By C.J. Peterson — Staff Writer
The San Jose State men’s basketball team (3-22, 0-13 MW) will head to Colorado Springs, Colo. to take on Air Force for the second time this season on Saturday.
In its last meeting, the two teams faced off in one of the most entertaining games of the seasons — a double-overtime, 73-71 win for Air Force (11-15, 6-8 MW).
Hitting a game-winning triple with 3.8 seconds to play, the Falcons overcame a 15-point Spartans lead to shock SJSU at the Event Center on Jan. 26.
Despite the heartbreaking loss, one thing that bodes well for SJSU was the fact that its defense was able to hold Air Force to 34-percent shooting from the field.
As a result of the poor shooting, San Jose State was able to haul in 56 rebounds. Junior forward Michael Steadman paced the Spartans with 12 boards — just two shy of his season high.
Steadman also led SJSU in scoring, setting his career-high at SJSU on that night with 24 points.
Junior guard Brae Ivey also chipped in 18 points. His late 3-pointer in regulation triggered the first of two overtime’s in the game.
This time around, the Spartans will look to capture lightning in a bottle once more — but instead of squandering a first-half lead, they’ll hope to snap a 16-game losing streak with a win.
On Wednesday, SJSU gave up a season-high 91 points at home against Colorado State to extend the losing streak to 16. It tied head coach Jean Prioleau’s longest skid in his two-year career as San Jose State.
Allowing Colorado State to shoot nearly 60-percent from the floor, including 48-percent from three, the Spartans defense was often left flat-footed, leaving perimeter shooters unguarded more often than not.
In order for SJSU to achieve its first win in over two months, that defense will have to sharpen up.
The Spartans and Falcons will tip off at 1 p.m. at Clune Arena in Colorado Springs.
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