Air Force Drops Heartbreaker at Wyoming, 66-62

LARAMIE, Wyo. - Air Force men's basketball (3-26, 0-18 MW) fell at Wyoming (16-13, 7-11 MW), 66-62, in Mountain West action Saturday afternoon at the Arena Auditorium. Freshman Kam Sanders led an inspired rally by Air Force, with 16 points, nine rebounds and five assists.

Sanders almost single-handedly rallied Air Force back to a win late in the game. Down six with under four minutes to play, Sanders hit three consecutive three-point baskets to give Air Force a 62-59 lead with 1:59 to play. Air Force was unable to hold the lead, as Wyoming rallied with the last seven points of the game.

It was a tough loss for the Falcons, who had erased a 10-point deficit, only to see it slip away late. Air Force had a strong defensive effort, holding the Cowboys to 34.5 percent shooting from the field and 25 percent from three.

Wyoming led 35-25 the the half. The Cowboys held a 15-4 scoring advantage in points off turnovers and 12-3 on second-chance points to take the lead into the half. Air Force shot 45 percent from the field in the first half and 60 percent from three, but the Cowboy defense allowed the team to take just 20 shot attempts, while Wyoming took 36 in the opening half.

Trailing by 10 with under 13 minutes to play, Air Force got itself back in the game with its first 9-0 run to pull to within one at 47-46 with 8:54 to play. The Cowboys got back up six, before Sanders erupted for his three three's.

Wyoming took the lead for good as Nasir Meyer converted a bucket and free throw to put the Cowboys up 64-62. Wyoming made two more free throws, while the Falcons were unable to get any more points.

Sanders led Air Force in scoring, rebounding and assists. He tied a career-high with four three's on 4-for-5 shooting from long range. Sophomore Eli Robinson scored 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting. Junior Wesley Celichowski provided nine points and a career-high seven rebounds, including a pair of three's. Junior Caleb Walker added eight points and five rebounds.

Guard Damarion Dennis led Wyoming with 16 points. Meyer added 14 points and eight rebounds.

Air Force shot 49 percent from the field and made eight three's. The three total was a significant improvement from the one made three in the first meeting vs. Wyoming.

The Falcons have shown significant improvement in its last two games, dropping a six-point game Tuesday to San Jose State and now a four-point game at Wyoming.

Air Force returns to action Tuesday, March 3 hosting Grand Canyon in its home-finale. Tip time is 7 pm MT from Clune Arena. The game will be streamed on the MW Network.

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