LAS CRUCES, N.M. - Armon Johnson is growing up right before our very eyes.
The former Hug High star scored 20 points, grabbed six rebounds and dished out four assists to help Nevada to a critical 87-78 road win over New Mexico State Thursday night at the Pan American Center.
It was the third straight game that Johnson has scored 20 or more points, and stretched his streak of double-figure scoring games to five.
"He's not a freshman anymore," said Brandon Fields of his young teammate. "He's starting to understand where he can get his points. He's making a lot of shots."
Johnson has been especially adept at picking his way down the lane and scoring in traffic.
One of his biggest baskets wasn't a lay-up, but a 3-pointer from the top of the key. The ball settled into the net a split-second before the shot-clock expired, much to the chagrin of New Mexico State defenders. The bucket gave Nevada a 62-47 lead with 11-plus minutes left in the game.
Johnson had a putback to give Nevada an 80-62 lead with 3:18 to go and another bucket made it 82-66 with 1:46 remaining.
BENCH COMES THROUGH
Nevada's bench scoring has been brutal with just two points in the past two games.
Nevada's bench, namely Lyndale Burleson and David Ellis, combined for eight points. Burleson scored six, knocking down two 3-pointers, and Ellis added a bucket.
"The kids played well," Fox said. "You don't have to have a ton of scoring. You have to defend, rebound and take care of the ball."
Burleson's first 3-pointer ignited an 18-5 first-half surge that enabled Nevada to open up a 31-13 lead.
Ellis also had a key bucket in that same surge, as he followed in a Johnson miss to make it 28-18.
Burleson's second 3-pointer extended Nevada's lead to 54-38 with 14:08 left.
QUIET HAWKINS
The first half was a frustrating one for NMSU star Justin Hawkins, who was 1-for-7 from the floor and finished with two points, which was a big reason why Nevada led by 11 at the intermission.
"I wasn't making the shots," Hawkins said. "That's all I'm going to say about that."
Hawkins came back and scored 16 in the second half, including an 8-for-8 effort from the line. He was able to work his way inside for several offensive rebounds.
ANOTHER ROAD WIN
Nevada has won 23 of its last 33 games away from Lawlor Events Center, including 19 road wins and four neutral-site victories.
In the last three-plus years, since the start of the 2004-05 season, Nevada is 35-12 in road contest, including a 23-5 mark in WAC games.
AROUND THE WAC
Visiting Utah State remained unbeaten and moved to 5-0 with a 71-61 win over Louisiana Tech.
It was Utah State's first road game in approximately six weeks.
Elsewhere, Boise State improved to 5-2 with a 95-80 victory over Hawaii, which dropped to 3-3.
Idaho defended its home court with a 74-63 win over San Jose State. The Vandals are now 2-5 and the Spartans are 2-4.
FACTS & FIGURES
Nevada was outrebounded 39-33. It's the eighth time this season the Pack has been beaten on the glass, and the team is 2-6 in those game ... JaVale McGee's four blocks gives him 57, which is second all-time for a single season. McGee passed Greg Palm, who played two years for the Pack ... The 56 percent effort from the floor is the sixth time Nevada has eclipsed the 50-percent mark ... Kemp's five field goals leaves him one shy of Ric Herrin for fifth place career wise. Herrin had 575 and Kemp is at 574... Nevada traveled by a charter on this road trip, and left quickly after the game.