Boxscore

FRESNO, Calif. -- Fresno State (15-6; 4-4 WAC) edged Louisiana Tech (6-14; 4-4 WAC) 70-64 in the battle of the Bulldogs Saturday night in the Save Mart Center.

?I?m really proud of these kids,? Tech head coach Keith Richard said. ?The only difference in this ballgame was some big plays made by them and not by us. We gave ourselves a chance, but those few plays kept us away from the win.?

Both teams battled back and forth throughout the first half, and it was Tech?s Bulldogs that took a 35-33 lead into the halftime locker room.

Tech?s lead would not last, and Fresno State was able to make the plays throughout the second half Richard spoke about to get the win. Fresno State chose to live and die by the three-pointer and finished 12-of-30 from beyond the arc. Tech outrebounded Fresno 41 to 33, while Fresno won the battle of field goal percentage (22-of-49, 44.9 percent) compared to Tech (26-of-69, 37.7 percent).

Senior Chad McKenzie led Tech scorers with 15 points and 11 rebounds for his fourth double-double of the season. Junior Keith Smith had a career-high 14 points along with seven rebounds, while senior Trey McDowell finished with 13 points.

?It?s difficult that you don?t get to show a win despite a hard effort,? Richard said. ?I still want to say I?m proud of these players for giving themselves a chance.?

The Bulldogs return home for a rematch with nationally ranked Nevada Wednesday, Jan. 31, in the Thomas Assembly Center at 7 p.m.