Falcons Play at Wright State on Wednesday
12/6/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec. 6, 2010
 |
Complete Release in PDF Format 
Game #7
Air Force Falcons (5-1) vs. Wright State Raiders (3-5)
Wednesday, Dec. 8, 2010
7 p.m. (ET) at Dayton, Ohio
SITE
Location Dayton, Ohio
Arena Nutter Center
Capacity 10,449
RADIO
Network Air Force Basketball Network
Station AM 1300 KCSF, Colo. Spgs.
Play-by-Play Jim Arthur
Analyst Matt Pauley
TELEVISION
None
INTERNET
Gametracker GoAirForceFalcons.com
COACHES
Jeff Reynolds (UNC-Greensboro, 1978)
Air Force 41-57, Fourth Season
Overall 123-91, Eighth Season
Billy Donlan (UNC-Wilmington, 1999)
Wright State 3-5, First Season
Overall Same
ALL-TIME SERIES
Overall First Meeting
Falcons Play at Wright State on Wednesday
The Air Force Falcons (5-1) play their second road game of the season against the Wright State Raiders (3-5) on Wednesday, Dec. 8 in Dayton, Ohio. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. (ET) and the game will be broadcast in the Colorado Springs area on AM 1300 KCSF. The Falcons won their fourth straight game on Sunday afternoon, edging Evansville, 57-56, in the final game of the 2010 Mountain West / Missouri Valley Challenge. Sophomore Michael Lyons scored a season-high 20 points and sophomore Taylor Broekhuis added a career-high 19 points. Wright State is coming off a 78-69 loss at Detroit on Saturday and has lost four consecutive games.
Looking for Back-to-Back Road Wins
With their 72-66 victory at Wofford on Nov. 24, the Falcons captured their first true road win in nearly two years. Their last victory on an opponent's court was Dec. 6, 2008, a 71-64 victory over Northern Colorado in Greeley, Colo. Air Force, which won four neutral-site games in between, including two last year (Niagara at the Sun Bowl Invitational and Wyoming at the MWC Championships), had lost 18 consecutive true road games before defeating Wofford. Air Force has not won consecutive road games since winning at Colorado State and Wyoming in 2007.
Balanced Attack So Far This Season
Air Force has had five players score in double figures in two of the team's six games this season (UCCS and Tennessee State). Prior to this season, the last time Air Force had five players in double figures in one game was March 14, 2007 against Austin Peay in the postseason NIT. The Falcons had three games that season with five players in double figures. Air Force had four players in double figures last Thursday night in the 72-63 victory over CSU Northridge.
Up Next
The Falcons return home to Clune Arena to face North Carolina Central on Saturday, Dec. 11 beginning at 7 p.m.
Top Five in Country in FG Defense
The Falcons lead the Mountain West Conference and are ranked No. 5 in the country in field-goal percentage defense. Opponents are shooting just 34.8 percent against Air Force this season. Evansville has the best FG% against Air Force this year at 38.2 percent.
Injuries Are Here Again
After enduring a season full of injuries in 2009-10, the Falcons were hoping for a healthy `10-11 campaign. Unfortunately, it has not started out that way. Freshman Ethan Michael tore his ACL during Basic Cadet Training, then sophomore forward Zach Bohannon tore a ligament in his right hand and underwent surgery on Oct. 28. In addition, freshmen Sean Bowman (knee) and Myles Jerrett (shoulder) underwent surgery recently. Michael and Jerrett are out for the year while Bohannon and Bowman will miss most, if not all, of the non-conference portion of the schedule. The Falcons already started the year shorthanded when junior center Sammy Schafer took an administrative leave for this academic year after suffering continued effects from a concussion.
Best FT% in Over Three Years
Air Force shot 94.1 percent (16-of-17) from the free throw line against Colorado College on Nov. 17, the best single-game percentage since going 16-for-17 against Georgia on March 19, 2007. The previous high under Jeff Reynolds was 93.8 percent (15-of-16) against Washington State on Nov. 25, 2007.
