Louisiana Tech stuns Nevada 78-73 in WAC semis

Louisiana Tech guard Cordarius Johnson (15) tried to score while being defended by Nevada forward Olek Czyz (31) during their NCAA college basketball game in the Western Athletic Conference tournament Friday, March 9, 2012, at The Orleans Arena in Las Vegas.

By TIM BOOTH

LAS VEGAS (AP) Trevor Gaskins scored 15 of his 21 points during Louisiana Tech's hot-shooting first half, and the fifth-seeded Bulldogs held on late to stun regular season champion Nevada 78-73 on Friday night in the Western Athletic Conference semifinals.

The Bulldogs (18-15) face second-seeded New Mexico State in Saturday's championship game. They became just the first No. 5 seed to reach the finals of the WAC tournament since Hawaii in 2001.

Louisiana Tech hit its first seven 3-point attempts and sprinted to a 34-19 lead. The Bulldogs made eight 3s total in the first half and then missed all four attempts in the second half. But they hit five free throws in the final 39 seconds to hold off the Wolf Pack (26-6).

Malik Story led Nevada with 21 points, but WAC player of the year Deonte Burton was harassed all night and finished with just five points.

Updated March 10, 2012