Falcons Play at San Diego State on Tuesday
2/1/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 1, 2010
Complete Release in PDF Format 
Game #21
Air Force Falcons (9-11, 1-6 MWC) vs. San Diego St. Aztecs (15-6, 4-3 MWC)
Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2010
7 p.m. (PT) at San Diego, CA
SITE
Location: San Diego, Calif.
Arena: Viejas Arena
Capacity: 12,414
RADIO
Network: Air Force Basketball Network
Flagship: KVOR AM 740, Colo. Spgs.
Other: AM 1510 KCKK, Denver
Play-by-Play: Jim Arthur
TELEVISION
Network: CBS College Sports
Play-by-Play: Tom Hart
Analyst: Steve Lappas
INTERNET
Live Stats: GoAirForceFalcons.com
COACHES
Jeff Reynolds (UNC-Greensboro, 1978)
Air Force: 35-46, Third Season
Overall: 117-80, Seventh Season
Steve Fisher (Illinois State, 1967)
San Diego State: 188-146, 11th Season
Overall: 372-228, 19th Season
ALL-TIME SERIES
Overall: San Diego State leads 42-20
At San Diego: San Diego State leads 22-6
First Game: Dec. 8, 1973
Result: SDSU won 68-67
Last Game: Feb. 7, 2009
Result: SDSU won 65-34
Current Streak: SDSU - 3
AFA Snaps 22-Game Conference Drought
The Falcons snapped a Mountain West Conference record 22-game regular-season conference losing streak last Saturday with a 70-63 victory over Wyoming at Clune Arena. Air Force, which lost all 16 MWC regular-season games last season, had dropped its first six this year. Junior Evan Washington scored a career-high 23 points and tied his career-high with seven assists in leading AFA to its first regular-season win over a conference opponent since a 46-43 triumph over San Diego State at Clune Arena on March 8, 2008. Washington scored 15 of his points in the final 8:42 of the game, including six straight free throws in the last 1:20. Freshman Todd Fletcher tied his career-high with five assists in a personal-high 39 minutes, while fellow freshman Michael Lyons had 16 points and four rebounds against the Cowboys.
Up Next
The Falcons begin the second round of MWC games on Saturday, Feb. 6 against the TCU Horned Frogs at Clune Arena. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m.
Still in Search of a True Road Win
The Falcons have not won a true road game since Dec. 6, 2008, a 71-64 victory over Northern Colorado. Air Force, which has won three neutral-site games since then, has lost 14 consecutive true road games. In MWC play, AFA's last road win was in Fort Collins against Colorado State, a 61-59 triumph on Feb. 23, 2008, a span of 13 games.
The Injury Bug Has Hit ... and Hit Hard
The Falcons have been hit hard by injuries this season. Several starters have missed games recently. Sophomore Sammy Schafer has missed the last 17 games with headaches resulting from a concussion after starting the first three games of the season. Senior Grant Parker, who started the first seven games, missed 10 straight with a stress reaction in his pelvis before returning to the lineup against Utah on Jan. 23. He was averaging team-highs of 17.1 points and 7.1 rebounds when he got injured. Junior Taylor Stewart (seven starts) is out with a broken wrist suffered against UTEP on Dec. 29, while senior Avery Merriex, who started the first 12 games, returned to the lineup against CSU on Jan. 9 after missing two games as a result of a broken nose and concussion suffered Dec. 28 vs. Niagara. In addition, senior Mike McLain, who started the first 15 games, missed the BYU game on Jan. 13 due to a concussion he suffered against CSU.
Due to the injuries this season, Air Force has used 10 different starting lineups in the team's 20 games this season.
Falcons Finish Second at Sun Bowl Invitational
The Falcons battled UTEP to the wire in the championship game of the Sun Bowl Invitational on Dec. 29, dropping a 58-47 decision to the Miners. Air Force defeated Niagara, 77-71, in the first round behind 19 points and eight rebounds from junior Evan Washington, who was named to the all-tournament team. Here are the Bank of the West Don Haskins Sun Bowl Invitational results:
Monday, Dec. 28
UTEP 93, Norfolk State 56
Air Force 77, Niagara 71
Tuesday, Dec. 29
Niagara 80, Norfolk State 69 (Third-Place Game)
UTEP 58, Air Force 47 (Championship Game)
Big Win Against Niagara
Evan Washington tied his career-highs with 19 points and eight rebounds and Tom Fow added 17 points to lead the Falcons past Niagara on Dec. 28 for their first win away from Clune Arena this season. Freshmen Taylor Broekhuis and Todd Fletcher had career-highs of 12 points and five assists, respectively, while junior Derek Brooks scored seven points off the bench.
Coaches vs. Cancer "Suits and Sneakers" Game
Mountain West men's basketball coaches and their staffs donned sneakers as part of their game-day attire on Saturday, Jan. 30, to show their support of the American Cancer Society and the Coaches vs. Cancer® "Suits and Sneakers" awareness weekend.
Three-Point Streak Snapped
Air Force did not make a three-pointer (0-for-17) against Northern Colorado on Nov. 21, snapping a streak of 513 consecutive games with at least one 3-pointer made. The last time the Falcons had failed to make a three-pointer was Dec. 4, 1991 in a 57-51 victory over Adams State College. Air Force rebounded nicely in their next game against Charleston Southern, shooting 45 percent (9-of-20). The Falcons shot a season-best 50 percent on Dec. 22 against UC Davis, going 8-of-16.
