RUSTON -- Louisiana Tech returned the favor Thursday at the Thomas Assembly Center.

Less than one month after losing a one-point decision at the University of Hawaii, Louisiana Tech held on for a 66-65 Western Athletic Conference win before a crowd of 2,627 at the TAC.

Louisiana Tech climbed to 8-9 overall and 5-5 with the win while Hawaii fell to 13-6 and 6-5.

"This was an outstanding game, outstanding for both teams," Tech coach Keith Richard said. "It was a lot like the first game we played -- tooth and nail down to the end. Great defensive plays, great rebounding -- it was a shame someone had to lose, but I'm sure glad we came away with the win."

Junior forward Zach Johnson played a vital role for Tech with 13 points and 12 rebounds, but it was his final two points of the night that proved to be the biggest.

Johnson, a 58.1 free throw shooter heading into the contest, was fouled with nine seconds remaining and hit both shots despite timeouts called before each to give Tech the 66-65 advantage.

"For Zach to do that was unbelievable," Richard said. "We had to go through three scenarios of what we might have to do because of his free throw shooting. We didn't know if he'd make them or not. He came through when we needed him."

Johnson admitted he knew how big the free throws were but said the Bulldogs had worked too hard for him to come up short late.

"It was pressure but I wasn't nervous because I owed myself and I owed the team because we worked so hard this week," Johnson said. "I figured if I knocked down those two free throws, it would be the other team walking out of here with their heads hanging down."

Johnson came up big one last time when he blocked the shot of Hawaii's Carl English, the WAC Player of the Week, at the buzzer to preserve the Tech win.

Tech also got big games from its other big men as Antonio Meeking hit for 27 points and 10 rebounds while Lavelle Felton chipped in with 16 points and three assists.

The Bulldogs showed early on they came to play. Louisiana Tech held Hawaii to just 1-of-6 shots from the floor in the first five minutes as the Rainbow Warriors found themselves down 10-3. Tech maintained
at least a five-point lead for the next five minutes before Hawaii battled back late in the first half to take a 33-32 halftime advantage.

"We knew they'd be tough and they were," Richard said. "They play the flex offense as well as anyone in the country. That's why they were shooting 47 percent from the floor coming into the game."

English came into the game averaging 20.9 points per game but was held to 15 by the Bulldogs. But teammate Michael Kuebler picked up the slack, hitting for 27 points, including an 8-for-8 performance at the
free-throw line.

"They have great guard play," Richard said. "Someone on that perimeter always has a great night. That's why they're so hard to defend. You can't pick on just one player."

Richard said he was especially proud of his team's defensive effort.

"We knew coming in we'd have to rebound with them and that we'd have to play tough defense," Richard said. "We outrebounded them by two (41-39) and we held them to 39 percent shooting. That's defense, and that's
what helped win it."

Tech returns to WAC action on Saturday as the Bulldogs play host to San Jose State in a 7 p.m. matchup at the TAC.