The more Joe Scott talked about the transformation of Air Force basketball, the more it sounded as if today’s team should go back to the beginning.
Back to remembering what Scott set in motion four years ago.
What had every appearance of a triumphant march by a senior class that helped put Air Force basketball on the map has become a limp. Not only did an upset loss at Texas Christian on Saturday seriously hurt AFA’s hopes of winning at least a share of the Mountain West Conference title, the Falcons’ postseason future became suddenly problematic.
“This is not doom and gloom,” Air Force coach Jeff Bzdelik said in response to his team’s plight. “It’s not disappointing. We’re 23-6 (overall, 10-5 in the MWC)and hopefully we’ll respond in the right way.”
Ahead is a showdown with MWC-leading Brigham Young (21-7, 11-3) tonight at Clune Arena, with the senior class that started the Falcons’ amazing run playing its last home game. That group has been almost unbeatable at Clune Arena, with 53 victories in its past 54 games there.
The Falcons, who began the season 17-1, desperately need to avenge an earlier loss to BYU not only to finish the regular season on a high note but improve their seed for the conference tournament and avoid a further slide in the eyes of the NCAA Tournament selection committee.
Scott, who is now the coach at Princeton, believes Air Force will rebound tonight and into postseason play. He looks back at his four years at Air Force and said recruiting players who respond well to adversity was a key component.
“It came down to us bringing in players who loved to play and compete,” Scott said. “We looked at tons of players. We found the players who wanted to be as good as they could be, but they had to love to play the game and compete that way.”
From Scott’s last team in 2003-04 that finished 22-7 and gained the Falcons’ first NCAA Tournament berth in 42 years, AFA basketball has taken off.
“I wanted to help make basketball important there,” Scott said. “I think we were able to build an attitude that brought the best out of our players.”
Six seniors play their last regular-season game tonight. That group includes forwards Jacob Burtschi and Dan Nwaelele, center Nick Welch and guard Matt McCraw, all starters. Center John Frye and forward Ryan Teets are reserves.
“Tuesday night is going to be emotional,” McCraw said. “We have to win so we can build up our résumé. With basketball the time has gone fast. I talked to A.J. Kuhle and he said the important thing is to not hold anything back. We’re definitely not going to hold anything back.”
Kuhle, an assistant coach, was a senior starter in 2003-04 on the team that put Air Force basketball on the map.
“We’ll cherish the moment when it gets here,” Nwaelele said. “The loss to TCU was probably the worst we’ve had. Maybe it will put us back in focus.”
Burtschi said something is missing.
“It seems this team has lost its confidence,” he said.
After Scott left, the Falcons went 18-12 with Chris Mooney at the helm for one season.
“All of our players were very good competitors,” said Mooney, now Richmond’s coach. “They’ve accomplished some things that nobody would have predicted when they got there.”
Bzdelik has built upon the tradition. Last season, the Falcons were 24-7 overall, the best record in school history, and went back to the NCAA Tournament. And this season, Air Force still has a shot at becoming the first Division I team in Colorado to win 25 games.
To do so, the Falcons will have to get up off the floor after their loss Saturday.
Staff writer Irv Moss can be reached at 303-954-1296 or imoss@denverpost.com.
