Air Force Basketball: Big First Half Leads Falcons to Victory over Tennessee Tech

The Air Force Falcons used a steady pace to defeat the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles Monday evening by the score of 80-70. The Falcons were never able to run away and hide from the Golden Eagles, but they managed to keep a consistent lead throughout the contest to even their record at 1-1 overall on the young season.

The Falcons were able to create easy shots for themselves, shooting 59% from the field in their victory. While the Falcons still haven't found the range from deep early in this season, they only shot 25% from deep, they do run an efficient offense and were able to get easy looks around the rim to help control the game. On top of having an efficient offense, they were also able to play a contesting defense which limited the Golden Eagles to 32% from the field and 24% from three-point land. Tennessee Tech took a lot more three's in the game than Air Force however, outscoring the Falcons 21-9 from behind the arc.

The Falcons were led by sophomore guard Trevor Lyons and junior forward Hayden Graham once again, as the pair are playing very well early in the season for the Falcons. Lyons would finish with a game high 18 points to go along with two rebounds, four assist and four steals. Graham, who is a potential double-double player every night, finished with 15 points, seven rebounds, six assist and a blocked shots. Their overall games have really developed over the summer and they are now the key players stepping forward for this campaign.

Another player who came up big on the night was reserve sophomore guard C.J. Siples, who contributed 14 points off the bench for Air Force. Siples, along with Graham and Lyons, were the only scorers in double figures for the Falcons, but 10 of the 11 players that played on the night scored for a balanced Air Force attack.

Air Force will take the home court again on Thursday when they host Mississippi Valley State at Clune Arena. Game time is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. Mountain Standard Time.