Air Force Academy – Air Force coach Jeff Bzdelik said that at a key time in his team’s big comeback in the second half Tuesday night he had to remind the players to remember who they are.
The 18th-ranked Falcons were in the middle of a 21-2 run that erased a horrendous first half and took them to a 65-57 victory. But on a couple of possessions, the Falcons (16-1, 3-0) looked frantic when control and calm the Air Force way was the way to go.
“I told them that I didn’t need heroes,” Bzdelik said. “What we needed was to be Air Force. It wasn’t that they suddenly became selfish players, but everyone was trying to do too much, too quickly.”
Said Falcons forward Jacob Burtschi: “We had so much energy going our way. Some of us wanted to do it too quickly. We got a little out of hand. Things were going our way and we thought we could do no wrong.
“Every time we go out there we know they think that it only works here because of the system and not the players. Others might say they’re more athletic than me. I say great, but you know what, we got the ‘W.”‘
The Falcons, who have won 12 consecutive games, have to get back to being just Air Force in a hurry, because their next test is Saturday at Wyoming, which has been the surprise of the Mountain West so far.
The Cowboys (11-5, 2-0) open league play against the three top picked teams, defending champion San Diego State, Nevada-Las Vegas and Air Force. Wyoming beat the Aztecs by one and beat the Rebels in overtime Wednesday.
“Wyoming’s a dangerous team,” Falcons center Nick Welch said. “They’re the type of team that if they went out to a playground, they could take on any five players anywhere. That’s a dangerous combination.
“We’ve struggled with Wyoming. You know it’s going to be a battle.”
Irv Moss can be reached at 303- 954-1296 or imoss@denverpost.com.
