Falcons host San Jose State in MW opener Saturday
12/31/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
BROADCAST INFORMATION
Television:.................... None
Video Stream:............ MW Network
Vince Greco (play-by-play), Josh Howe (analyst)
Radio:............................... KVOR AM 740
Jim Arthur (play-by-play), Matt Pauley (analyst)
THE SERIES
Overall:..................... Air Force leads, 4-3
First Meeting:..... Dec. 6, 1971 at USAFA (San Jose State, 74-67)
Last Meeting:...... Jan. 28, 2015 at SJSU (Air Force 66-52)
Streaks...................... Air Force W 4
THE SERIES
Air Force and San Jose State are meeting for the eighth time overall and seventh time as conference foes. Air Force leads the series 4-3 overall and 4-2 in conference games. Air Force is 2-2 at home and 2-1 on the road. The Falcons have won four straight. Air Force swept last year's series, winning 78-56 at the Academy Jan. 17 and 66-52 at San Jose State Jan. 28.
Series notes
Overall:..................... Air Force 4-3
Conference:.......... Air Force 4-2
Streaks:..................... Air Force W 4
LAST SEASON VS. SAN JOSE STATE
Jan. 7, 2015 at USAFA
Marek Olesinski scored 16 points as Air Force posted to a 78-56 victory over San Jose State.
Air Force closed out the opening half with 12 straight points to lead 37-26 at the break. The Falcons were up by 15 with 8:02 left in the second and held San Jose State without a field goal for 4:19 to take a 23-point advantage with 4:16 left to play.
Air Force dominated in rebounds (32-22) and assists (23-11), ending the contest shooting 61.1 percent (33 of 54) from the floor. Hayden Graham finished with 14 points, Max Yon added 13 and Zach Kocur chipped in 12.
Rashad Muhammad scored 26 points on 10-of-18 shooting, including 6 of 12 from 3-point range, and Darryl Gaynor II added 11 for the Spartans.
Jan. 28, 2015 at San Jose State
Freshman Matt Mooney scored a career-high 20 points and Hayden Graham added 16 to lead Air Force past San Jose State, 66-52, in San Jose, Calif.
Mooney hit a three-pointer with 7:46 remaining in the first half to give Air Force its first lead of the game, 17-16. The three-pointer was part of a 9-0 run and the Falcons never trailed in the game after that. Air Force went on to take a 29-23 advantage at halftime and led by as many as 11 points, 46-35, midway through the second half. San Jose State cut the lead to four points, 48-44, with 7:52 left, but the Falcons steadily pushed the lead back to 10 with 4:25 left. The Falcons kept the Spartans at a distance thanks to hitting 18 of 20 free throws in the second half. Air Force hit 21 of 25 for the game and out-rebounded San Jose State, 33-25. The Falcons also had just 10 turnovers and six steals while holding the Spartans to just 38.6 percent shooting.
AIR FORCE IN CONFERENCE OPENERS
Air Force is 10-25 all-time in conference openers, including an 8-8 mark in the Mountain West. The Falcons are 7-8 at home and 3-17 on the road. Air Force is 5-4 at home and 3-4 on the road in MW openers.
Air Force is playing San Jose State for the first time in a conference opener. Head Coach Dave Pilipovich is 2-1 in MW openers.
Overall: 10-25 (7-8 home, 3-17 away)
WAC: 2-17 (2-4 home, 0-13 away)
MW: 8-8 (5-4 home, 3-4 away)
AIR FORCE LAST WEEK
Air Force defeated Western State, 86-66, in its final non-conference game Dec. 29 in Clune Arena.
The Falcons took control of the game early, utilizing an 18-0 run in the first half to build a 45-27 lead at the half. Air Force led by as many as 31 points midway through the second half before Falcon head coach Dave Pilipovich began to empty out his bench.
Junior forward Hayden Graham led three Falcons in double-figures scoring with a game-high 19 points. Graham had an efficient shooting night from the field, making 6-of-9 field goals, including a perfect 5-of-5 from three point range.
Sophomore guard Trevor Lyons added 14 points on a perfect 4-for-4 night from the field and senior center Zach Moer chipped in with 12 points and a game-high three blocked shots. Junior guard Zach Kocur scored nine points and dished out three assists and freshman guard Pervis Louder had six points and five rebounds in 12 minutes off the bench.
