LAS VEGAS, Nev. — The Air Force men's basketball team hung tough early but couldn't overcome a stagnant second half in their 73-60 loss to No. 5 San Diego State in the Mountain West Conference Quarterfinals Thursday afternoon.
"That seemed like a championship game the way the two teams played and slugged at each other," head coach Dave Pilipovich said. "Credit to them, they're very talented and a team that could be playing in the last weekend in March for it all. But so proud of our team, effort and what we gave out there today."
In front of a predominately Aztecs fan base at the Thomas & Mack Center, the Falcons hit seven three-pointers in the first half to take a 37-33 advantage into halftime.
However, the second half would be all SDSU as the MWC's No. 1 seed used a 43-20 run to take the lead and never look back.
Sophomore guard A.J. Walker led AFA with 18 points, while senior guards Caleb Morris and Sid Tomes finished with 12 and 10 points, respectively.
With the loss, Air Force finishes their season at 12-20 and 5-13 in conference play to finish ninth overall.
"Take in every moment, the highs and the lows, that's what you want, you don't want it to be easy," Morris said. "Fought through a lot of adversity not only this year but in our whole careers. It was fun, it was a good ride."
The Falcons senior class, which also includes forwards Lavelle Scottie and Ryan Swan, won three conference tournament games in four seasons, the most of any group in program history.
