Air Force earned its first win of 2024, first win of Mountain West play and first win in almost two months on Tuesday.

The Falcons beat UNLV 90-58 on the road. The Mountain West now has zero teams winless in conference.

Here are three takeaways from Air Force’s win:

Stellar start

A quick start was paramount to the Falcons’ first conference win.

The Falcons (8-10 overall, 1-5 Mountain West) began the game shooting 85.7% (5-of-6) from three. They led by as many as 23 in the first half before taking a 15-point lead to the break.

And despite being significantly undersized, Air Force outscored UNLV 18-12 in the paint in the first half. UNLV scored only 10 points in the first 15 minutes of the game.

As a team, Air Force shot 51.6% from the field in the first 20 minutes. The Falcons held UNLV to a 23.5% clip from deep and a 32.3% clip from the field in the first half.

UNLV’s defense had no answer for Beau Becker in the first half, as the junior forward went 5-of-7 with 14 points. At point guard, Ethan Taylor also had his way with UNLV’s defense, logging 11 first-half points.

Taylor finished with a game-high 22 points. The Falcons finished the game with 14 3-pointers.

Petraitis finishes with triple-double

Rytis Petraitis had Air Force’s second triple-double in program history. The sophomore forward finished with 18 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists.

Petraitis is averaging 17.3 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game this season.

Taylor is the only other Falcon to ever record a triple-double. Now a junior, Taylor logged 14 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds against Nevada on Jan. 15, 2022 as a freshman.

Petraitis’ contributions were meaningful, as Air Force’s 32-point margin was its largest over the Runnin’ Rebels in program history. The Falcons’ previous biggest win against UNLV was 23 points (2017).

Bench production

Air Force’s bench has been dormant for much of the season, especially in the previous two contests. The Falcons scored zero points off the bench in their losses to Colorado State and New Mexico last week.

But the bench was vital on Tuesday.

Freshman Luke Kearney scored a career-high 16 points. Kearney shot 5-of-10 and made four 3-pointers.

Before Tuesday, Kearney’s career-high was four points. The freshman is averaging 1.5 points per game and has appeared in nine games.

Junior Byron Brown scored five points, while Brady Ruggles made two free throws in the final two minutes.

Air Force’s Rytis Petraitis attempts an inside shot against UNLV on Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2024.

Lucas Peltier