U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo (KOAA) — The Air Force women’s basketball team used a fourth-quarter push to give themselves a chance at the win, but ultimately came up short as they dropped their first home game of the season.
Jayda McNabb scored a season high 14 points, tying teammate Milahnie Perry for a team high.
The Falcons held their largest lead of that game at 6-2, but a 9-0 run from the Lady Rebels put the Falcons behind. After the opening quarter, UNLV was clinging to a 17-16 lead.
Air Force reclaimed the lead at 19-17 following a three-pointer from Bhret Clay, but it was the last lead they would see for the rest of the game.
UNLV opened the game up, taking a 33-22 lead before the Falcons responded towards the end of the quarter. As the first half expired, it was a 35-28 lead for the Lady Rebels.
Falcons went down by as many as 12 points in the third quarter, but they were able to cut the lead down to 5 after a corner three from Alexis Cortez. Both teams scored 11 points in the third as UNLV maintained their 7-point lead at 46-39.
The lead was pushed to double digits again in the final frame. However, Air Force continued to claw their way back into the game. Midway through the quarter, the Falcons found themselves trailing by just five.
After going back down by 8, McNabb scored five straight points to make it a one-possession game. UNLV then responded with their sixth three-pointer of the match, pushing the lead back to 6 points.
McNabb drilled her second three-pointer of the quarter with less than twenty seconds to play, and that brought them back within two. Time ran out on the Falcons' comeback as UNLV was able to put the game away from the free-throw line.
Air Force forced UNLV into 16 turnovers, while only giving the ball away 4 times themselves. Usually, that’s a recipe for success, but the Falcons also shot 31% from the field.
Air Force will look ahead to their next game as they host Boise State on January 7.
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