The Air Force Falcons and the Long Island University Sharks meet Friday in college basketball action from Steinberg Wellness Center. Air Force is 0-1 on the year after an opener loss versus Portland State. As for LIU, they were supposed to have an opener game versus Fisk on Wednesday but that matchup was cancelled. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.

Air Force Falcons 

Air Force is coming off a pretty rough campaign a season ago, ending up 14-18 overall with a 5-13 record in Mountain West play. The Falcons finished ahead of only Wyoming in the standings with that effort. After finishing the season on an 0-3 run, Air Force fell to UNLV 78-70 in overtime during the first game of the Mountain West Tournament. 

Air Force didn’t get off to a great start this year either. The Falcons took on Portland State in their opener, posting a 31-27 deficit in the first half on the way to a 62-55 defeat. Leading scorers Beau Becker (seven rebounds) and Chase Beasley (four assists) both scored 14 points. Ethan Taylor added 11 points and five assists as well. 

LIU Sharks 

Over on the Long Island University side, they had an even tougher campaign under head coach Rod Strickland in his rookie season. The Sharks limped to a 3-26 overall record with a 1-15 conference mark in the Northeast. Needless to say, that put LIU in the basement of the standings. The Sharks fell to Merrimack in the opener of the conference tournament. 

LIU gets two starters back in head coach Rod Strickland’s second season, and four returning players total. Tai and Terrell Strickland will turn it into a family affair on the court, and the duo should help provide a much-needed defensive presence this year. RJ Greene (9.1 PPG), CJ Delancy (5.7 PPG) and Andre Washington (11.5 PPG) will add some experience as well. 

ANDREW’S FREE PICK 

I’ll lean toward Air Force in this one, but I’m probably staying away. The Falcons didn’t shoot very well against Portland State in their opener, posting 40 percent from the field with just 9-of-19 (47.4 percent) from the line. Air Force also got out-rebounded 44-35 in a pretty flat effort overall. A bit of rest and adjustment should help here, though. 

As for LIU, this is going to serve as a tougher opener game than was originally intended. The Sharks have a lot of room for improvement after averaging a Division I-worst .875 points per possession last year and 80.0 points allowed per game. I like LIU to show some improvement in this opener and hang around for a while before Air Force ultimately covers.