Falcons host Robert Morris in Air Force Classic
11/21/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
BROADCAST INFORMATION
Television:........ Mountain West Network (goairforcefalcons.com)
Josh Howe (play-by-play)
Radio:................... KVOR AM 740
Jim Arthur (play-by-play), Matt Pauley (analyst)
THE BREAKDOWN
Quick Facts Air Force Robert Morris
Record:............................ 2-1........................................................ 0-0
Conf. Record:............ 0-0........................................................ 0-0
Conference:................ Mountain West........................... Northeast
Nickname:.................... Falcons.............................................. Colonials
Location:....................... Colorado Springs, CO........... Moon Township, PA
Website:......................... GoAirForceFalcons.com........ rmucolonials.com
The Series
Overall:................................. First Meeting
Last Meeting:................. NA
The Coaches
Air Force is coached by Dave Pilipovich (Thiel College, 1986), who is in his fourth full season. He has a 48-56 career record.
Robert Morris is coached by Andrew Toole (Penn, 2003), who is in his sixth season. He has led the Colonials to a 110-68 career record.
This Week
Air Force........................ vs. Tennessee Tech (11/16), W 80-70
- Mississippi Valley State (11/19), W 65-64
Robert Morris........... vs. Bucknell (11/18), L 76-81
Last Week
Air Force........................ at Southern Illinois (11/13), L 75-77
Robert Morris........... at Penn (11/13), L 75-76
at Cincinnati (11/15), L 44-106
Next Up
Air Force........................ at Colorado, (11/25)
Robert Morris........... at New Mexico State, (11/24)
THE SERIES
Air Force and Robert Morris are meeting for the first time.
AIR FORCE CLASSIC
Air Force and Robert Morris are playing as part of the Air Force Classic, an exempt event that also includes Tennessee Tech, Mississippi Valley State and New Mexico State. The five teams all play each other as part of the classic. Air Force is 2-0 in the event. The Falcons opened Monday with an 80-70 win at home vs. Tennessee Tech. The Falcons also beat Mississippi Valley State, 65-64, Thursday. Air Force's games in the classic follow.
Air Force in the Air Force Classic
Nov. 16...... vs. Tennessee Tech (W 80-70)
Nov. 19...... vs. Mississippi Valley State (W 65-64)
Nov. 22...... vs. Robert Morris
Nov. 28...... vs. New Mexico State
AIR FORCE THIS WEEK
Air Force is 2-0 this week, winning a pair of home games in the Air Force Classic.
Air Force vs. Mississippi Valley State
Sophomore Trevor Lyons hit a driving layup with one second left to lead Air Force past Mississippi Valley State, 65-64, in a non-conference men's basketball Thursday night in Clune Arena.
Lyons, who scored a career-high 19 points, hit two free throws with 16 second left to put the Falcons ahead, 63-62. Junior Rashaan Surles hit a driving layup with 5.5 second left to give MVSU the lead back, 64-63, before Lyons drove the length of the floor to hit his game-winner. The game featured 14 lead changes, including 11 in final eight minutes, and was tied nine times.
Air Force overcame a 14 point halftime deficit, 42-29, despite shooting just 38.3 percent shooting overall and 38.7 in the second half. The Falcons held the Delta Devils to just 26.7 percent shooting in the second half after a 55 percent mark in the first half.
Air Force used a 10-0 run early in the second half to cut the lead to 47-43 with 15:41 left. Following a 6-1 MVSU spurt, the Falcons used an 11-1 run to take their first lead since the midway part of the first half, 55-54, with 8:00 remaining to set up the last 11 lead changes. Lyons had six points in the spurt.
Hayden Graham added 14 points and eight rebounds for Air Force while Joe Tuss chipped in with career bests of six points and 10 rebounds. Ryan Manning added a career-best nine points and four rebounds while Zach Kocur had eight points and a season-best six rebounds.
The Falcons finished the game hitting just 38.3 percent from the field, including just three of 21 from 3-point range. Air Force assisted on 15 of 23 field goals and had 40 rebounds.
