What a grind.

Utah State methodically, inexorably wore down Hawaii in the halfcourt for a 61-50 victory last night at the Stan Sheriff Center.

A crowd of 2,464 watched the Aggies take their 13th straight game in much different fashion than the 98-point offensive show they performed for Hawaii in Logan, Utah, last month.

The outcome was the same, though, thanks to alternating man and zone defenses that flustered UH into its ninth straight loss and a season low in points.

The short-handed Rainbows (9-18, 2-11) are still looking for life as they scramble to qualify for the Western Athletic Conference tournament. UH will try to break the streak tomorrow vs. Nevada on senior night.

“;Our guys know if we want to have a chance to get to the WAC tournament, we have to beat Nevada,”; UH coach Bob Nash said. “;There's no secret to it.”;

While the loss to WAC leader USU (23-6, 12-2) wasn't wholly unexpected, what happened earlier yesterday in Ruston, La., was. Boise State landed a solid blow to UH's WAC tourney hopes with a 72-59 defeat of host Louisiana Tech. The Broncos went up a game on the Rainbows with three remaining, including next Thursday's showdown in Boise, Idaho.

UH was aware of that as it took the court, and came out with high energy. Hawaii hung right with Utah State early by hustling in its zone defense and making the most of second-chance opportunities offensively, going up 11-8 and 16-13 midway through the first half. From there, however, the aggression became detrimental, as UH's flex offense stalled out, and another chance to improve in the standings was ultimately blown.

“;We just weren't slowing down, I guess,”; said forward Brandon Adams, one of four UH players to score in double figures. “;We were moving a little too fast, getting out of our comfort zone.”;

The Rainbows managed just one point over the final 10 minutes of the period and fell behind 25-17 at halftime.

Thanks to their zone defense and 57.9 percent shooting in the second half, the 'Bows stayed within striking distance. They just couldn't hoist enough shots against USU in the period (only 19 attempts) as both teams milked the shot clock to its limits.

“;They played zone from start to finish and did a great job of it,”; USU coach Stew Morrill said. “;It got us out of sorts and we weren't flowing. Fortunately we played good defense, too.

“;It was kind of an ugly basketball game. But we made enough plays to win it. We'll take it.”;

USU won its sixth straight road game and beat UH for the seventh time in the last eight games of the series. The Aggies were their typical stingy selves, turning the ball over just five times and holding UH to 40.9 percent shooting from the field.

By the time UH forward Petras Balocka missed consecutive front ends of 1-and-1 free throws before the 5-minute mark, the Rainbows squandered too many chances to eat into the Aggies' double-digit lead. Hiram Thompson hit his third 3-pointer to cut it to 59-50 with 28.8 seconds left, but it was too late by then.

Thompson scored a team-high 13, Adams and Adhar Mayen added 12 apiece, and top player Roderick Flemings was held to 11 against a series of traps and double teams. Balocka grabbed 10 rebounds but scored just two points.

Flemings went for a career-high 39 in UH's last outing, a loss to Cal Poly. But he couldn't find the range vs. the Aggies, getting his first shot blocked by Pooh Williams and shooting 0-for-6 in the first half. He scored 10 in the second half.

“;Tonight, to Utah State's credit, they wanted to make other people beat us besides Rod Flemings,”; Nash said. “;They double-teamed him, forced him into some bad shots, and so they did a good job.”;

The top 3-point shooting team in the country went just 6-for-18 from beyond the arc (33.3 percent), nearly 10 percentage points below USU's average. UH went 6-for-12 on 3s, but couldn't capitalize at the free-throw line, shooting just 8-for-16.

USU went up 39-27 on a Williams corner 3-pointer, but Mayen scored five straight—a fast-break 3 and strong lefty take to the basket—to bring UH back to within seven with 11:40 left.

That was as close as it got, though, as Tai Wesley tipped in a basket and Jared Quayle nailed a 3-pointer, extending the lead to 12 again.

“;Utah State is a system team, and we just have to mess up their system,”; Mayen said. “;If they're clicking on all cylinders, it's going to be hard to stop.”;

Quayle scored a team-high 13 points and Williams added 12.

Gradually, the Aggies' WAC-best defense took its toll. UH failed to score for the final 6:40 of the first half, resulting in the Rainbows' lowest output before the break this season. The previous low was 21 points vs. UNLV in the Diamond Head Classic.

Utah State 61, Hawaii 50

Aggies (23-6, 12-2 wac)

Rainbow Warriors (9-18, 2-11)

Key— fg-a: field goals made-attempted; ft-a: free throws made-attempted; rb: rebounds; pf: personal fouls; pts: total points; a: assists; to: turnovers; min: minutes played.

Halftime— Utah State 25, Hawaii 17

3-point goals— Utah State 6-18 (Quayle 3-5, Williams 1-4, Newbold 1-4, Green 1-5), Hawaii 6-12 (Thompson 3-5, Mayen 2-4, Flemings 1-3).

Steals— Utah State 4 (Williams, Quayle, Newbold, Green), Hawaii 2 (Thompson, Flemings). Blocked shots— Utah State 1 (Williams), Hawaii 2 (Adams 2).

Officials— Larry Spaulding, Stanley Reynolds, Newton Chelette. A— 2,464.

WAC standings

Yesterday

Utah State 61, Hawaii 50
Boise State 72, Louisiana Tech 59
Nevada 83, San Jose State 79