Falcons Stun Top-Seeded San Diego State, Advance to MW Semifinals

LAS VEGAS – Nine-seed Air Force Women's Basketball won an 83-76 thriller over No. 1 seed San Diego State on Sunday afternoon in Las Vegas, securing the Falcons' second-ever semifinal bid in the 2026 Credit Union 1 Mountain West Championship.

In a game which saw the lead exchange hands 13 times and fell to a single possession inside the final minute, it was the Falcons who emerged on top at the final buzzer to snap an eight-game winning streak for the outright Mountain West regular-season champions. The Falcons' victory on Saturday represents both the program's first-ever win over a postseason No. 1 ranked opponent and the first time either Air Force basketball program has won two games in the Mountain West tournament.

Senior All-Mountain West selection Milahnie Perry posted a career high 33 points (12-20 FG, 2-4 3FG) and added nine rebounds to match a career best. Senior Emily Adams finished with 20 points (5-12 FG, 10-11 FT), eight rebounds and six assists, a team high. Both juniors Jayda McNabb and Keelie O'Hollaren posted 12 points apiece, contributing on a single-game season high finish in points for the Falcons.

Air Force trailed 16-12 at the close of the first quarter. Perry scored the Falcons' first three baskets and four of Air Force's six made buckets for the quarter. Despite the early scoring surge, SDSU took an early lead and slowly crept ahead on the scoreboard. The Aztecs led by as much as six points in the frame, but baskets for both sophomore Keelie O'Hollaren and Perry inside the final minute left Air Force with just a four-point deficit to handle after the first 10 minutes.

Perry's fifth bucket of the game came at the open of the second quarter, lifting the senior to fifth-most by a Falcon in Air Force's Division I history in a single season. SDSU and Air Force exchanged the lead three times throughout the second quarter, but the Aztecs emerged from the stalemate on a 7-0 run over the final two minutes to close out the half. Air Force hit the locker room down 32-26.

Trailing 36-28 in the opening minute of the third quarter, Air Force mustered a 15-2 rally to swing the score back in favor of the Falcons – But SDSU responded to tie at the 3:14 mark. Air Force and the Aztecs again traded control of the lead four times down the final minute of the third quarter before the Falcons pulled back into a 55-54 lead behind Adams' fourth and fifth made free throws to enter the final frame.

Air Force built a 10-point lead down the stretch in the fourth quarter which proved critical to staving off a furious Aztec rally in the final minute of the contest. All-Mountain West honoree Naomi Panganiban hit three-straight triples in a 19-second stretch of game time, willing San Diego State back into a single possession game with 17 seconds to go. A pair of trips to the free throw line for O'Hollaren capped a 15-17 Falcon showing from the free throw line in the fourth quarter, holding off the No. 1 seed to secure the first semifinal appearance in the Stacy McIntyre era of Falcon hoops.

Air Force (15-17, 7-13 MW) led SDSU (25-5, 19-1 MW) in free throws made (27) and attempted (31), free-throw percentage (.870), three-point percentage (.500, ties season best), rebounds (34), second-chance points (9) and fast break points (9).

Up Next:
No. 9 Air Force will face five-seed Boise State in the semifinal round of the 2026 Credit Union 1 Mountain West Basketball Championships. Tip off on Monday evening is set for 6 p.m. MT at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas.

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