Written by
The Sports Network
Colorado Springs, CO (Sports Network) - Air Force men's basketball coach Jeff
Reynolds was fired Wednesday with the team in the midst of a six-game losing
streak.
Athletic director Dr. Hans Mueh made the announcement. Associate head coach
Dave Pilipovich will take over as head coach for the remainder of this season.
Reynolds was in his fifth season as head coach of the Falcons. He led them to
a 16-16 record last season and their first berth in a postseason tournament in
four years.
The Falcons lost in the second round of the CollegeInsider.com tournament and
are 11-10 this season, including a 1-6 mark in the Mountain West Conference.
Reynolds went 63-82 for Air Force and is 145-116 in eight-plus season as a
college head coach. He has also coached at North Carolina Wesleyan and Wingate
College.
He was an assistant for two years under Jeff Bzdelik and was promoted in April
2007 after Bzdelik left to coach Colorado.
The Falcons haven't won a game since January 14 at Boise State. They took
then-No. 12 UNLV to overtime two weeks ago before losing, 65-63.
Afterward, UNLV coach Dave Rice said he was impressed by the pace of the Air
Force offense.
"We had a hard time guarding them and that's a credit to Air Force," Rice
said. "I think it's always frustrating when you play against a team that is
very methodical and has a different style, but that's a part of becoming a
very good team."
After the same game, Reynolds said he couldn't fault his players' effort.
"I thought they played their hearts out," he said. "We're a good basketball
team. We've got to continue to believe in what we're doing and at some point
we'll be in a position to at least get a shot at it."
Air Force will play its first game without Reynolds on Saturday against Boise
State at home.
The Sports Network