'Bows lose a tough 1

Martin Iti helps New Mexico State hand Hawaii its seventh WAC loss

The itinerary allowed the Hawaii basketball team little time to dwell on one that got away last night.

With a late-night flight to Salt Lake City awaiting, there was time for a quick shower, pack up the gear and head to the airport.

But they also took with them the heartbreak of a 71-68 loss to New Mexico State before a White Out night crowd of 4,188.

HAWAII - 68 N. MEXICO ST. - 71 NEXT UP AT UTAH STATE, TOMORROW

The Rainbows (14-11, 5-7 WAC) headed on the road for tomorrow's game at Utah State tied with Louisiana Tech for sixth place in the conference after missing a chance to even their WAC record for the first time this season.

"We have to let this one go quick and like Coach (Riley) Wallace said, it's out of the pot and into the fire," UH forward Bobby Nash said.

New Mexico State (19-6, 9-3) ended a two-game skid and completed a sweep of the season series to move within a 1 1/2 games of Nevada in the race for the regular-season title.

The Aggies came out on top of a tough battle down the stretch, taking the lead for good on Martin Iti's layup with 1:34 left

"I thought the game toward the end was about as furious and about as intense as I've seen in a long time," NMSU coach Reggie Theus said. "Today the (Aggies) saw what it takes to win on the road."

Hawaii's senior co-captains led the way for the Rainbows. Forward Ahmet Gueye scored 15 points on 7-for-8 shooting and grabbed eight rebounds before fouling out in the final seconds. Matt Lojeski made seven of 12 shots and also finished with 15.

Lojeski had a chance to tie it at the buzzer, but his desperation heave hit off the backboard, bounced off the rim and fell to the floor to end the game.

Iti led the Aggies with 15 points and eight boards, while guard Shaun Davis came off the bench to spark NMSU with 14 first-half points. Guard Justin Hawkins added 11 points.

The outside shooting touch that sparked UH's rout of Louisiana Tech last Saturday was largely absent. After hitting 12 3-pointers against the Bulldogs, the Rainbows made just four of 19 last night.

"Some nights it's just not going to fall," Lojeski said.

"Overall it was just not a good decision-making night," Wallace said. "Just poor shot selection, poor decision-making on the floor. Just a bad night for the 'Bows."

The Rainbows also struggled against NMSU's defensive pressure, committing 18 turnovers, which led to 25 points for the Aggies.

The teams traded runs in a high-energy first half with New Mexico State taking a 33-31 lead into halftime.

Still, Hawaii controlled the action early with Lojeski scoring on a dunk 3 seconds into the game and the Rainbows taking an early 10-point lead with an 11-2 run.

Theus replaced all five starters during the run and Davis responded for the Aggies with an 8-0 run of his own. The reserve hit back-to-back 3-pointers then finished a fast break with a layup and went into the break with 14 points.

"Our bench won the game for us by the way they came in and saved our starters," Theus said.

UH maintained a 24-17 lead when New Mexico State took off on a 10-0 spurt, taking its first lead at 25-24 on Martin Iti's layup and Hawaii trailed at halftime of a home game for only the second time this season.

The Rainbows reclaimed the lead with an 8-0 spurt midway through the half. Center Stephen Verwers ignited the crowd with an emphatic block and later gave UH a 57-52 lead by dropping in a hook while being fouled and converting the free throw.

The Aggies moved back ahead as the Rainbows struggled against their defensive pressure. NMSU converted three straight UH turnovers into points to take a 60-59 edge with 4:44 left.

Lojeski, held to two points through the first 17 minutes of the second half, tied the game at 64 with a 3-pointer from the left wing. Iti then scored on his go-ahead layup with 1:34 left, and after Gueye missed two free throws, got loose inside for a dunk, giving NMSU a 68-64 cushion with less than a minute left.

After a Gibson layup, NMSU's Ted Knauber made one of two free throws to give the Aggies a 71-68 lead.

After a timeout, a 3-pointer by Nash was off the mark and the Rainbows retained possession with 1.2 seconds left. Lojeski's shot then refused to fall, ending the game.

"It really sucks, we have to think about this all night on the plane," Lojeski said before packing up. "It's just frustrating to take a step back when we were really pushing it."

Up next: Hawaii's game at Utah State tomorrow is scheduled for 4:05 p.m. Hawaii time. The game will be broadcast on 1420-AM and can be seen online at wac.tv.

New Mexico St. 71, Hawaii 68

Aggies (19-6, 9-3 WAC)

	fg	fga	ft	fta	min	reb	a	tp
Nelson	3	8	2	2	31	4	3	8
Passos	2	2	0	0	11	1	0	4
Hawkins	5	10	1	1	30	4	3	11
Ingram	1	6	2	2	29	3	2	5
Peete	3	6	0	0	34	1	2	7
Fisher	1	6	4	4	17	7	2	6
Davis	5	7	2	3	15	2	0	14
Knauber	0	1	1	2	2	0	0	1
Iti	7	9	1	3	30	8	2	15
Steward	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0
TEAM						2
Totals	27	55	13	17	200	32	14	71

Rainbow Warriors (14-11, 5-7 WAC)

	fg	fga	ft	fta	min	reb	a	tp
Owsley	4	6	0	1	38	5	3	8
Nash	2	9	2	2	33	2	1	7
Gueye	7	8	1	4	35	8	1	15
Gibson	4	9	1	1	28	2	3	9
Lojeski	7	12	0	1	40	7	3	15
Waters	1	5	0	0	12	0	2	3
Luettgerodt	1	4	2	2	7	1	0	5
Verwers	1	1	4	5	7	0	2	6
TEAM						2
Totals	27	54	10	16	200	27	15	68

Key -- fg: field goals made; fga: field goals attempted; ft: free throws made; fta: free throws attempted; min: minutes played; reb: rebounds; a: assists; tp: total points.

Halftime -- New Mexico St. 33, Hawaii 31

3-point goals -- NMSU 4-7 (Davis 2-2, Peete 1-1, Ingram 1-4), Hawaii 4-19 (Luettgerodt 1-2, Waters 1-3, Lojeski 1-3, Nash 1-7, Gibson 0-4). Personal fouls -- NMSU 20, Hawaii 20. Fouled out--Gueye, Verwers.

Steals -- NMSU 12 (Hawkins 4, Peete 3, Nelson, Passos, Ingram, Fisher, Iti), Hawaii 10 (Nash 2, Gueye 2, Gibson 2, Lojeski 2, Owsley, Verwers). Blocked shots -- Hawaii 3 (Gueye 2, Verwers). Turnovers -- NMSU 18 (Nelson 4, Hawkins 4, Fisher 4, Iti 2, Passos, Ingram, Peete, Davis), Hawaii 18 (Gueye 5, Owsley 4, Nash 4, Lojeski 3, Gibson, Waters).

Officials -- Verne Harris, Mike Reed, Mike Giarratano. A-- 4,188.