Air Force Academy – When on a long trip, fuel reserves can be important in getting back to the pit stop.
Just ask the Air Force Falcons, who played their sixth game in nine days Wednesday night and beat Radford 83-59 in Clune Arena to win for the sixth time in seven games. The 83 points were the second most for the season, just one below an 84-46 triumph over the Colorado Buffaloes.
The Falcons had traveled to California, back to Boulder to play Colorado and then on to Kansas City were they played Duke and Texas Tech.
Remarkably, the Falcons showed little signs of travel weariness, but coach Jeff Bzdelik kept a steady stream of players going in and out of the game. Reserves John Frye, Ryan Teets and Andrew Henke got most of the extra time. However, Bzdelik cleared his bench during the final four minutes.
“We weren’t real sharp on offense,” Bzdelik said. “A lot of times we weren’t at the spots where we were supposed to be. We haven’t had any time to practice. I’m very proud of my players. We’ve learned a lot about what it takes for us to be successful.
“We’ve encountered a lot of different styles of basketball, but that’s going to help us when we get into a very tough Mountain West Conference.”
Forward Jacob Burtschi said he welcomed a couple of days off.
“I don’t want to even think about basketball until Saturday when we return to practice,” Burtschi said.
Next up for the Falcons is Wednesday night’s game against Wake Forest in the World Arena.
As the second half moved into the final 10 minutes against Radford, the Falcons had built a 55-36 lead and were able to play out the clock.
But with forward Reggie McIntyre and guard Amir Johnson doing the heavy work, the Highlanders gave the Falcons a good test, but never got close after the early part of the first half. McIntyre finished with 18 points and Johnson 11.
Even with shortened playing time, starters Dan Nwaelele, Matt McCraw and Jacob Burtschi scored in double figures, with Nwaelele’s 23 leading the way.
Nwaelele’s 6-for-8 shooting from three-point range was a catalyst.
Bzdelik had Welch and Burtschi out for a rest in the first 2:19 of the game. He mixed and matched his lineup throughout the first 20 minuets.
But after a sluggish start, the Falcons took over on an eight-point surge midway through the half. John Frye’s field goal put Air Force on top 24-16 and the race was on.
Welch connected on consecutive layups later in the half and Burtschi hit from the right side as the Falcons opened an 11- point advantage on the way to a 36-25 halftime lead.
RADFORD (1-5)
Oliver 4-7 2-5 10, McIntyre 5-9 8-13 18, McDuffy 3-6 0-0 8, Johnson 4-10 2-4 11, Thomas 3-4 0-0 9, Martin 1-1 1-2 3. Totals 20-37 13-24 59.
AIR FORCE (6-1)
Burtschi 6-14 5-5 19, Nwaelele 7-9 3-5 23, Welch 3-5 0-0 6, McCraw 4-10 6-6 17, Anderson 2-5 3-3 8, Henke 0-2 0-1 0, Hood 0-0 1-2 1, , Teets 0-1 0-0 0, Holland 2-2 0-0 5, Kenzik 0-0 0-2 0, Johnson 0-0 0-2 0, Maren 0-1 0-0 0, Parker 0-1 0-0 0, Frye 1-1 2-2 4. Totals 25-51 20-28 83.
Halftime – AFA 36-25. 3-point goals – Radford 6-14 (Thomas 3-4, McDuffy 2-3, Johnson 1-5, Oliver 0-2), AFA 13-25 (Nwaelele 6-8, McCraw 3-7, Burtschi 2-4, Anderson 1-1, Holland 1-1, Teets 0-1, Parker 0-1, Henke 0-2). Fouled out – None. Rebounds – Radford 20 (Oliver 7), AFA 34 (Burtschi 10). Assists – Radford 8 (McDuffy 4), AFA 19 (McCraw 5). Total fouls – Radford 21, AFA 19. A – 4,022.
Irv Moss can be reached at 303-954-1296 or imoss@denverpost.com.
