Photo credit: sjsuspartans.com

By: Ana Kieu

SAN JOSE, Calif. — San Jose State men’s basketball will welcome the Air Force Academy to the Event Center for a 6:00 pm tip Saturday. The game can be streamed online on the Mountain West Network. Justin Allegri will have the radio call on KLIV 1590 AM, broadcasting their final men’s basketball game of the season.

Here’s what you need to know about Saturday’s game.

Game No. 19
Air Force (8-11, 3-4 MW) at San Jose State (3-15, 0-6 MW)
Saturday, Jan. 26, 6:00 pm PT
The Event Center (5,000)
San Jose, Calif.

Live Stats
Fans can view live stats of all SJSU men’s basketball games, home and away, by accessing the “Live Stats” feature at www.sjsuspartans.com. Click on the link on the men’s basketball schedule page to follow the action.

What Would a Win Mean?
SJSU’s fourth win over Air Force in the last six games. After the Spartans won three straight in 2016 and 2017, the Falcons swept both games last season (78-71 and 83-61). A win would also put an end to SJSU’s nine-game losing skid.

Newcomers Amp up Offense
The Spartans have played nine first-year players this season, including regular starters Michael Steadman, Zach Chappell, Craig LeCesne and Brae Ivey. The newcomers are accounting for 66.9% of the Spartans’ offense (783-1170).

Steadman alone is accounting for nearly 19% of the Spartans’ offense with 222 points.

Baumann the Boss
Sophomore Noah Baumann is shooting lights out from beyond the arc this season, so good in fact that he leads the MW in 3-point percentage at 50.6 percent. Baumann also ranks in the top-10 in the MW in 3-pointers per game (2.4)

In the loss to Utah State, Baumann had one of the most impressive performances of his career as he scored a career-high 29 points and tied the school record with seven 3-pointers (7-of-10). He also set career highs in 3-point attempts and field goal attempts.

Baumann holds the top two scoring performances by a Spartan this season with 29 vs. USU and 23 vs. Northern Arizona. He’s averaging 10.2 points in conference play, which is tied for the team lead and is shooting 48% from 3-point range in conference games.

Baumann has hit at least one 3-point basket in 16 straight games this season. It’s the longest such streak since Devante Wilson hit 17-straight in 2013-14.

Last season as a freshman, Baumann finished the year 40-for-87 (.460) from the 3-point range. Entering Saturday’s game, he is 44-for-87, with 12 regular season games remaining.

Staff Shakeup
Spartans head coach Jean Prioleau made some changes to his staff in the offseason as he brought in former NC State All-American Julius Hodge as an assistant coach and promoted director of operations Ryan Cooper to assistant coach.

Steady Steadman
JUCO transfer Michael Steadman has made a big impact this season as a leader on and off the court. The 6’10″ forward is averaging a team-high 12.3 points per game and ranks fifth in the MW with 8.4 rebounds per game. He has six double-doubles on the season, ranking third in the conference and has scored in double figures in 15-of-18 games. He also has eight games with double-digit rebounds.

Changes
Prioleau has used seven different lineups throughout the season with no player starting each time out. Senior Oumar Barry had started the first 17 games before an injury kept him out of the lineup at Wyoming. Seven newcomers have made starts, including freshmen Seneca Knight, Zach Chappell, and Trey Smith.

Series History vs. Air Force
Saturday’s game will be the 14th overall meeting between the Spartans and Falcons. SJSU has a pair of three-game win streaks in the series. The Spartans have won three of the last five games, however, Air Force is on a two-game win streak.

Air Force checks in with an 8-11 overall record and 3-4 mark in conference play and is tied for sixth in the conference standings. The Falcons are led by a great offensive weapon in Lavelle Scottie, who ranks fifth in the MW in scoring, in conference play with 17.3 points per game. Junior forward Ryan Swan will prove to be a big test for Michael Steadman for the boards as he checks in right behind Steadman with 8.0 rebounds per game and is second in the conference with 2.7 offensive rebounds per game.

The Falcons are led by seventh-year head coach Dave Pilipovich.