SAN JOSE, Calif. – San Jose State men's basketball picked up a much-needed win as the Spartans took down Air Force by a final of 90-81 inside the Provident Credit Union Event Center on Saturday. The Spartans hit a season high-tying 13 3-pointers in the victory.
Of those 3-pointers, none were bigger than Richard Washington's with just over three minutes remaining. The junior drew contact, buried the trey and then converted the 4-point play to give the Spartans a five point advantage. He then drove down the lane and scored a layup on the ensuing possession for a seven point lead with 2:30 to play.
SJSU (7-14, 3-6) started the second half with a nine point advantage and they held onto that lead right up until the 5:49 mark when the Falcons knocked down back-to-back triples to tie the game at 72-72. Air Force then took the lead outright with 4:43 on the clock, their first since 12:14 in the first half.
That lead didn't last long as the Spartans regained the lead on a pair of free throws from Seneca Knight to go up 75-74. Washington then hit his 4-point play on the next Spartan possession take control of the contest.
The victory was the Spartans' first over Air Force since an 83-78 overtime win on February 18, 2017, breaking a five-game losing skid.
Both teams used the 3-ball well as they hit 13 apiece. Washington hit three to lead the Spartans while Caleb Morris and Chris Joyce each knocked down four.
The Spartans played a balanced opening half as they hit 50 percent from the field, won the rebounding battle 18-16 and dished out 13 assists against six turnovers. The defense also forced 10 Falcon turnovers. The quartet of Knight, Zach Chappell, Kaison Hammonds and Washington each hit a pair of 3s in the half.
Both teams scored the ball well to start the contest with Air Force leading by five at the 13:40 mark before the Spartans used an 8-0 run to take the lead. Hammonds hit both of his first half triples in the spree. After the Falcons tied the game at 20-20, the Spartans rattled off an 11-0 run to take a 31-20 advantage at the under-8 timeout. That lead was quickly chipped down to four, but Chappell knocked down a 3-ball and Washington knocked down two more on the next two possessions to regain a 13-point advantage. SJSU went into the locker room with a nine point lead.
The Spartans shot 47 percent for the game (29-of-61) and was 13-for-30 from downtown and hit 19-of-24 (79 percent) from the charity stripe. Air Force hit 43 percent of their shots and was 44 percent (13-of-29) from 3-point range.
SJSU dished out 22 assists with Omari Moore leading the way with a career-high 10 and was just shy of a double-double with nine points. Knight led the Spartans with 20 points and nine rebounds as one of five Spartans to score in double figures. Brae Ivey scored 17, Washington finished with 12, Chappell added 10 and Eduardo lane had a career-high 11 points and six rebounds.
Lavelle Scottie had a game-high 25 points to lead the way for the Falcons.
The Spartans return to action on Wednesday against Boise State in Boise, Idaho. Tip-off is set for 6:00 p.m. PT.