Falcons Host UNLV on Saturday
1/13/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 13, 2011
Game #16
Air Force Falcons (10-5, 1-1 MWC) vs. UNLV Rebels (13-4, 1-2 MWC)
Saturday, Jan. 15, 2011
4 p.m. at Clune Arena (The Mtn.)
SITE
Location USAFA, Colo.
Arena Clune Arena
Capacity 5,858
RADIO
Network Air Force Basketball Network
Station AM 740 KVOR, Colo. Spgs.
Play-by-Play Jim Arthur
Analyst Matt Pauley
TELEVISION
Network The Mtn.
Play-by-Play Rich Cellini
Analyst Joe Cravens
INTERNET
Gametracker GoAirForceFalcons.com
COACHES
Jeff Reynolds (UNC-Greensboro, 1978)
Air Force 46-61, Fourth Season
Overall 127-95, Eighth Season
Lon Kruger (Kansas State, 1975)
UNLV 150-66, Seventh Season
Overall 468-299, 25th Season
ALL-TIME SERIES
Overall UNLV leads 23-8
At USAFA UNLV leads 8-7
First Game Jan. 10, 1981
Result Air Force won 51-50
Last Game Feb. 27, 2010
Result UNLV won 77-47
Current Streak UNLV - 5
Falcons Host UNLV on Saturday
The Air Force Falcons (10-5, 1-1 MWC) continue Mountain West Conference play on Saturday, Jan. 15 against the UNLV Rebels (13-4, 1-2 MWC) at Clune Arena. Tip-off is scheduled for 4 p.m. The game will be broadcast locally on AM 740 KVOR and televised nationally by The Mtn. The Falcons are coming off a 76-66 loss to 14th-ranked BYU in Provo last Saturday. UNLV defeated TCU, 83-49, in Las Vegas last Saturday and lost to sixth-ranked San Diego State, 55-49, on Wednesday in San Diego, Calif.
Air Force Falls to Nationally Ranked BYU
Michael Lyons scored 14 points and Mike Fitzgerald tied his career-high with 13 for Air Force, which fell to 14th-ranked BYU, 76-66, at the Marriott Center on Saturday. Jimmer Fredette scored a game-high 22 points, Noah Hartsock had 12 points and 11 rebounds and Brandon Davies added 10 points and six boards for the Cougars.
The Falcons trailed by seven, 37-30, at halftime but gave up a 21-10 run to begin the second half to fall behind by 18 points. Air Force didn't fold, however, and a three-point play by Taylor Broekhuis cut the lead to eight with 3:26 remaining, but could the Falcons could get no closer.
Second MWC Win in Three Seasons
With its 77-69 victory over Utah at Clune Arena on Jan. 5, Air Force captured just its second regular-season and fourth overall win against a Mountain West Conference opponent in three seasons. The Falcons went 0-16 in league play in `08-09 and 1-15 last season, beating Wyoming 70-63 at Clune. Air Force has won a game at the MWC Tournament each of the past two seasons.
Up Next
The Falcons travel to MWC leading and sixth ranked San Diego State on Wednesday, Jan. 19 at Viejas Arena in San Diego, Calif. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. (PT).
Falcons Lead the MWC in Free Throw Shooting
Despite shooting just 69.6 percent from the free throw line against BYU, Air Force continues to lead the Mountain West Conference in free throw shooting at 73.2 percent. The Falcons have shot 82.3 percent (79-for-96) in their last five games, and made 16 in a row at one point during the Sun Bowl Invitational, including the last 13 straight against Sam Houston State. Air Force's 94.1 percent (16-of-17) shooting from the free throw line against Colorado College on Nov. 17 was the the best single-game percentage since going 16-for-17 against Georgia on March 19, 2007.
Tom Fow Named All-Tourney at Sun Bowl Invite
Senior Tom Fow was named to the all-tournament team at the Sun Bowl Invitational in El Paso, Texas on Dec. 28-29 after averaging 14 points and four rebounds in AFA's two games.
