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San Diego State Drops See-Saw Battle With Air Force, 65-62
Brandon Heath scores game-high 21 points for the Aztecs.
Jan. 7, 2006
AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. (AP) - Matt McCraw made two free throws with 4.2 seconds left, then stole the inbound pass as Air Force survived a scare and held on for a 65-62 win over San Diego State Saturday night. The victory pushed Air Force's winning streak to 12 games and continued the program's best start in school history. Dan Nwaelele had 20 points and McCraw added 19 to lead the Falcons (14-1, 2-0 Mountain West Conference), who have not lost since mid-November. It was a game of runs between two of the conference's top teams from the start. Early on, the Falcons missed their first four shots to fall into a 21-13 hole. Relying on the nation's stingiest defense and precise 3-point shooting, Air Force roared back. The Falcons clamped down on the Aztecs (8-6, 1-1) and closed out the first half with a 21-2 run, which was capped by Jacob Burtschis 3-pointer at the buzzer. They led 34-23 at the half. That lead didn't last long. Junior guard Brandon Heath, the conference's leading scorer, reeled off 10 straight points for the Aztecs, who went on a 12-2 run to start the second half. SDSU took a 45-44 lead at the 10-minute mark on a 3-pointer by Heath, and the game seesawed from that point on. Heath, who finished with a game-high 21 points, was called for a five-second violation with 1:21 remaining, leaving the Falcons with the ball and a six-point lead. The Aztecs closed the gap to just one point with six seconds remaining on a Richie Williams 3-pointer before McCraw's heroics.
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