Nov. 28, 2007
Complete Air Force Classic Media Notes in PDF Format 
12th Annual Air Force Classic
Friday, Nov. 30 - Saturday, Dec.1
Clune Arena (4,838)
USAF Academy, Colo.
Friday - Nov. 30
Air Force Falcons vs. Hampton Pirates - 5 p.m.
Ohio Bobcats vs. Utah Valley Wolverines - 7:30 p.m.
Saturday - Dec. 1
Consolation Game - 2:00 p.m.
Championship Game - 4:30 p.m.
Livestats:
Livestats for all games at www.goAirForceFalcons.com.
Radio/TV:
Radio available for all Ohio and Utah Valley games through their athletic department websites at www.ohiobobcats.com and www.wolverinegreen.com.
Air Force Falcons
Record: 2-3
Coach: Ardie McInelly
Alma Mater: Boise State, `82
Career Record: 119-194/12th year
School Record: 42-132/7th year
AF vs. Hampton: 0-0
AF vs. Ohio: 0-0
AF vs. Utah Valley: 1-0
Last Game: Nov. 23, 2007
Defeated Army, 68-60
Website: www.goairforcefalcons.com
Hampton Pirates
Record: 4-1
Coach: Walter Mebane
Alma Mater: North Carolina, `81
Career Record: 40-49/4th year
School Record: Same
Hampton vs. AF: 0-0
AF vs. Ohio: n/a
AF vs. Utah Valley: n/a
Last Game: Nov. 25, 2007
Defeated Radford, 71-54.
Website: www.hamptonpirates.edu
Ohio Bobcats
Record: 2-2
Coach: Sylvia Crawley
Alma Mater: North Carolina, `94
Career Record: 20-14/2nd year
School Record: Same
Ohio vs. AF: 0-0
Ohio vs. Hampton: n/a
Ohio vs. Utah Valley: n/a
Last Game: Nov. 26, 2007
Defeated Cleveland State, 70-59
Website: www.ohiobobcats.com
Utah Valley Wolverines
Record: 6-0
Coach: Cathy Nixon
Alma Mater: BYU, `89
Career Record: 237-137/14th year
School Record: Same
UV vs. AF: 0-1
UV vs. Hampton: n/a
UV vs. Ohio: n/a
Last Game: Nov. 24, 2007
Defeated Utah State, 89-74
Website: www.WolverineGreen.com
Series History vs. Opponents
- Air Force has never played against Hampton or Ohio.
- Air Force is 1-0 all-time against Utah Valley, defeating the Wolverines, 97-60, on Nov. 23, 2005 in Orem, Utah.
Air Force vs. Mid Eastern Athletics Conference (MEAC)
Air Force is 1-0 all time against schools from the MEAC. The Falcons defeated Norfolk State, 89-65, back in 1988.
Air Force vs. Mid-American Conference (Mid-Con)
The lone school from the MAC that Air Force has played is Western Michigan, losing both games against the Broncos in 1999 and 2006.
Recapping The Army Game
Air Force outlasted Army for a 68-60 win in women's basketball action Friday, afternoon, Nov. 23, in Christl Arena at Gillis Field House. The Falcons were led by freshman Raimee Beck's 20 points and five three-point baskets.
After Air Force jumped out to a 20-point lead with a 12-0 run to start the second half, Army went with a full-court press the rest of the game. The full-court press worked and the Black Knights clawed their way back into the game, making it as close as a seven point game three different times with under a minute to go.
Air Force, which came into the game as the top free throw shooting team in the Mountain West Conference, sank 8-of-9 free throws in the last two minutes to seal the win.
Beck led all scorers with the 20 points and was 6-of-12 from the field. The freshman connected on 5-of-8 three pointers and also pulled down six rebounds. Junior Brooke Cultra finished second on the team with 16 points and team-high's of eight rebounds and six assists.
Senior Alecia Steele, who missed the Falcons' last game with an injury, came off the bench to score 13 points and grab eight rebounds in 23 foul-plagued minutes. Junior Dana Loveless made her first-career start in place of Steele, contributing with four points and two rebounds.
Air Force took a 31-23 lead into the halftime break. After a 9-9 tie 15 minutes into the first half, the Falcons went on a 17-6 run in the next nine minutes to take control of the game with a 26-15 lead.
The Falcons opened the second half with a 12-0 run to extend their lead to 43-23. Army, which struggled to find its shooting touch the entire game, did not score its first second-half basketball until six minutes in.
