Friday, November 10
Houston, Texas
6:00 PM MT
Air Force Academy
at
Houston
Women’s basketball aims to upend Houston in first road contest of 2023-24
11/9/2023 9:31:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Air Force at Houston
Friday, Nov. 10, 2023
Fertitta Center | Houston, Texas | 6 p.m. MT
Watch: ESPN+
Live Scoring: Stat Broadcast
Air Force | Houston | Mountain West
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
With a win under its belt and the 2023-24 season underway, the Air Force women's basketball team is off to Texas for its first road test of the season at Houston on Friday evening at 6 p.m. MT.
2023-24 marks a milestone year for the Houston Cougars athletic department, as the program navigates its inaugural year as a newly minted member of the Big XII Conference. UH women's basketball, opening its first Power Five season at home against the Falcons on Friday, will feel the pressures of a rising program hungry for its first-ever win against a Power Five opponent.
Quick Hits:
Coaches' Numbers:
First-Ever Matchups in 2023-24:
Friday's meeting with UH is one of three first-ever program matchups for Air Force in 2023-24: At Houston; vs. Washington (N), Nov. 25; at Clemson, Dec. 19.
Scouting Houston:
The eight letterwinners returning to Houston for the 2023-24 season are highlighted by the return of All-AAC First-Team selection Laila Blair, and four of its five 2022-23 starters, accounting for 63 percent of their scoring production.
Houston ranked second nationally in steals per game (13.5), three-point percentage defense (.241) and turnovers forced per game (24.29) while ranking fourth nationally in turnover margin (7.23). Two Cougars ranked in the top 100 nationally in steals and steals per game (Onyeje, 31st; Patterson, 80th).
UH closed its final year as a member of the American Athletic Conference with a 15-16 overall record and a 10-5 mark in conference play; The Cougars took down SMU and Wichita State on the way to an AAC Championship berth, finishing as the tournament runner-up to East Carolina.
Last Time Out:
Air Force held on into the final possession of regulation to claim its fourth-straight win over Denver, defeating the Pioneers 65-63 in Clune Arena. Junior Madison Smith led the pack in scoring, totaling 18 for the night – Yet it was her efforts in the waning seconds of regulation that pushed Air Force across the finish line.
After a red-hot start that had the Falcons out to as high as a 16-point advantage early on in the second quarter, DU had slowly crawled back into the contest, eventually tying and taking its first lead of the entire game with just 45 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter. Smith, defending Pioneer Jojo Jones (12 pts, 13 reb, 3 ast, 2 stl), let her opponent slip past her in the paint, allowing Denver to put itself in a winning position.
Smith, in response, drove up the floor and cut into the right of the paint, taking a reverse layup that brought the score back to 63-all. After a missed layup on the other end for Jones, DU's Angelina Robles was drawn into a foul on a driving Smith with just 1.5 seconds remaining, who otherwise would have been left with a last-second heave from well beyond the three-point line to avoid overtime. Smith, an 83 percent free-throw shooter in 2022-23, made both of her attempts to clinch the victory for Air Force.
Including Smith, three Falcons scored in double-digits on the evening; sophomore Milahnie Perry finished with 11 on the night, and freshman Keelie O'Hollaren made her collegiate debut to the tune of 16 points on 4-6 from three-point range and 6-14 from the field. O'Hollaren's 16 points is the most by a freshman since Perry totaled 22 against Wyoming on Jan. 11.
Fellow newcomer Jayda McNabb, starting for the Falcons in her first game, totaled nine points on the evening and three blocks – one more than any individual Falcon had in 2022-23.
A hot start for Air Force proved critical in its Monday victory, as the Falcons opened the contest making six of their first seven baskets on the way to a rapid 15-3 lead just over five minutes into the game. Through that stretch, the Falcons managed to hold DU to just 2-16 and 1-7 coming out of the second quarter. DU's scoring efforts largely outpaced the Falcons throughout the next three quarters in part behind a 22-point, 4-9 three-point effort from sophomore Emma Smith.
New-Look Falcons:
The 2023-24 Falcons roster seven freshmen, the largest class at Air Force since the 2016-17 season and the largest in the Mountain West this year.
In the Falcons' home-opening win against Denver on Nov. 6, Keelie O'Hollaren logged 16 points on 4-6 from three-point range; Jayda McNabb, starting in her intercollegiate debut, totaled nine points on the evening and three blocks – one more than any individual Falcon had in 2022-23; Alexis Cortez, in 19 minutes played, logged five points, seven rebounds, two assists and a steal.
Taking the Hard Road:
Air Force plays four non-conference Power Five opponents in 2023-24 (Houston, Colorado, Washington, Clemson), the most in the MW. In the history of the program, the Falcons have never defeated a Power Five opponent.
Maddie Ice:
Junior team captain Madison Smith posted 18 points on 8-13 FG, seven rebounds, four steals and a block in Air Force's 65-63 win over Denver to open 2023-24. With the game on the line, Smith scored six of the Falcons' last seven points, including a pair of successful free throws with 1.5 seconds remaining to secure the one-possession win over the Pioneers.
Friday, Nov. 10, 2023
Fertitta Center | Houston, Texas | 6 p.m. MT
Watch: ESPN+
Live Scoring: Stat Broadcast
Air Force | Houston | Mountain West
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
With a win under its belt and the 2023-24 season underway, the Air Force women's basketball team is off to Texas for its first road test of the season at Houston on Friday evening at 6 p.m. MT.