Mountain West / Missouri Valley Challenge
The 2010-11 edition of the MWC/MVC Challenge is the second in a four-year agreement between the Mountain West and Missouri Valley Conferences. Nine Challenge games will be played each year, and each conference will host a total of 18 games in the four-year period. Missouri State will be the Valley team that does not participate in the 2010 Challenge Series. The Mountain West won eight of the nine games this season:
Date -- Result
Wednesday, Dec. 1 -- Colorado State 78, Drake 67
Wednesday, Dec. 1 -- BYU 77, Creighton 65
Wednesday, Dec. 1 -- New Mexico 74, Southern Illinois 59
Wednesday, Dec. 1 -- UNLV 82, Illinois State 51
Saturday, Dec. 4 -- Northern Iowa 64, TCU 60
Saturday, Dec. 4 -- Wyoming 81, Indiana State 61
Saturday, Dec. 4 -- Utah 68, Bradley 60
Saturday, Dec. 4 -- San Diego State 83, Wichita State 69
Sunday, Dec. 5 -- Air Force 57, Evansville 56
Air Force Almost 60 Percent Last 7
Air Force is currently ranked sixth among Mountain West Conference teams for the best overall winning percentage since the beginning of the 2003-04 season. AFA's winning percentage is 58.5 percent. Air Force is one of only five teams in the conference to have a winning record in at least four of the last seven seasons (UNLV (7); BYU, New Mexico (6), San Diego State (5), Air Force (4)).
Evan Washington in Search of 1,000
Senior Evan Washington entered the 2010-11 campaign within striking distance of becoming the 23rd player in Air Force history to reach the 1,000-point plateau. Washington, the only Falcon to start all 31 games last season, has 794 career points and is currently 42nd on the school's career scoring list. The last Falcon to join the 1,000-point club was Matt McCraw in 2007.
Super Sophs Solid So Far
Sophomores Michael Lyons, Taylor Broekhuis and Todd Fletcher have produced some impressive numbers in the Falcons' first six games. Lyons is second on the team in scoring at 13.5 ppg and leads the team with 11 offensive rebounds. He scored a season-high 20 points on Sunday vs. Evansville and has scored in double figures four times this season.
Broekhuis, meanwhile, scored a career-high 19 points against Evansville and shot 5-for-10 from three-point range. He had made two career 3-pointers entering the game. Broekhuis is shooting a team-high 57.4 percent from the field and is third on the team in scoring at 12 ppg. He also played a career-high 41 minutes against CC and blocked a personal-best three shots, the most by a Falcon in one game since Matt Holland swatted four against Wyoming on Feb. 28, 2009.
Fletcher has been just as solid at point guard, dishing out four assists per game and scoring a career-high 15 points against Cal State Northridge. He leads the team with 24 assists and is tied for the lead with 10 steals.
Fow Lighting It Up
Senior Tom Fow, who is leading the team and No. 6 in the MWC in scoring (15.8 ppg) after
six games, is shooting 51.6 percent from the field and 51.5 percent from three-point range. Fow, who has led or tied for the team lead in scoring in four of AFA's six games, scored a season-high 22 points last Thursday against CSU Northridge. Fow is fifth in the MWC and 20th in the country in three-point percentage. He also tied his career-high with eight rebounds against Colorado College on Nov. 17.
5-1 Ties Best Start Ever
Air Force's 5-1 record ties the best start ever in program history after six games. The Falcons have been 5-1 nine times in the past, most recently during the 2007-08 campaign.
First Four-Game Win Streak Since `08
With its 57-56 victory over Evansville on Sunday, Air Force has won four consecutive games for the first time since early in the 2008-09 campaign. The Falcons won five straight games from Nov. 30 - Dec. 22, 2008.
Most Assists in Nearly Four Years
The Falcons dished out 24 assists against Tennessee State on Nov. 20, the most by an Air Force team since it had 24 against Norfolk State on Dec. 13, 2006.
Stellar Second Half vs. TSU
Air Force scored 58 points and shot 76 percent (19-of-25) from the field in the second half against Tennessee State on Nov. 20. The 58 points were the most in one half since scoring 58 in the second half vs. Utah on Jan. 16, 2007 and it was the best shooting percentage in one half since shooting 76.5 percent (13-of-17) in the first half against Utah on Jan. 19, 2006.
Extra Time a Couple of Times
Two of Air Force's first five games have gone to overtime this season. Prior to this season, AFA's last overtime game was on Jan. 16, 2008, a 64-62 victory at Wyoming. Including this season's 1-1 mark, Air Force's all-time overtime record is 24-31.
Still a Great Record at Clune
Including a 4-1 record at home this season, the Falcons have been hard to beat at Clune Arena the last seven seasons. Since the beginning of the 2003-04 season, Air Force has won 87 of its 113 home games, good for a .770 winning percentage.
In addition, the Falcons have won 36 of their 56 Mountain West Conference games at Clune Arena during that stretch.
Falcons Win Eighth Straight Season Opener
With its 66-53 victory over UCCS at Clune Arena on Nov. 14, Air Force is now 25-30 all-time in season openers. The Falcons are 19-8 at home and 6-22 on the road (including neutral games). Air Force has won its last eight season openers and 10 home openers.