The Falcons shot 54.8 percent from the field, making at least half of their shots for the fourth time this season. Air Force also made 82.1 percent of its free-throw shots, making 23-of-28. Western State (2-10) reserve Pablo Barreiro came off the bench to score a team-high 12 points.
NON-CONFERENCE RECAP
- Air Force finished the non-conference season with a 9-4 record.
- The team's nine wins are the most in the Dave Pilipovich area and most since the 2011-12 season when the team won 10.
- Air Force finished the non-conference slate with an RPI of 107, the fourth-best in the conference.
FALCONS 7-1 AT HOME
Air Force is 7-1 at home this season. The last time Air Force opened better than 7-1 at home was 2006-07 when the team opened 13-0 at home.
AIR FORCE IS.....
- 5-1 when leading at the half
- 7-1 when leading with 10:00 left
- 5-0 when out-rebounding opponent
- 6-2 when out-shooting opponent
- 7-0 when holding opponents under 70 points
HITTING THE BOARDS
Air Force has out rebounded four opponents and tied one in the last seven games. Air Force out-rebounded Citadel, 47-33, and Denver, 37-22, before matching Ohio State with 35. Army out-rebound Air Force, 41-38, and UC Davis held a 37-30 edge. The Falcons out-rebounded UC Davis, 20-14, in the second half. Air Force out-rebounded Johnson & Wales, 42-33, and Western State, 38-37.
Air Force has a 267-238 rebounding edge (4.1 per game) over the seven games overall. The Falcons are 5-0 this season when out-rebounding an opponent. Air Force also held the edge against Robert Morris (47-36).
4-1 IN FOUR
Air Force has won four straight games decided by four points or less this season. The team is 4-1 with the lone loss in the season opener at Southern Illinois, 77-75.
UP AND DOWN AT LINE CONTINUES
Air Force is shooting 67.6 percent from the free throw line this season. The Falcons have been up and down at the line so far.
The Falcons have shot over 80 percent four times this season while shooting under a 60 percent clip four times.
Air Force's season high is 84.6 percent vs. Robert Morris while the season low is 44.4 percent at Colorado.
Air Force has hit 79.6 percent (43-54) the last two games. Air Force hit 23-28 from Western State and 20-26 vs. Johnson & Wales.
FIELD GOAL SHOOTING
Air Force is shooting 44.5 percent from the field this season. The Falcons have out-shot eight opponents and are 6-2 in those game. The team has hit over 50 percent four times, winning each game.
The Falcons shot a season-high 59.2 percent effort vs. Tennessee Tech and hit 55.2 percent against Citadel. Air Force hit 50 percent against UC Davis which is the best in a road game this season. The Falcons hit 53.8 percent vs. Western State the last game.
50 percent games
Opponent FG Pct.
Tennessee Tech (W) 59.2
Citadel (W) 55.2
UC Davis (W) 50.0
Western State (W) 53.8
GRAHAM DOUBLE-DOUBLES
Junior forward Hayden Graham has recorded four double-doubles this season which is the most in a season by an Air Force player since Tom Bellairs had eight in 1999-2000. Graham has seven career double-doubles. He nearly had the first triple-double in school history against Robert Morris with 16 points, 12 rebounds and a career-high eight assists.
Graham career double-doubles
Opponent Date Pts-Rebs
2015-16
Army 12/12/15 21-12
Citadel 12/2/15 20-10
Robert Morris 11/22/15 16-12
Southern Illinois 11/13/15 19-10
2014-15
Utah State 2/28/15 16-12
Nevada 2/25/15 12-10
Wyoming 2/7/15 10-11
NOTEWORTHY
- Air Force opened the season 6-2 for the second time under head coach Dave Pilipovich. The Falcons also started the 2012-13 season, his first as head coach, with a 6-2 record. The 6-2 start ties as the second-best in school history. The best eight-game start in school history came in 2006-07 when the team was 7-1 under head coach Jeff Bzdelik.
- Air Force defeated Denver, 61-59, Dec. 5 to win on the road for the first time this season and first time since winning at San Jose State, 66-52, on Jan. 28 last season. The win is Air Force's first in a true road game over a non-conference opponent since winning at UC-Riverside on Dec. 22, 2012.
- Air Force posted its second non-conference road win this season, beating UC Davis, 67-60, Dec. 19. The win marked the first time since 2013-14 the Falcons have won two true road non-conference games. That year Air Force won at Citadel (77-70) and UC Riverside (61-53).
