RENO, Nev. — Armon Johnson scored 28 points and Luke Babbitt 21 as Nevada opened a 23-point lead in the first half tonight, then hung on to beat Utah State 84-71.

Johnson made 11-of-18 shots from the field and Babbitt hit 10-of-11 free throws while pulling down nine rebounds for the Wolf Pack, who are 17-11, 9-5 in the Western Athletic Conference.

Gary Wilkinson had a team-high 16 points and Tai Wesley 10 points and 10 rebounds for Utah State (26-4, 13-2), which has already clinched the WAC regular season title.

Nevada led 47-32 at the half and was ahead by as much as 41-18 thanks mostly to making six of it's first shots from 3-point range — two by Johnson and one each by Babbitt, Lyndale Burleson and Brandon Fields, who finished with 16 points.