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Burtschi, Air Force top George Washington

Dec 29, 2006 - 9:21 AM SANTA CLARA, California (Ticker) -- Despite a long layoff, Air Force did not miss a beat.

Jacob Burtschi scored 21 points and Dan Nwaelele added 19 as the 17th-ranked Falcons used a stellar second half to post a 66-52 victory over George Washington in the Cable Car Classic.

Matt McCraw netted 14 points for Air Force, which shot 50 percent (23-of-46) from the field to pick up its eighth straight win.

After a postponement of last Saturday's game vs. Northern Colorado due to the blizzard that inundated the Denver area, the Falcons have not played since December 13, a 70-47 rout of Norfolk State.

On Thursday, the unexpected break did not seem to hurt the Falcons, who were 11-of-25 (44 percent) from the arc to overwhelm George Washington. The Colonials were rusty themselves, having not played since December 12.

Air Force really turned up the heat in the second half. Trailing by one point at halftime, the Falcons tightened their defense and outscored the Colonials, 36-21, in the second half.

Burtschi was 7-of-13 from the floor, 2-of-5 from the arc and 5-of-5 from the line. Nwaelele shot 6-of-10, made three 3-pointers and converted all four of his free throws.

With the win, the Falcons advanced to Friday's tournament championship game against Santa Clara. On January 3, they will face Colorado State in their conference opener.

Rob Diggs scored 16 points for George Washington, which shot 41 percent (22-of-54) to absorbed its second loss in its last three contests.