AIR FORCE ACADEMY — There might have been a time when a winning record of any kind would have set off fireworks at Clune Arena.
But Wednesday night it was business as usual for Air Force after a 57-36 victory over cold-shooting Texas Christian put the Falcons in position of reaching 8-8 in Mountain West Conference play. It also pushed Air Force’s overall record to 15-13, clinching a winning season for the regular-season schedule. Before the 2003-04 season, Air Force had not had a winning season in men’s basketball for 25 years.
With a chance to finish as high as fifth in the final MWC standings, Air Force plays its regular-season finale Saturday at home against San Diego State before entering the conference tournament next week in Las Vegas. The Falcons could draw New Mexico or San Diego State there.
“The last four seasons really set the bar high for Air Force basketball,” senior guard Tim Anderson said, explaining the Falcons’ just-another-game attitude. “Expectations are pretty high after the last four seasons. Even though we were picked to finish next to last in the league, we’re trying to finish much better. A winning record might have been unusual in Air Force history, but after the last four years, it’s kind of in the shadows.”
First-year AFA coach Jeff Reynolds said his team lived up to its preseason agenda to shock the conference.
“It pleases me for our seniors,” Reynolds said of the 15 wins. “Hopefully it will be a special day for our seniors Saturday. We wanted to try and finish higher in the league than we were predicted to finish. We wanted people in the league to continue to worry about playing this program. We’ve accomplished that.”
Reynolds said the secret to beating the Horned Frogs was his team’s ability to cut down on turnovers that plagued the Falcons most of the last 13 minutes of the first half.
The Falcons took a 13-0 lead, but needed a 10-2 run at the beginning of the second half to put away the Horned Frogs.
“We couldn’t shoot the ball,” TCU coach Neil Dougherty said. “It was a combination of our poor shooting and Air Force’s defense.”
The Horned Frogs shot just 23.9 percent from the floor, hitting 11-of-46 attempts. Air Force shot 54.5 percent.
AIR FORCE 57, TCU 36
TCU (14-14, 6-9 MWC)
Langford 2-3 2-2 6, Ortiz 0-1 0-0 0, Ebie 0-1 0-0 0, Wall 1-8 1-2 4, Hackett 1-9 0-0 3, Scott 0-0 0-0 0, Owens 0-1 2-2 2, Morones 1-4 0-0 2, Mitchem 5-18 1-1 16, Parker 0-0 1-2 1, Tauscher 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 11-46 7-9 36.
AIR FORCE (15-13, 7-8)
Holland 1-1 0-0 3, Maren 3-5 0-3 6, Anderson 2-9 6-8 12, Washington 3-4 0-2 8, Johnson 2-3 3-6 7, Henke 7-11 1-2 21, Hood 0-0 0-0 0, Brooks 0-0 0-0 0, Kenzik 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 18-33 10-21 57.
Halftime — AFA 24-17. 3-point goals — TCU 7-23 (Mitchem 5-10, Hackett 1-5, Wall 1-6, Morones 0-1, Owens 0-1); AFA 11-19 (Henke 6-8, Washington 2-2, Anderson 2-8, Holland 1-1). Fouled out — None. Rebounds — TCU 27 (Mitchem 5, Parker 5); AFA 32 (Maren 7). Assists — TCU 7 (Ebie 2, Morones 2, Owens 2); AFA 18 (Johnson 6). Total fouls — TCU 19, AFA 12.
A — 3,335.
Irv Moss: 303-954-1296 or imoss@denverpost.com