Here are the Bank of the West Don Haskins Sun Bowl Invitational results:
Tuesday, Dec. 28
UTEP 87, Western New Mexico 58
Air Force 76, Sam Houston State 65
Wednesday, Dec. 29
Sam Houston State 64, Western New Mexico 48
UTEP 71, Air Force 54
Big Win Against Sam Houston State
Derek Brooks led Air Force with career-highs of 17 points and eight rebounds and the Falcons made their last 13 free throws in a 76-65 victory over Sam Houston State on Dec. 28. Tom Fow added 15 points and Todd Fletcher added 12 for Air Force, which played without two of its top three scorers, center Taylor Broekhuis (concussion) and guard Michael Lyons (knee).
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 returned vs. Sam Houston State. Sophomore Taylor Broekhuis missed the team's two games at the Sun Bowl Invitational with a concussion.
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
Still Looking for Back-to-Back Road Wins
Air Force was looking for its first consecutive true road wins since 2007 at Wright State on Dec. 8. The Falcons still have not won two straight road games since winning at Colorado State and Wyoming in January of `07.
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.
Super Sophs Solid So Far
Sophomores Michael Lyons, Taylor Broekhuis and Todd Fletcher have produced some impressive numbers so far this season. Lyons continues to lead the team in scoring (13.6 ppg) and scored a career-high 26 points last Wednesday vs. Utah. He has scored in double figures nine times this season and reached the 20-point mark three times.
Broekhuis, meanwhile, scored a career-high 19 points on Dec. 5 against Evansville and shot
5-for-10 from three-point range. He had made just two career 3-pointers entering the game. Broekhuis is shooting a team-high 57.3 percent from the field and is third on the team in scoring at 11.5 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. Unfortunately, Broekhuis missed both games at the Sun Bowl Invitational due to injury, but returned to the lineup and scored 15 points against Florida A&M.
Fletcher has been just as solid at point guard, dishing out just under three assists per game and scoring a career-high 15 points against Cal State Northridge. He is second on the team with 39 assists and has committed just three turnovers in his last eight games.
Fitzgerald Getting Marriott Points
Sophomore Mike Fitzgerald tied his career-high with 13 points last Saturday against BYU at the Marriott Center in Provo. He set his career-high last season with 13 points at BYU. In fact, two of his five career double-figure games have come at the Marriott Center.
Fow Still Putting Up Strong Numbers
Senior Tom Fow is second on the team in scoring (12.3 ppg) and has hit double figures in four of his last five games. He is shooting 46 percent from the field and 44 percent from three-point range, good for No. 6 in the MWC rankings. Fow, who led or tied for the team lead in scoring in four of AFA's first five games, scored a season-high 22 points on Dec. 2 against CSU Northridge. He also tied his career-high with eight rebounds against Colorado College.
Evan Washington Top Ten in Dimes
With his career-high 11 assists against Utah on Jan. 5, senior Evan Washington moved into the No. 8 spot on Air Force's career assist list with 251, passing Greg Lewis (247) and Tim Keller (246). Washington's 11 assists against the Utes were the most in one game by a Falcon since A.J. Kuhle had 11 against San Diego State on March 1, 2004.
Stucky Finally Gets His Shot
Junior guard Scott Stucky appeared in his first career game Dec. 8 at Wright State. Stucky, playing just 30 minutes from his hometown of Dublin, Ohio, did not play in either of his first two years after suffering a torn ACL prior to each season. He scored four points at WSU.
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.
Still a Great Record at Clune
Including an 8-1 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 91 of its 117 home games, good for a .778 winning percentage.
In addition, the Falcons have won 37 of their 57 Mountain West Conference games at Clune during that same stretch.
Washington in Search of 1,000
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 has 869 career points and is currently 36th on the school's career scoring list.
Balanced Attack So Far This Season
Air Force has had five players score in double figures in two games and four in double figures in four others this season. 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.
10-5 Ties Fourth-Best Start
Air Force's 10-5 record ties the fourth-best start ever in program history after 15 games. The Falcons have been 14-1 twice in the past (2005-06 and `06-07), 13-2 once (`03-04), 12-3 two times and this is the second time at 10-5, the other time during the 1972-73 campaign.
All Five Losses to Winning Teams
The five teams that have beaten the Falcons this season have a combined record of 60-23 (.723 winning percentage) this season and all five currently have a winning record.
Air Force Almost 60 Percent Last 7
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 58.4 percent. Air Force is one of only five teams in the conference to have a winning record in at least five of the last seven seasons (UNLV (7); BYU, New Mexico (6), San Diego State (5), Air Force (5)).
