Laramie – In a game full of doubt that Air Force’s storybook season would escape a bump in the road, senior forward Jacob Burtschi left no doubt when it counted.
With 1.2 seconds on the clock, the scored tied at 56 and the 18th-ranked Falcons with the ball out of bounds under their basket, Burtschi took the inbound pass and drove for a layup to beat the Wyoming Cowboys 58-56 in a thrilling Mountain West Conference showdown Saturday before 7,780 fans at the Arena-Auditorium.
Burtschi, who brought the Falcons (17-1, 4-0) to life after a dull first half with three 3-pointers to open the second half, just beat the final buzzer.
Officials checked the monitor to confirm. But everyone in the arena knew the outcome even before officials signaled the basket was good.
“It was good. I looked at the other end and the little red light didn’t light up until Jake started jumping around and doing what he was doing,” AFA senior guard Matt McCraw said.
“I knew it was good. There were some possessions there at the end that we got exactly what we wanted, including the last play of the game.”
Said Burtschi, who was the game’s high scorer with 18 points, “I thought I put it up too hard, but it caught the back side of the rim and went in. I had a pretty good feeling it was going in. Everyone thinks a second isn’t a lot of time, but when you’re on the court it really is. I took a dribble and went up with it and when it went in, the clock went off.”
Coach Jeff Bzdelik said the Falcons went back to a play that had worked earlier in the game for the final shot.
“Jake got a layup earlier, so we thought we’d try it again,” Bzdelik said. “With 1.2 seconds, I didn’t think there was any doubt. Even with three-tenths of a second, we had time to catch it and shoot it.”
Burtschi getting the call was no surprise to the Cowboys (11-6, 2-1).
“We knew exactly what they were going to do, but that doesn’t mean you always can stop it,” coach Steve McClain said. “We talked about not letting any Air Force player get inside of you. But that’s easy to say in a timeout, and then you’re out there with 8,000 people screaming. They set a screen and he got by us.”
As the game moved into the last minute, Dan Nwaelele, who had 13 points, dunked to put the Falcons up 56-52 – their biggest lead of the game.
Sophomore guard Brandon Ewing, who led the Cowboys with 15 points, hit two free throws to make it a two- point game with 37 seconds left. Wyoming tied the game with free throws by James Spencer and Daaron Brown, the latter with 21 seconds left.
The Falcons survived their poorest half of the season in the first 20 minutes, scoring 19 points on 26.7 percent shooting from the field. According to Bzdelik, they missed nine layups.
In the second half, both teams warmed up. Air Force shot 60.9 percent and Wyoming shot 63.2 percent.
But the Falcons and Bzdelik had the final say.
“I’m the leader,” Bzdelik said. “If I have doubt, my team has doubt. I never have doubt.”
AIR FORCE (17-1, 4-0 MWC)
Burtschi 6-13 3-3 18, Nwaelele 5-13 1-2 13, Welch 2-8 3-3 7, McCraw 3-5 0-0 8, Anderson 5-10 0-0 10, Henke 0-1 0-0 0, Teets 0-0 0-0 0, Frye 1-3 0-1 2. Totals 22-53 7-9 58.
WYOMING (11-6, 2-1)
Spencer 4-8 1-2 10, Taylor 1-2 0-0 2, Brown 3-5 2-4 8, Jones 4-10 5-8 13, Ewing 4-8 5-6 15, Okoye 2-2 0-0 4, Dermody 1-3 0-0 2, Platt 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 20-39 13-20 56.
Halftime – Wyoming 21-19. 3-point goals – Air Force 7-16 (Burtschi 3-5, McCraw 2-3, Nwaelele 2-4, Anderson 0-1, Welch 0-3); Wyoming 3-11 (Ewing 2-3, Spencer 1-2, Dermody 0-2, Jones 0-4). Fouled out – Welch. Rebounds – Air Force 23 (Anderson 6, Burtschi 6); Wyoming 32 (Brown 8, Jones 8). Assists – Air Force 11 (Anderson 3, McCraw 3, Nwaelele 3); Wyoming 9 (Jones 7). Total fouls – Air Force 18, Wyoming 14. A – 7,780.
Irv Moss can be reached at 303-954-1296 or imoss@denverpost.com.
