Post game notes from informed Falcon Fans;
Air Force 60-51 win over New Mexico at the Pit
Pilot's View
Refs....first and foremost they are ... MWC refs ...they almost didn't lose
the game for us and they almost didn't win the game for us. They were poor
overall with their consistency...or lack of calls from an AF fan perspective!
Enough of this.
TV....great camera angles, picture and 'sometimes' good analysis by the 2
announcers. But they (in my opinion) were pulling for NM the whole game...UNTIL
it looked like we were going to win then they began to speak AF. Oh well...to
the important stuff.
Jim is currently talking to co-player of the game Tim Anderson (17pts) who
credits the win to his teammates....not to an individual. Said Coach wrote on
the board " we need to get back to being AF" ie..not worry about the others and
how they'll play...focus on playing like we need to play. Tim's family and
friends all came up from his home in El Paso. Tim got the post game interview on
the Mtn!!! Congrats
Tim!
The game...tale of two halves. Read my post earlier today of an analysis of
watching us vs SD on a reply today. Just like that game....we almost took
ourselves out of the game in the first half. It wasn't just NM's defense in the
1st half....it was us missing shots and having turnovers (7). Not consistent in
it's play and also not consistent in our FG % the first half. Mis-handling in
the first half by Danny, Tim, Jake and Matt!!! But the defense kept us in the
game.
2nd half....different team??? NO! Again...what we did to get back into the game
between 2-4 mins remaining) at BYU (then quit resulting in the loss)....drive to
the basket. We came out in the second half and started with 4 straight drives
to the bucket scoring on 3/4 and getting fouled on the other. This gave us even
better looks outside and we started hitting our 3's. NM tried a half court
press but we handled it very well with lots of poise. Keys to the game was a)
offense used BOTH the inside and outside to get back into the game. b) defense
slowed down NM.
Players:
Tim: 17pts...did a great job on defense. Hustled on offense to get into the
game and make the passes. Great passing. 1st 3 for AF at start of game then
went quiet.
Danny: 17 pts. Still some slippery hands tonight. Lost the ball twice first
half. Second half was awesome!!! Good shooting 2nd half.
Nick: 7 RBs. Very aggressive 2nd half. Play of the game was the miss of Jakes
2nd FT (<2mins to go) and Nick tip in for 2pts.
Jake: A horse who was just Mr. consistent. What can I say. Great FT in the
stretch.
Matt: Still the field general but ??thinking too much? Only 2 pts. 
Player of the game could be John Frye. Only two points but excellent energy and
rebounds when in. Henke played well...took a hard fall on his back and also had
someone fall on his ankle...hope he's ok. Very good ball handling by Adam Hood...ran the offense with good confidence.
Great win after starting slow again. Lots to build on. Can't wait for
Valentines Day and AF BBall.
I really thought that our rebounding won the game for us--making up for some
miserable lay-up misses, some terrible no-calls on shooting fouls by the refs,
and some generally poor shooting. I thought it was our best rebounding position
I'd seen all year, and Nick's put-back tip-in off of Jake's missed FT was really
the play of the game.
Coach challenged the players to not lose their confidence--to keep shooting and
driving. That things would work out if we kept up the intensity. Tonight's
game was a superb lesson confirming his guidance. We're still looking for some
passes when we just don't need to do it--especially on fast breaks--but we were
much improved.
Tim was my choice for player of the game. This young man just refuses to have
an off night. Danny came alive in the second, and though Matt didn't score
much, he ran the offense well and RB'ed superbly. Jake's 3's and RBing were
great and his driving to the hoop drew a lot of fouls. Very solid game.
Good night for Nick taking it to the hole, too! Adam Hood needs to shoot the
dad-gummed (Fisherism) ball when he's open! Sure he's a sub, but subs can shoot
the ball. We need to blend some of his patience and control with Andrew Henke's
complete lack of any shooting conscience and we'd have great guard!
Ltcpilot and 81Stalagian are avid AFA sports fans and
regulars at Falcon
Forums.
The Falcons come home and take on The Utah Utes at THE
CAMBER on Wed, 14 Feb 07 at 8pm MT. TV is Versus