BIG WEST ROUNDUP : New Mexico St. Top Seeded in Tournament
Keith Hill scored 21 points Saturday night to lead No. 24 New Mexico State to an 82-68 victory over Fresno State and the No. 1 seed in the Big West Conference tournament.
The victory enabled the Aggies (25-3, 16-2) to tie second-ranked Nevada Las Vegas for the regular-season championship. They split their two meetings, but the Aggies earned the No. 1 seeding by virtue of two victories over third-place UC Santa Barbara, which split with UNLV.
New Mexico State broke the game open early, taking a 23-11 lead with 12:18 left in the first half. The Bulldogs (9-18, 4-14) could get no closer than 10 points the rest of the game.
James Anderson added 16 points for New Mexico State. Wilbert Hooker led Fresno State with 21.
UC Santa Barbara 77, San Jose State 76--Gary Gray scored 20 points and Eric McArthur added 18 at San Jose as the Gauchos clinched their third consecutive 20-victory season.
Carrick DeHart made a 12-foot jump shot from the right baseline with 21 seconds remaining to give UC Santa Barbara a 77-73 lead. The Gauchos improved to 20-7 overall and 13-5 in the Big West.
Troy Batiste of San Jose State (8-19 and 5-13) made three-point basket at the buzzer, cutting Santa Barbara’s margin of victory to 77-76.
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