Air Force vs. Tennessee Tech
Trevor Lyons scored 18 points and Hayden Graham added 15 points, eight rebounds and a career-high six assists to lead Air Force past Tennessee Tech, 80-70, Monday night in a non-conference game at Clune Arena.
The Falcons, who led 40-27 at halftime, controlled the game in the early going in the second half. Tennessee Tech used a 14-6 run midway through the second half to take its first lead of the half, 57-56, with 7:01 remaining. Torrance Rowe capped the run with a jumper. Graham responded with a 3-pointer on Air Force's next possession to give the team the lead to good, 59-57, with 6:30 to play. The basket started an 11-1 run and Air Force never looked back.
Air Force hit 59.2 percent from the field, including a 66.7 percent clip in the second half on 14-of-21 shooting. The Falcons assisted on 19 of 29 field goals in the game after having just 10 assists in the opener. CJ Siples added a career-high 14 points while Joe Tuss chipped in with six and Kyle Broekhuis added career highs of five points and four rebounds.
AIR FORCE LAST WEEK
Southern Illinois defeated Air Force, 77-75, in Carbondale, Ill., in the season opener for both schools as part of the Mountain West-Missouri Valley Challenge.
Air Force led 38-30 at halftime and opened the second half with a 9-2 run to take a 47-32 lead with 17:54 remaining in the game. Southern Illinois battled back behind 50 percent shooting in the second half. Mike Rodriguez hit a pair of free throws with nine seconds left to give Southern Illinois a 77-75 lead. The Falcons final possession ended with a turnover by Trevor Lyons when he slipped to the floor driving the basketball to the hoop.
Air Force was led by Hayden Graham, who recorded the fourth double-double of his career with a career-high 19 points and 10 rebounds. Lyons tied his career high with 18 points and added a career-high eight rebounds. Zach Moer added a career-high 11 points in his first-career start. The Falcons hit 43.1 percent from the field, but just four of 20 from 3-point range.
THAT'S MORE LIKE IT
Air Force has assisted on 70.8 percent of its field goals the last two games. The Falcons assisted on 15 of 23 vs. Mississippi Valley State and 19 of 29 against Tennessee Tech. The team had just 10 assists in the season opener at Southern Illinois. Air Force is second in the Mountain West in assists with 14.6 per game after two games. The Falcons led the conference is assists last season with a 15.6 mark.
FALCONS UP AND DOWN AT LINE
Air Force is shooting 66.7 percent from the free throw line after three games. The Falcons opened the season hitting 81.8 percent at Southern Illinois, but has hit just 58.3 percent (35-60) the last two games. The Falcons hit just 65.9 last season.
BROEKHUIS THREE-FOR-THREE
Junior Kyle Broekhuis recorded career highs in points and rebounds in the first two games this season. He opened the season with four points and three rebounds at SIU. He came back with new career highs of five points and four rebounds vs. Tennessee Tech. Broekhuis scored four points and recorded a new career high with five rebounds vs. Mississippi Valley State.
WELCOME BACK Joe Tuss
Junior Joe Tuss returned to action against Southern Illinois after missing all of last season due to injury. Tuss played for the first time since March 5, 2014 against New Mexico. He played 14 minutes and scored two points and had two rebounds. Tuss added a career-high six points and three rebounds vs. Tennessee Tech. He chipped in with a career-high-tying six points and a career-high 10 rebounds vs. Mississippi Valley State.
COLORADO WELL REPRESENTED
The Air Force Academy's hometown of Colorado Springs is well represented on the 2015-16 men's basketball roster. Four members of the team played their high school basketball in Colorado Springs, including freshmen Dylan Clark (Sand Creek), David Louthan (Air Academy) and Jason Anderson (Doherty), along with sophomore Kyle Broekhuis (Colorado Springs Christian). Two other Falcons call the state of Colorado home. Junior Zach Kocur is from Denver and attended Arapahoe High School while sophomore Dezmond James is native of Parker and attended Ponderosa High School.
