In a game that featured 24 lead changes, Louisiana Tech took the final advantage with 47.1 seconds remaining on a 12-foot jump shot by Corey Dean that proved to be the game-winner.

Hawai'i had possession of the ball for the final 47 seconds of the game, but could not get off a shot until Julian Sensley's 3-point attempt bounced off the rim as the final horn sounded.

"Just not enough intensity," Hawai'i head coach Riley Wallace said of his team. "This team is very, very average if they don't go out there and play aggressive."

A crowd of 6,024 at the Stan Sheriff Center watched the Rainbow Warriors drop to 16-5 overall and into second place in the Western Athletic Conference at 8-3. Texas-El Paso is now the WAC leader at 9-3.

The Bulldogs improved to 12-10 overall and 6-6 in the conference.

"I'm extremely proud of our team in light of some adversity we had tonight," LaTech head coach Keith Richard said.

Richard suspended starting guard JueMichael Young and key reserve guard Bruce Edwards for disciplinary reasons. Star freshman forward Paul Millsap was also kept out of the starting lineup for disciplinary reasons, but sat out only the first three minutes.

"They were like a wounded animal," Wallace said. "It's great as a coach when you can discipline people and win a game in a tough place."

But the 'Bows didn't exactly make it tough on the Bulldogs last night.

Hawai'i shot just 43.9 percent from the field (25 of 57), including a dismal 19 percent from 3-point range (4 of 21). UH's top 3-point shooters, Sensley and Michael Kuebler, combined to shoot 3 of 15 from long range.

"Offensively, we couldn't execute," Sensley said. "I don't think we were as motivated as we usually are."

Kuebler finished with 15 points, but connected on just 4 of 13 shots overall, and 3 of 11 from 3-point range.

Jeff Blackett came off the bench to score 15 for Hawai'i, including a clutch 3-pointer — his first of the season — that tied the game at 58. Sensley added 12, and Haim Shimonovich had 11 points and 11 rebounds.

RILEY WALLACE

But as Blackett pointed out: "They got the big rebounds. We didn't."

Hawai'i had possession of the ball with a 61-60 lead in the final minute, but an errant pass by Kuebler was intercepted by LaTech's Donell Allick, leading to Dean's final shot.

"I'm glad he went ahead and took that shot because it was so hard to get shots in the half-court offense," Richard said.

According to Wallace, the final play of the game was designed for Kuebler, but he was covered so the ball went to Sensley instead.

"Everybody was just kind of scrambling," Sensley said.

The first half featured 12 lead changes, and ended with Louisiana Tech ahead, 27-26.

Sensley, who scored 19 in UH's 67-60 win over Louisiana Tech at Ruston, La., last month, was limited to four points in six minutes in the first half because of foul problems.

The Bulldogs opened the second half with a 9-0 run to extend the lead to 36-26. However, Hawai'i responded with a 12-0 surge to take a 38-36 lead, setting the game into back-and-forth mode again.

Millsap led Louisiana Tech with 19 points. He entered the game as the nation's leading rebounder, but grabbed a season-low eight last night.

"He's a hell of a player," Shimonovich said. "I tried to make him earn everything. He just made all his shots."

Wayne Powell added 15, Donell Allick 13 and Dean 12 for the Bulldogs, who won for the first time in the Stan Sheriff Center.