Wilkinson leads USU past Nevada for WAC Championship

Gary Wilkonson scored 21 points and was named conference tourney MVP as Utah State ran past host and second-seed Nevada 72-62 to win the WAC Tournament Championship.

Jared Quayle had 15, Tai Wesley 14 and Pooh Williams 12 to aid the cause.

USU led from start to finish and the closest the Wolf Pack could come in the second half was within four points. But USU dropped in 12 of 14 free throws in the last three minutes and had an emphatic dunk from Williams to counteract three 3-point shots from Armon Johnson and keep UNR in the losing column.

USU burst out to a 13-0 lead in the first half and before Nevada coach Mark Fox called his third timeout early in the contest, USU led 19-4. UNR then went on an 11-4 run to keep it close, though USU led 28-23 at halftime.

Jared Quayle and Tai Wesley were also named to the All-Tournament team, along with Johnson and Luke Babbitt of UNR.