Air Force downs Tennessee Tech 80-70
AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Co. (AP) Trevor Lyons scored 18 points, Hayden Graham scored 15 on 7-of-12 shooting, and Air Force held off Tennessee Tech's second-half rally to win 80-70 on Monday night.
CJ Siples scored 14 for the Falcons (2-1), who were outrebounded 43-34, but outshot the Golden Eagles 59 percent to 32 percent and scored 42 points in the paint.
The Golden Eagles opened the second half with an 11-4 run and steadily gained ground, taking a 57-56 lead on Torrance Rowe's layup with 7:02 left. But Graham on the next possession hit a 3-pointer to spark a momentum-changing 11-1 run and Air Force stayed ahead.
Tennessee Tech led 10-5 on a 3-pointer by Shirmane Thomas, but Air Force took the lead on a 15-2 run and led 40-27 at halftime on 67 percent shooting.
Rowe scored 18 for Tennessee Tech (1-2), Anthony Morse added 14 with 11 rebounds, and Hakeem Rogers scored 13.
