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San Diego State downs Air Force

Jan 22, 2012 - 6:42 AM San Diego, CA (Sports Network) - Chase Tapley had 16 points and Jamaal Franklin added 14 points and 10 rebounds as 16th-ranked San Diego State earned a 57-44 win over Air Force.

The Aztecs (17-2, 3-0 MWC), who own a 10-game winning streak, have won 57 straight over non-top-25 teams dating back to a Jan. 13, 2010, loss at UNLV. They've also won 42 consecutive home games against unranked teams.

"When you're a running, uptempo team like us, it's kind of frustrating guarding a team like them," Tapley said. "They're very persistent with their offense, back-dooring, cutting, curling, and flaring. It's tough to guard and you have to maintain them for the whole 30 or even 35 seconds of the shot clock. Today, we did a bad job of defensive rebounding. They got the offensive rebound many times. We just really needed to focus on the concept of playing Air Force defense and I think we did a great job of that."

Taylor Broekhuis scored 16 and Mike Fitzgerald netted 14 for the Falcons (11-6, 1-2), who have lost two in a row after a four-game winning streak.

Air Force did not make a 3-pointer in the first half and finished 1-of-18 from beyond the arc. It's the team's worst showing since going 0-for-17 vs. Northern Colorado on Nov. 21, 2009. Air Force shot 34.7 percent overall.

"Shots are not always going to fall, so when that happens, you need to get to the rim and make layups and draw fouls so you can get to the free-throw line," Broekhuis said. "There are other ways to score other than shooting the three- ball and we just couldn't get it done tonight."

Franklin's three-pointer began a 9-2 stretch for the Aztecs. He scored seven during the run, expanding SDSU's lead to 29-19.

A tip-in by Broekhuis then ended the half, and the Falcons got within 43-38 with nine minutes remaining following a jumper from Justin Hammonds. The Aztecs responded with the next eight points, capped by a layup from Xavier Thames. The hosts were comfortably ahead the rest of the way.

Game Notes

San Diego State is 51-5 since the beginning of the 2010-11 campaign, which is the best mark nationally...The Aztecs have won 62 straight games when leading with five minutes to play...San Diego State has won seven straight at home over the Falcons, which is the longest streak in series history.