2023-24 marks a milestone year for the Houston Cougars athletic department, as the program navigates its inaugural year as a newly minted member of the Big XII Conference. UH women's basketball, opening its first Power Five season at home against the Falcons on Friday, will feel the pressures of a rising program hungry for its first-ever win against a Power Five opponent.
Quick Hits:
| Air Force | Houston | |
| Record: | 1-0 | 0-0 |
| Last Game: | vs. Denver (W, 65-63) | - |
| Next Game: | vs. Regis (Nov. 14) | vs. Sam Houston (Nov. 14) |
| Location/Enrollment: | USAFA, Colo./4,000 | Houston, Texas/47,000 |
| 2022-23 Record: | 13-18 (8-10 MW) | 15-16 (10-5 AAC) |
Coaches' Numbers:
| Head Coach: | Chris Gobrecht | Ronald Hughey |
| Alma Mater/Year: | USC, 1977 | Limestone, 2006 |
| Program Record: | 70-172 (2015-Current) | 121-154 (2014-Current) |
| Career Record: | 612-643 (1979-Current) | 121-154 (2014-Current) |
| Record vs. Opponent: | 0-0 | 0-0 |
First-Ever Matchups in 2023-24:
Friday's meeting with UH is one of three first-ever program matchups for Air Force in 2023-24: At Houston; vs. Washington (N), Nov. 25; at Clemson, Dec. 19.
Scouting Houston:
The eight letterwinners returning to Houston for the 2023-24 season are highlighted by the return of All-AAC First-Team selection Laila Blair, and four of its five 2022-23 starters, accounting for 63 percent of their scoring production.
Houston ranked second nationally in steals per game (13.5), three-point percentage defense (.241) and turnovers forced per game (24.29) while ranking fourth nationally in turnover margin (7.23). Two Cougars ranked in the top 100 nationally in steals and steals per game (Onyeje, 31st; Patterson, 80th).
UH closed its final year as a member of the American Athletic Conference with a 15-16 overall record and a 10-5 mark in conference play; The Cougars took down SMU and Wichita State on the way to an AAC Championship berth, finishing as the tournament runner-up to East Carolina.
Last Time Out:
Air Force held on into the final possession of regulation to claim its fourth-straight win over Denver, defeating the Pioneers 65-63 in Clune Arena. Junior Madison Smith led the pack in scoring, totaling 18 for the night – Yet it was her efforts in the waning seconds of regulation that pushed Air Force across the finish line.
After a red-hot start that had the Falcons out to as high as a 16-point advantage early on in the second quarter, DU had slowly crawled back into the contest, eventually tying and taking its first lead of the entire game with just 45 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter. Smith, defending Pioneer Jojo Jones (12 pts, 13 reb, 3 ast, 2 stl), let her opponent slip past her in the paint, allowing Denver to put itself in a winning position.
Smith, in response, drove up the floor and cut into the right of the paint, taking a reverse layup that brought the score back to 63-all. After a missed layup on the other end for Jones, DU's Angelina Robles was drawn into a foul on a driving Smith with just 1.5 seconds remaining, who otherwise would have been left with a last-second heave from well beyond the three-point line to avoid overtime. Smith, an 83 percent free-throw shooter in 2022-23, made both of her attempts to clinch the victory for Air Force.
Including Smith, three Falcons scored in double-digits on the evening; sophomore Milahnie Perry finished with 11 on the night, and freshman Keelie O'Hollaren made her collegiate debut to the tune of 16 points on 4-6 from three-point range and 6-14 from the field. O'Hollaren's 16 points is the most by a freshman since Perry totaled 22 against Wyoming on Jan. 11.
Fellow newcomer Jayda McNabb, starting for the Falcons in her first game, totaled nine points on the evening and three blocks – one more than any individual Falcon had in 2022-23.
A hot start for Air Force proved critical in its Monday victory, as the Falcons opened the contest making six of their first seven baskets on the way to a rapid 15-3 lead just over five minutes into the game. Through that stretch, the Falcons managed to hold DU to just 2-16 and 1-7 coming out of the second quarter. DU's scoring efforts largely outpaced the Falcons throughout the next three quarters in part behind a 22-point, 4-9 three-point effort from sophomore Emma Smith.
New-Look Falcons:
The 2023-24 Falcons roster seven freshmen, the largest class at Air Force since the 2016-17 season and the largest in the Mountain West this year.
In the Falcons' home-opening win against Denver on Nov. 6, Keelie O'Hollaren logged 16 points on 4-6 from three-point range; Jayda McNabb, starting in her intercollegiate debut, totaled nine points on the evening and three blocks – one more than any individual Falcon had in 2022-23; Alexis Cortez, in 19 minutes played, logged five points, seven rebounds, two assists and a steal.
Taking the Hard Road:
Air Force plays four non-conference Power Five opponents in 2023-24 (Houston, Colorado, Washington, Clemson), the most in the MW. In the history of the program, the Falcons have never defeated a Power Five opponent.
Maddie Ice:
Junior team captain Madison Smith posted 18 points on 8-13 FG, seven rebounds, four steals and a block in Air Force's 65-63 win over Denver to open 2023-24. With the game on the line, Smith scored six of the Falcons' last seven points, including a pair of successful free throws with 1.5 seconds remaining to secure the one-possession win over the Pioneers.
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