Air Force men’s basketball lost to South Dakota 80-63 on Saturday in a non-conference game at Summit Arena at The Monument in Rapid City, South Dakota. With this result, Air Force moves to a 3-6 record while South Dakota improves to 5-3.
Caleb Walker led the Falcons with 21 points, tying his career high by shooting 10-for-17 from the field. Kam Sanders added 15 points for Air Force and set a new school record by making all of his free throw attempts, going 15-for-15. This performance surpassed the previous record of 13 consecutive free throws made in a game, set by Bob Beckel in 1958. Sanders’ total also tied the Mountain West freshman record for most free throws made in a single game. He contributed three steals, three rebounds, and three assists.
Air Force was down by as many as 20 points early in the second half but narrowed the gap to one point after a 15-0 run, making it 48-47 with just over eleven minutes left. However, South Dakota responded with an eight-point run and maintained a double-digit lead through the end of the game.
South Dakota out-rebounded Air Force by a margin of 43-22 and limited them to just one made three-pointer. Isaac Bruns led South Dakota with 22 points.
Lucas Hobin scored twelve points for Air Force, hitting seven of eight free throws. Eli Robinson led the team with five rebounds, while AJ Patterson tied for the team lead with three assists.
At halftime, South Dakota held a sixteen-point lead after running off sixteen unanswered points following Air Force’s opening basket and out-rebounding them significantly. Air Force shot thirty percent from the field and missed all five of their three-point attempts during the first half.
Overall, Air Force finished shooting forty-one percent from the field and achieved season highs in both free throws made (26) and attempted (35). The Falcons also recorded nine steals—one short of their season best.
Air Force will next play Pacific at home on Wednesday, December 3. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. Mountain Time on the MW Network.
