FORT MOORE, Ga. –
The Air Force women never trailed in their Saturday afternoon matchup with the Marine Corps women at the second day of the Armed Forces Basketball Championship.
The tournament features active-duty personnel from the Army, Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps, as well as players from Coast Guard and Space Force, in the double round-robin matchups. The competition will conclude Oct. 10 with championship games for men and women.
“We’re playing quality defense, and it makes everything else OK,” said Air Force women’s Coach James Lewis. “It gives us the freedom to make mistakes on offense when we play as solid a defense.”
Air Force defeated the Corps 73-34.
Senior Airman Tiaera Phillips, who serves at Atlantic City Air National Guard, New Jersey, scored 18 points to lead Air Force.
1st Lt. Kaleigh D’Arcy, from Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, made nine of 12 free throws and led the Corps with 12 points.
The first men’s game of Day Two featured teams looking for their first victory of the tournament as the Marine Corps men squared off against Air Force.
The slow-scoring affair featured numerous lead changes as both teams got physical under the basket.
The Corps led 30-29 at the half, but Air Force began to pull away as the second half matured.
“As well as we played, we still knew we had to kick it up another level,” Air Force Coach Ernest Darnell said afterward.
“There’s not a team in this tournament that’s going to fight like the Marines are going to fight. They’re the defending champions for a reason, so we knew we had to turn it up a level and make it extremely hard for them to score. We did it one possession at a time,” he said.
Senior Airman Draylan Perkins, from F.E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyoming, led Air Force with 31 points. 1st Sgt. Christopher Harris, from Camp Pendleton, California, led the Marines with 23 points.
Air Force took the victory, 75-67.
Regarding physical recovery during the day-to-day match ups, Darnell said he felt he has the best trainer in the military.
His team prepared with high-altitude gym training in Colorado. “I had my guys 100 percent ready, then I just let my trainer do what he does.”
Recovery includes “ice baths and everything under the kitchen sink,” he said.
The Army and Navy women started off the evening’s second set of games.
From trailing 10-8, Army went on a 25-2 run to take the lead, getting out to a 46-25 lead at the half.
Army won 97-54, notching their second win in two days. 1st Lt. Tatiana Wayne of Fort Moore led Army with 18 points.
“Defense made the offense easy,” said Army women’s coach Capt. Cutosha Dilworth.
Like all the other coaches looking forward to games on Sunday and beyond, she said, “I’ve got to keep them healthy. I don’t want to overwork them. … I’m letting them relax and rest and hydrate.”
Asked who’s making the moves that lead to Army wins, Dilworth name-checked the contributors: Sgt. Precious Williams, who is stationed at Fort Bliss, Texas; “She’s my floor general.”
Then there’s 2nd Lt. Hope Brown, from Fort Sill, Oklahoma. “She’s my clean-up player.”
Others she acknowledged were 2nd Lt. Sabria Hunter of Fort Carson, Colorado, and Spec. Rayjon Harris, from Fort Bliss, Texas.
“It’s a team effort,” Dilworth said.
Kira Wood scored 22 points to lead the Navy women.
Navy and Army men came to the court Saturday night both having won the night before, and neither wanted to let the other get the upper hand.
Navy controlled the tempo for the first 10 minutes and led 33-18 at the 6:04 mark in the first half, but Army put on pressure to try to make something happen, and it did.
Army 1st Lt. Colton Ray, stationed at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, scored off a half-court steal and then Army hit a three.
Navy’s lead was four points at half time, 42-38, and Army continued the pressure in the second half, forcing Navy into two shot clock violations.
The game was tied 54-54 with 12:10 to go.
From that point, it seemed both Navy and Army played more surgically, each wanting to protect the ball, avoid foolish fouls, and hang on for victory. Navy led by three with 5:26 to go, but then by one, 66-65, when they called time out with 4:09 left.
Then Navy hit some key shots and Army did not. Navy won 81-78.
“The heart and grit of my whole team; the coaching staff, the players, I couldn’t be more proud,” said Navy Coach Micah Bonner. “This is actually the type of game … I told all of them, that you want to play in. [Army’s] a hell of a team; a hell of a ball club. They fought back, they gave us every punch. My guys were able to respond.”
Coast Guard Petty Officer 3rd Class Dakota Ayala, from Coast Guard Sector Wilmington, South Carolina, was the leading Navy scorer, with 19 points.
Ray scored 30 to lead Army.
All-tournament and Armed Forces selections will be made for Team USA, which will compete later at the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe International Basketball Tournament Championship in B