Falcons take on top-seeded Boise State in MW Tournament
3/11/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
#9 Air Force (14-16, 6-12) vs. #1 Boise State (24-7, 14-4)
Date: Thursday, March 12, 2015
Time: 12 p.m. PT
TV: CBS Sports; Dave Ryan (play-by-play), Bob Wenzel (analyst), Evan Washburn (sidelines)
Radio: KVOR AM 740; Jim Arthur (play-by-play), Matt Pauley (analyst)
THE SERIES
Air Force and Boise State are meeting for the 10th time overall and ninth time as conference foes. Boise State leads the overall series, 6-3, and has a 5-3 mark in conference games. Air Force is 2-2 at home and 1-4 in Boise. This is the first meeting between the two in conference tournamnt play. Boise State defeated Air Force, 77-68, earlier this season at the Academy and 67-42 in Boise. The teams first played in the Albertson's Classic in Boise on Dec. 27, 1991 resulting in a Boise State victory, 77-68.
EARLIER THIS SEASON VS. BOISE STATE
1/24/15 (USAFA) - Marek Olesinski led Air Force with 24 points and 10 rebounds, but the Falcons lost to Boise State 77-68 in a close contest at the Acadmey. The Falcons held a 31-30 lead at intermission. Boise State pulled ahead on Derrick Marks' 3-pointer - the first shot of the second half - and never trailed again, although the final 20 minutes saw five ties and no more than a single-digit lead. Boise State shot almost 58 percent from the floor, and 14 of 22 on 3-pointers. Hayden Graham chipped in 14 points for Air Force. Marks scored 28 points and Nick Duncan added a career-high 20 to lead Boise State. Marks shot 4 of 5 from 3-point range and had six assists. Duncan finished 6 of 8, all from beyond the arc for the Broncos, and James Webb III added 10 points and five steals.
2/11/15 (Boise, ID) - James Webb III had 17 points and matched a season high with 15 rebounds to lead Boise State to an easy 67-42 victory over Air Force in Boise. Derrick Marks added 13 points as the Broncos set a school record with their eighth consecutive victory. Rob Heyer contributed 12 points for Boise State, which hasn't lost since Jan. 10 against Wyoming. Matt Mooney scored 12 points to lead Air Force, which lost for the seventh time in 10 games. Zach Kocur added nine points for the Falcons, who were 4-of-16 from 3-point range and 4-of-14 from the free-throw line. Air Force's point total is its lowest of the season. Boise State's lead reached 10 before the game was 12 minutes old and the Broncos were never seriously threatened. Boise State led 25-14 at halftime and expanded the lead to 20 five-plus minutes into the second half.
AIR FORCE DEFEATS NEW MEXICO
Ninth-seeded Air Force defeated eighth-seeded New Mexico, 68-61, in the opening round of the 2015 Mountain West Basketball Championship. Zach Kocur scored a career-high-tying 20 points and Trevor Lyons added 10 points to lead the Falcons. Kocur hit a 3-pointer with 5:11 remaining to give the Falcons the lead for good, 54-53. The basketball capped an 11-1 run. The Falcons hit four of six free throws from that point to secure the win. Air Force shot 48.0 percent from the field, including a 65.0 mark in the second half. The Falcons hit 38.1 percent from 3-point range, including 50 percent in the second half.
Post-Game Notes
Team Notes
• Air Force improves to 14-16 overall and 6-12 the Mountain West. The Falcons improve to 3-15 in Mountain West tournament play. • Air Force's starting lineup of Trevor Lyons, Zach Kocur, Max Yon, Hayden Graham and Marek Olesinski started for the first time this season. The lineup is the 11th different starting lineup for the Falcons this season. • Air Force extended its streak of hitting at least one three-pointer to 181 games dating back to Nov. 21, 2009 vs. Northern Colorado. • Air Force trailed New Mexico, 32-28, at the half. The Falcons improve to 3-14 this season when trailing at the half this season. • Air Force improves to 3-1 in opening round games in Mountain West tournament play and 3-15 overall. The Falcons snap a five-game MW tournament losing streak dating back to 2010. Air Force improves to 1-3 vs. New Mexico in MW tournament action. The Falcons are 2-1 this season vs. New Mexico and improve to 21-56 all-time vs. the Lobos. Air Force is 2-3 overall in neutral site games vs. New Mexico. • Air Force advances to the quarterfinals and face Boise State. The game will be the first between Air Force and Boise State in MW tournament play. • Air Force head coach Dave Pilipovich becomes just the second coach in Air Force history to win a game in the Mountain West tournament. The coach improves to 1-3 all-time in conference tournament play. Pilipovich improves to 46-54 in his career at Air Force.
Individual Notes
• Senior Max Yon make his first start since returning to the team following a leave of absence. Yon came off the bench the first eight games since returning for the New Mexico game Feb. 4. • Sophomore Zach Kocur scored a career-high-tying 20 points to lead Air Force in scoring for the fifth time this season. Kocur hit four 3-pointers to mark the 14th time in his last 21 games with multiple 3-pointers. • Sophomore Hayden Graham grabbed seven rebounds to lead Air Force. Graham has led the team in rebounding in six of the last nine games. • Freshman Trevor Lyons scored 10 points to mark the seventh time this season he's scored in double figures. Lyons also had five assists and a career-best five steals.
