AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo.—Tim Anderson didn’t mean to get most of his points from beyond the arc. It just worked out that way.
Anderson sank six 3-pointers and finished with 26 points to lead Air Force over Northern Colorado 71-62 on Saturday night in the championship game of the Air Force Classic.
It was Anderson’s hot touch that put away the Bears early.
Air Force (2-0) built a lead as high as 15 points in the first half thanks to Anderson’s marksmanship and Andrew Henke’s spark off the bench.
At one point midway through the first half Henke scored 10 straight Air Force points. He and Anderson combined to shoot 8-for-18 from 3-point range.
“Not at all by design,” Anderson said. “That’s the way they played us. That’s the beautiful thing about our offense. We can do whatever.”
The Falcons shot 10-for-26 from beyond the arc as a team.
Northern Colorado (1-1) couldn’t capitalize on an Air Force dry spell early in the second half. The Falcons were held scoreless for 5 minutes, 15 seconds, but the Bears could only trim a 14-point lead to 9, as they never found their touch from the field, shooting just 36 percent in the loss.
The Bears managed only four wins last year, partly because of a brutal schedule that had them on the road against major Division I powers like Kansas, Syracuse, and Purdue. But the Bears aren’t as bad as last year’s 4-24 record would indicate, Air Force coach Jeff Reynolds said.
“That team is on the rise,” Reynolds said. “I think they did some things tonight and we couldn’t pull away.”
Trailing by as many as 15 points in the second half, the Bears cut the deficit to seven with 3 minutes left. Evan Washington hit a 3-pointer to restore the lead to 10 with time running out on the shot clock and the Falcons slowed down the offense to preserve the win.
The Falcons lost four starters from the team that finished last year as a semifinalist in the NIT. Anderson is the only one who returned.
Reynolds is also in his first year at the helm of the program. He took over for Jeff Bzdelik who left in the spring to lead Colorado.
But this is still Air Force basketball: tight defense and timely baskets.
The Falcons quashed several Bears comeback attempts with 3-pointers by Anderson and Co.
“They didn’t let it happen,” Northern Colorado center Kirk Archibeque said. “They stayed right with us and didn’t let it happen.”
The victory extended Air Force’s non-conference home winning streak to 36 games.
The Falcons haven’t been beaten at Clune Arena by a non-conference opponent since a 64-44 loss to Tennessee Tech on Dec. 29, 2001.
Northern Colorado was led by Will Figures, who came off the bench to score 19 points. Thanasi Panagiotakopoulos chipped in 11.
“Our problems all night was with their guards,” Northern Colorado coach Tad Boyle said. “Tim Anderson gave us problems. We couldn’t match up with him.”
Anderson’s performance garnered tournament MVP honors.
“He’s a special young man,” Reynolds said of Anderson. “We tried hard tonight to get him a spell in the first half. He said ‘Coach, I’m O.K.’ He’s taken this young team and put them on his back.”