After scoring its first basket in the second half, the Black Knights immediately slashed the lead in half with a 13-3 run to make it a 46-36 game with 10 minutes remaining. Army crept back into the game with the relentless full-court press and whittled Air Force's lead down to eigth several times after the four minute mark.
For the game, Air Force was good on 84.2 percent of its free throw tries (16-of-19). The Falcons improve to 7-5 all-time against the Black Knights.
Recapping The St. Francis Game
Air Force lost a 63-62 overtime contest at St. Francis College in women's basketball action Wednesday afternoon, Nov. 21, at Peter Aquilone Court. The Falcons were led by senior Pamela Findlay, who had a team-leading 20 points.
With Air Force clinging to a three-point lead with the game winding down, St. Francis guard Kara Ayers connected on a deep three-point basket with 1.8 seconds remaining in regulation to tie the game up and send it into overtime. Ayers led all scorers with 30 points and seven rebounds.
Despite leading by 13 points with nine minutes left in the game, the Falcons could not hold the lead, as the Terriers chipped away at a depleted Falcon roster. Air Force was without standout forward Alecia Steele, who missed her first-career game due to an injury suffered against Denver University last week. Steele had appeared in 88-straight games for the Falcons prior to the St. Francis game.
With Steele out and two starters fouling out of the game, the Falcons were finally overtaken in overtime.
After jumping ahead 34-36 at the half, the Falcon offense went cold in the second stanza. The Falcons made just six baskets from the field in the second period and just one basket in the final 15 minutes of regulation.
Findlay was 6-og-9 from the field for Air Force, connecting on 4-of-5 three's and dishing out four assists. Junior Brooke Cultra finished second on the team with 16 points and tied for a game-high five assists with six rebounds. Freshman Raimee Beck also had five assists and a team-high seven rebounds.
Junior Chasmine Jones made her first-career start, in place of Steele, recording three rebounds and steals in 23 minutes. Junior Dana Loveless played her best ever game as a Falcon, scoring a career-high 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting, to go with seven rebounds in 34 minutes.
Freshman Liz Dunsworth made her Falcon debut, seeing three minutes of action.
Scouting Hampton
- Hampton enters the week with a 4-1 record after losing at Charlotte and defeating Radford last week.
- The Lady Pirates are led by senior guard Rachel Butler, who leads the team with 12 points per game to go with 3.8 rebounds per game.
- Hampton is averaging 58.8 points per game and allowing 56.8.
Scouting Ohio
- Ohio enters the week with a 2-2 record after defeating Presbyterian College and Cleveland State in their last two games.
- Senior guard Lauren Kohn leads the Bobcats with 19.5 points per game and is shooting .528 from the field and .476 from three point range. Kohn is coming off a 25 point game against Cleveland State.
- Ohio is averaging 68.2 points per game and allowing 61.5.
Scouting Utah Valley
- Utah Valley enters the week with an unblemished 6-0 record after defeating Seton Hall and Utah State last week.
- The trio of center Robyn Fairbanks and guards Sandy Marvin and Julie Murray are combinning to average 59 points per game. Fairbanks is averaging 23.8 points, Marvin 18.7 and Murray 16.8.
- The Wolverines are averaging 88.0 points per game and allowing 68.7.
Scouting Air Force
- Air Force is 2-3 on the season after losing in overtime at St. Francis (NY) and defeating Army last week.
- Senior forward Alecia Steele leads the team with 14.8 points and 9.3 rebounds per game.
- Air Force is averaging 60.6 points per game and allowing 66.6.
Tournament Notes/Player Connections
- Air Force is 9-13 all-time in the Air Force Classic. Air Force has never won the Classic in its 11 years of extistence.
- Hampton head coach Walter Mebane and Ohio head coach Sylvia Crawley are both North Carolina-Chapel Hill graduates. Mebane is a 1987 grad and Crawley a 1994 grad of UNC.
- Hampton senior guard Stephanie James is a Colorado Springs native, attending Sierra high school. James led Sierra to a State District 4-A Metro Champion Runner-up finish in 2004.
- Air Force's first-ever win as a Div. I program came in the First game of the first-ever Air Force Classic. The Falcons defeated Army, 66-60, on Dec. 6, 1996.
(Complete Game-by-Game information of Air Force Classic on page 5 of release)
Steele Needs Four More Points For 1,000
Senior forward Alecia Steele enters the week with 996 career points, needing four more to reach 1,000. Steele would become just the second Falcon to reach the 1,000 point barrier in the Div. I era. Letricia Castillo, a 2007 grad., was the first to do so, scoring 1,073 career points from 2003-07.
