LAS VEGAS - With a three-pointer early in the game, sophomore Noah Baumann sank his 79th of the year and broke a tie with Robert Owens for the most threes in a season for a Spartan, but the San Jose State men's basketball team couldn't take advantage of the mark and lost to the Air force Falcons 87-56 in the opening round of the 2019 Air Force Reserve Mountain West Basketball Championship.
Bauman was one of three Spartans (4-27) to finish with double figure scoring. The sophomore scored 14 points, including three treys, and finished the season with 81. Freshman Seneca Knight led the team with 15 points and six rebounds while fellow freshman Zach Chappell added 10 points and a team-high four assists.
The Spartans got off to a hot start, making its first four shots, including three straight 3s, and had a 13-0 lead with 3:17 in the game. The lead was 15-3 with 14:53, but from there very little worked for San Jose State.
Air Force (14-17) then went on a 25-to-2 run, erased the double-digit deficit and forged a 28-17 lead.
A Baumann three ended the nine-plus minute run and Air Force took a 28-36 advantage into the locker room at the half. In the first 20 minutes, SJSU hit 10-of-24 (41.7 percent) from the floor and 5-of-11 (45.5 percent) from beyond the arc, but still trailed by eight points.
In the second half, Air Force shot the lights out. They were 16-of-29 (55.2 percent) from the floor, including 7-of-15 (46.7 percent) from three-point range, and knocked down 12-of-17 free throws (70.6 percent).
Air Force had its largest lead, 31 points with 55 seconds to play and took the victory 87-56.
Air Force had three players in double figures led by 20 points from Chris Joyce.