Women’s basketball falls in Mountain West opener at Fresno State

FRESNO, Calif. – Despite a heated contest to open league play, the Air Force women's basketball team lost its grip in the late stages of its Saturday contest at Fresno State, falling to the Bulldogs 59-49.

Freshman Jayda McNabb led scoring and rebounding for the game, earning 14 points (4-6 FG, 4-5 FT) and eight rebounds – six of which were off the offensive glass, also a game high.

McNabb got Air Force (7-7, 0-1 MW) got Air Force started on the right foot, earning the Falcons' first six points off a three pointer and a tip-in layup from a missed elbow jumper for Perry.

Despite the hot start for McNabb, Air Force found itself in an early deficit with the Bulldogs, as Fresno took a 7-5 lead at the 7:32 mark off Fresno's first three pointer of the contest. From that point, the Bulldogs outscored Air Force 14-7 through the remainder of the quarter, finishing the quarter shooting 58 percent to lead 18-12 at the end of the first quarter.

Air Force settled into the second quarter, as the Falcons managed to improve their shooting from 42 percent from the field from the 6:16 mark. A jumper from junior Madison Smith got the Falcons moving at the 6:16 mark, from which the Falcons took off on an 11-2 streak, opened on a 6-0 run and capped by a hook shot layup for Dasha Macmillan with 14 seconds remaining to bring Air Force back into a single possession game at 27-25 heading into the locker room.

Air Force and Fresno State battled through the third, as the Bulldogs' lead stayed inside of four points. A bevy of forced turnovers late in the period held Fresno to just 3-9 shooting for the quarter. With 2:17 to go in the third, Air Force had forced six turnovers over the previous five minutes, allowing the Falcons to tie the game at 35-all off a three-pointer for Taylor Britt with a minute remaining.

In the fourth quarter, a trio of early whistles against the Falcons stalled their momentum. From there, the Bulldogs outscored Air Force 9-2, extending Fresno State's lead to eight with 6:40 remaining – an advantage which the Bulldogs would not relinquish for the remainder of the contest.

Up Next:
Air Force women's basketball returns to Clune Arena to host San Diego State on Jan. 3 at 6:30 p.m.

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