Most Points in Over a Decade vs. Dickinson State
The Falcons' 95 points against Dickinson State on Nov. 20 were the most by an Air Force team since Feb. 16, 1999, when the Falcons beat Denver, 111-88, in Denver.
Reggie Minton Air Force Classic Recap
Air Force hosted a regular-season men's tournament for the third consecutive season Nov. 20-21 at Clune Arena. Joining the Falcons for the Reggie Minton Air Force Classic were Dickinson State College (N.D.), Texas Southern and Northern Colorado. Minton was Air Force's head basketball coach from 1984-2000 and was the 2000 Mountain West Conference Co-Coach of the Year. He is currently the Associate Executive Director of the National Association of Basketball Coaches. Northern Colorado captured the 2009 title, defeating Air Force, 70-46, in the final.
Here are the Reggie Minton Air Force Classic results:
Friday, Nov. 20
Northern Colorado 66, Texas Southern 62
Air Force 95, Dickinson State 77
Saturday, Nov. 21
Texas Southern 77, Dickinson St. 65 (Third-Place Game)
Northern Colorado 70, Air Force 46 (Championship Game)
Washington, Schafer Earn All-Tourney
Junior guard Evan Washington and sophomore center Sammy Schafer earned all-tournament honors at the Reggie Minton Air Force Classic. Washington led the Falcons in scoring, averaging 16 points per game, and pulled down nine rebounds in AFA's two contests, while Schafer scored 16 points and eight rebounds in the two games.
Still an Outstanding Record at Clune
Including their 8-4 record this season, the Falcons have been hard to beat at Clune Arena the last six seasons. Since he beginning of the 2003-04 season, Air Force has won 83 of its 103 home games, good for a .806 winning percentage.
In addition, the Falcons have won 36 of their 51 Mountain West Conference games at Clune Arena during that stretch.
Air Force 60 Percent Last 6
Air Force is currently ranked fifth among Mountain West Conference teams for the best overall winning percentage since the beginning of the 2003-04 season. AFA's winning percentage is 60.7 percent. Air Force is one of only four teams in the conference to have a winning record in at least five of the last six seasons (UNLV (6); Air Force, BYU, New Mexico (5)).
Team -- Overall Winning Pct. (Last Six Seasons)
BYU -- 69.2% (148-66)
UNLV -- 68.1% (147-69)
New Mexico -- 64.8% (138-75)
San Diego State -- 61.3% (130-82)
Air Force -- 60.7% (125-81)
Utah -- 60.5% (130-85)
Wyoming -- 47.5% (97-107)
TCU** -- 43.3% (90-118)
Colorado State -- 42.1% (85-117)
** Joined MWC prior to 2005-06 season
60 Points Seems to be the Key
Air Force is 9-1 this season when it scores 60 points or more. The only loss was a 75-68 setback at Washington State. Conversely, the Falcons are 0-10 when scoring less than 60 points. Air Force has not scored more than 54 points in seven of its last nine games (2-7 record), including six of its seven MWC games.
Freshmen Coming Up Big Early in Their Careers
Several freshmen have had huge games already, just 20 games into their careers. Michael Lyons scored a career-high 25 points against Washington State on Dec. 12, while Todd Fletcher also put up some impressive numbers against the Cougars, posting career-bests of 13 points and three rebounds. He was 5-of-7 from the field and also collected a steal. Taylor Broekhuis, meanwhile, returned to the lineup against WSU after missing four straight games with an injury and scored three points, had a career-high five rebounds and two steals, while Zach Bohannon had career-highs of eight points and five rebounds on Jan. 13 vs. BYU.
Meanwhile, a freshman has led the Falcons in scoring in three of the team's seven MWC games (Mike Fitzgerald and Broekhuis (11) at TCU; Fitzgerald (11) at CSU; Lyons (13) at Utah).
Fow Goes Off Against UC Davis
Junior Tom Fow scored a career-high 30 points on Dec. 22 against UC Davis on 8-of-13 shooting from the field and 6-of-9 from three-point range. He also went 8-of-9 from the free-throw line. His 30 points were the most by an Air Force player since Tim Anderson hit 30 at Wake Forest on Dec. 30, 2007. Fow, whose previous career-best was 15 points on Dec. 19 against Northern Arizona, is 14-of-23 from the field and 9-of-14 from three-point range his last two games.
Parker Named MWC Player of the Week
Grant Parker was named the Mountain West Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Week for games through November 29. This was the first weekly accolade of Parker's career.
Parker led the Falcons past Charleston Southern, 68-58, on Nov. 28 with the first double-double of his career. Parker scored a game-high 25 points and pulled down a career-best 11 rebounds to post AFA's first double-double since Taylor Stewart had 13 points and 10 boards vs. CSU Bakersfield on Nov. 16, 2008. His 11 rebounds were the most by an Air Force player since Jacob Burtschi had 12 at Stanford on Nov. 22, 2006.
Most Assists in Nearly Three Years
The Falcons dished out 22 assists against Prairie View A&M on Dec. 8, matching their season-high mark set against Dickinson State on Nov. 20. The 22 assists are the most by a Falcon team since they had 24 against Norfolk State on Dec. 13, 2006. With its 21 assists last Monday against Niagara, the Falcons have three games with 20 or more assists this season, the most since the 2006-07 campaign (eight).
