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GAME NOTES: The Louisiana Tech Bulldogs try to work their way back into the win column tonight as they welcome Western Athletic Conference foe San Jose State to the Thomas Assembly Center in Ruston.

After losing just two games over the first 21 of the season, LaTech has dropped two of the last three. On Saturday, the Bulldogs were thwarted by New Mexico State at home in a 91-77 final. That decision dropped Tech into a three-way tie for first place in the WAC with both NMSU and Utah State heading into this week.

As for the Spartans, a team that is just 3-8 in true road games this season, they saw their modest three-game win streak come to an end over the weekend with a 77-58 defeat at the hands of the Utah State Aggies in Logan. With a mark of 5-4 in WAC action, SJSU entered the week in fifth place in the standings.

With respect to the all-time series between these two schools on the hardwood, the Bulldogs lead by a count of 10-7, but it was SJSU that posted an 87-76 upset of LaTech in California last month.

More than anything else, it was the SJSU defense that failed to show up against Utah State, allowing the Aggies to convert 54.2 percent from the field and 9-of-18 out on the perimeter. Adrian Oliver tried to keep the visitors close with his 19 points, but he shot only 5-of-16 from the floor, while Mac Peterson's 11 points stemmed from his 3-of-12 effort shooting the ball. Over the course of 21 games this season Oliver has put up a staggering 22.3 ppg on 43.6 percent shooting from three-point range and 130-of-148 (.878) at the free-throw line. In league play it gets even better for Oliver who is throwing in 24.4 ppg and has made 90 percent of his attempts at the stripe. However, even with five players averaging double digits in scoring, the Spartans are still netting 1.3 ppg fewer than WAC foes.

Seeing Magnum Rolle wind up with 27 points and 15 rebounds, both of which paced the Bulldogs, one would have thought that LaTech was well on its way to another win, but that wasn't the case over the weekend against New Mexico State. The biggest problem for the Bulldogs was that they failed to get a single point for the reserves, compared to 24 for the NMSU backups. Kyle Gibson tallied 23 points and handed out six assists, while DeAndre Brown dropped in 16 points and Olu Ashaolu eight and nine boards in the losing cause. Over the course of 22 starts this season, Gibson leads the team in scoring with his 21.6 ppg, making a staggering 156-of-179 at the free-throw line. Rolle has settled in with 14.4 ppg, 9.3 rpg and a team-high 50 blocked shots, but his 63.6 percent accuracy at the free-throw line has defeated Gibson's efforts at the stripe and brings the entire team down to 71.1 percent.

The scoring battle between Oliver and Gibson is bound to be exciting, but it will be the players in the paint who will have the most influence on this meeting. With both Rolle and Ashaolu hitting the glass, the Bulldogs stand to have an advantage.