53 to go.
De Souza had a dunk for a 71-65 Idaho lead with 31 seconds to play.
Idaho led 35-33 at halftime. De Souza led Idaho with 11 points at halftime on the strength of three 3-pointers.
Marvin Jefferson scored eight points inside and De Souza hit a 3-pointer as the Vandals jumped out to a 15-3 lead six minutes into the game. Fields scored 10 of Nevada's first 14 points to keep the game close early.
New Mexico State 79, Fresno State 66
FRESNO, Calif. (AP)-- Jahmar Young scored 25 points as New Mexico State used two double-digit scoring runs to defeat Fresno State 79-66 on Saturday night in both teams' Western Athletic Confererence opener.
Wendell McKines added 18 points and six assists for New Mexico State (7-7, 1-0), who won their first road game of the season by dominating the interior and limiting Fresno State to 36.9 percent shooting. The Aggies entered the game 0-6 on the road.
Paul George led the Bulldogs (7-8, 0-1) with 15 points and 11 rebounds, equaling his season scoring average.
New Mexico State led by as many as 19 points in the first half after going on an early 14-0 scoring run. In the second half, the Aggies enjoyed a 13-0 run after Fresno State trimmed an 18-point halftime deficit to 42-35.
The Bulldogs battled back to within 64-54 on George's reverse layup with 5:25 remaining. But Hernst Laroche drove for a layup and Young hit a jumper from the wing to squash any Fresno State momentum.
Sylvester Seay added 13 points and nine rebounds for the Bulldogs, who were outscored 36-26 in the paint.
McKines made 8-of-12 field goals to help New Mexico State shoot 49.2 percent from the floor. The Aggies led 40-22 at halftime thanks to an early 14-0 run.
Fresno State went 7 minutes without scoring and 9:12 without a field goal while missing 13 of its first 15 shots.
Down 6-3 early, New Mexico State's dominance began when Troy Gillenwater shook his defender at the top of the key and drove for an uncontested dunk. Young led a balanced Aggies offense with 10 first-half points, while McKines added nine.
Seay and Dwight O'Neil had seven apiece for the Bulldogs.
Louisiana Tech 66, San Jose State 61
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP)-- Kyle Gibson scored nine points during a crucial span of the second half to help Louisiana Tech beat San Jose State 66-61 in the WAC opener for both teams on Saturday.
Kenneth Cooper hit a basket and a free throw in the final minute to give the Bulldogs (7-7 overall) the lead. Cooper finished with 17 points while Gibson added 12. Jamel Guyton had 14 as Louisiana Tech bounced back from a 23-point loss to UCLA last Sunday.
Adrian Cooper scored 18 points for the Spartans (6-5), who lost their 10th straight conference opener. C.J. Webster added 17 and Tim Pierce had 10.
Oliver's jumper midway through the second half gave San Jose State a 50-44 edge.
Gibson began his barrage with a 3-pointer less than a minute later. By the time he hit a free throw at 5:19, the Bulldogs held a 55-53 advantage.
Oliver tied the game for the Spartans at 61-all with 1:42 left.
Cooper hit a jumper with 1:20 remaining and then added a free throw with 23 seconds left to put Louisiana Tech ahead, 64-61.
Magnum Rolle added 6 points and blocked one of his three shots in the last five minutes to help the Bulldogs maintain an edge.
The Bulldogs held a 33-27 halftime lead.
San Jose State has lost 12 of 17 games to the Bulldogs, but had beaten them the previous two trips through San Jose.
Pierce hit a 3-pointer in the final three minutes to preserve his career-best streak of 11 straight games with double figure scoring.