Top Three-Point Shooting Team In The Mountain West
Air Force is the Mountain West Conference's top three-point shooting team, making 37.3 percent of its attempts. The Falcons have made at least four three's in every game this season, including a season-high six against Army. Freshman Raimee Beck leads the conference with 15 three's made and is third in percentage, making 45.5 percent of her shots. Senior Pamela Findlay ranks second in three-point percentage, making 46.2 percent of her attempts. Air Force made 26.1 percent of its three point attempts in 2006-07.
Second Best Free Throw Shooting Team In The MWC
Air Force enters the week as the second-best free throw shooting team in the Mountain West Conference, making 74.8 percent of their attempts. Air Force made a season-best 16-of-19 attempts against Army, good for a 84.2 percentage. The Falconds made 8-of-9 free throws in the last two minutes to seal a 68-60 win over the Black Knights. Air Force has five players making 73.7 percent of their free throws-or-better. Senior Pamelay Findlay is making 92.3 percent of her free throws and freshman Raimee Beck has been good on 90 percent of her attempts from the line. Air Force shot 68 percent from the line in 2006-07.
Second Best Shot Blocking Team In The MWC
Air Force is averaging 4.8 blocked shots per game, ranking second in the conference. Junior center Kim Kreke is second in the conference with 1.8 BPG and senior Pam Findlay and junior Brooke Cultra are tied for sixth with 1.2 BPG. Air Force averaged 2.6 blocked shots in 2006-07.
Findlay An All-Purpose Threat For Falcons
Senior guard Pamela Findlay is off to a strong senior season, proving her ability as a well-rounded player. Findlay currently ranks amongst the conference's top 10 in free throw percentage (5th at 92.3 percent), three point field goal percentage (2nd at 46.2 percent), steals (fifth at 1.8 per game) and blocked shots (6th at 1.2 per game).
Findlay and Steele Named Team Captains for 2007-08
The captains for the 2006-07 basketball season are seniors Pamela Findlay and Alecia Steele. Both are first-year captains.
Falcons Picked Ninth
In the preseason conference poll released Oct. 17, Air Force was chosen by the coaches and select media to finish ninth in the Mountain West.
Wyoming was tabbed as the preseason favorite for the first time in MWC history after winning the WNIT Championship and finishing tied for second place in last year's regular-season standings. Wyoming received 24-of-30 first-place votes and 203 total points. TCU had two first-place votes and finished second with 188 points, followed by BYU with one first-place vote and 182 points. New Mexico placed fourth, followed by Utah, UNLV, San Diego State, Colorado State and Air Force.
Last year's MWC Co-Player of the Year, TCU senior guard Adrianne Ross, earned Top Returning Player honors, while Leilani Mitchell of Utah was named Top Newcomer and San Diego State's Paris Johnson was tabbed Top Freshman.
Noting The Starters
Noting Alecia Steele
- Missed the St. Francis game due to injury snapping string of 88 consecutive games played.
- Did not start against Army, snapping string of 62 consecutive games started.
- Needs four points to reach 1,000 career. Would become the 11th 1,000 point scorer in school history.
- Has two double-doubles on the year.
Noting Pamela Findlay
- Findlay is averaging 11.2 points per game, ranking third on the team.
- The senior guard is amongst the MWC top 10 in free throw percentage, three point percentage, steals and blocked shots.
- Has made 12 of 13 free throw attempts (92.3 percent).
Noting Kim Kreke
- Junior center Kim Kreke has stepped into a starting role for the first time this year, starting at center in all five games.
- Kreke had her best game as a Falcon against Army, setting career-highs in minutes played (38), points (8) and rebounds (9).
- Kreke is secondin the MWC in blocks per game, with 1.8 swats per contest.
Noting Brooke Cultra
- Cultra is averaging 11.2 points per game, ranking third on the team.
- Has her best game as a Falcon against Army, setting career-highs in points scored (16), free throws made (6), assists (6), steals (3) and minutes played (36).
- Cultra is sixth in the conference in assist-to-turnover ratio with a 1.07 ratio and eighth with 3.2 assists per game.
Noting Raimee Beck
- Has started all five games at point guard.
- Has led the team in scoring three times.
- Has played 40 or more minutes in the last three games.
- Has scored 20 and 21 points in games this year.
- Leads the MWC with 15 three-point baskets.
Up Next
Air Force has two road games next week, traveling to Northern Colorado and Wisconsin. The Falcons travel up to Greeley to take on the Bears on Wednesday, Dec. 5, and will have its first radio broadcast game, and then travel to Madison, Wisc., to take on the Badgers on Dec. 8.
