Fort Collins – First, Air Force’s Jacob Burtschi unintentionally ran into Colorado State coach Dale Layer, provoking Rams forward Freddy Robinson to spring off the bench and earn an ejection in the Falcons’ 63-59 win.
After the game, Burtschi launched the biggest verbal missile by an Air Force athlete toward CSU since former quarterback Beau Morgan set off a week of name-calling by accusing the Rams of dirty play after the 1996 football game.
Explaining how he was just running to his bench for a timeout and Layer stepped in front of him – “I guarantee I did not run into him on purpose” – Burtschi said, “If he teaches his players that (getting in front of another player), maybe they’d get a couple of more charges.”
Trailing 41-39 with 11:44 left when the fracas started, Air Force seized the momentum to pull out the Mountain West Conference regular-season finale at Moby Arena. The Falcons (24-5, 12-4) earned the No. 2 seed for this week’s conference tournament at the Pepsi Center.
“We’d been struggling all game,” Burtschi said. “We needed something to get under everyone’s skin. We definitely had to pick it up, and from that point we definitely picked it up.”
The benches momentarily cleared and Robinson was ejected. He briefly took off his jersey, and instead of leaving through the exit adjacent to CSU’s bench, he walked in front of the riled-up student section behind the basket.
“I’d be surprised if it wasn’t accidental,” Layer said. “But for me to get knocked down and one of our players to get thrown out of the game, I didn’t think it was a fair situation.”
Robinson’s status for Tuesday’s tournament play-in game against TCU is unclear, pending a league decision on whether the ejection merits an automatic suspension. The Rams likely will be without senior guard Micheal Morris, who did not play Saturday after injuring a knee in warm-ups.
After the incident, an unusually animated Moby Arena crowd rained downed jeers every time Burtschi touched the ball.
“Coach Layer was watching on the sideline and Burtschi came and plowed into him,” CSU backup center Stuart Creason said. “Freddy did what anyone would do. He protected the people he loves. He tried to get his back, and they penalized him for it.”
The Rams were in position to win after Stephan Gilling made a 3-pointer with 1:35 left for a 59-58 lead. AFA guard Antoine Hood hit two free throws with 1:10 left for a 60-59 lead. Cory Lewis fed a pass to Creason, standing just outside his comfort zone, and his shot with 50 seconds left was short.
“I heard someone on our bench say ‘shot clock,’ and I don’t know if it was running down,” Creason said. “I definitely would rather have it down low.”
Tim Anderson responded with the last of AFA’s 13 3-pointers to seal the win. The 13 treys tied a conference best for AFA, while CSU (15-14, 4-12), which has been horrendous defending the 3-pointer, gave up a season high.
Matt McCraw had 18 points, with a career-high six 3-pointers, to lead the Falcons, and Hood added 15 points.
AIR FORCE (24-5, 12-4 MWC)
Burtschi 2-9 0-0 6, Nwaelele 3-14 3-3 9, Frye 2-2 0-1 4, McCraw 6-10 0-0 18, An. Hood 3-8 7-8 15, Anderson 3-3 0-0 9, Kenzik 0-1 0-0 0, Holum 1-2 0-0 2. Totals 20-49 10-12 63.
COLORADO ST. (15-14, 4-12 MWC)
Robinson 1-3 0-0 2, Smith 7-11 3-4 17, Harrison 1-4 4-4 6, Lewis 3-5 1-2 9, Patterson 1-4 0-0 3, S. Morris 0-1 0-0 0, Harris 0-0 0-0 0, Creason 5-8 3-4 13, Gilling 3-8 0-0 9. Totals 21-44 11-14 59.
Halftime – Colorado State 31-26. 3-point goals – Air Force 13-27 (McCraw 6-10, Anderson 3-3, An. Hood 2-4, Burtschi 2-4, Holum 0-1, Nwaelele 0-5), Colorado St. 6-14 (Gilling 3-6, Lewis 2-4, Patterson 1-3, Robinson 0-1). Fouled out – None. Rebounds – Air Force 20 (An. Hood 8), Colorado St. 35 (Smith 9). Assists – Air Force 16 (Burtschi, An. Hood 5), Colorado St. 15 (Lewis, Smith 5). Total fouls – Air Force 18, Colorado St. 15. A – 5,097.
Staff writer Natalie Meisler can be reached at 303-820-1295 or nmeisler@denverpost.com.
