Air Force's Lyons eager to return

Michael Lyons can’t remember the last time he missed any games because of an injury.

He sat out one game last season against Sam Houston State with a knee injury, but he doesn’t count that because he insists he could have played and coaches were cautious with him. He scans his mind for a few moments, trying to think of another instance, and can’t come up with one.

That’s why the past few weeks have been tough on Lyons, Air Force’s leading scorer. He went down with a high ankle sprain Dec. 22 against Gonzaga and has missed the Falcons’ past five games. He said it’s possible he can return for Saturday’s Mountain West opener at Boise State, although that seems to be the optimistic thoughts of a player ready to get back on the court.

“It gets frustrating when I see my teammates out there playing and I’m on the sideline hurt,” Lyons said. “It’s not fun at all.”

If Lyons doesn’t come back against Boise State, he said he’s eyeing Air Force’s next game, which is against Wyoming on Jan. 18. Lyons has been in a walking boot most of the past few weeks, and has only recently started running and jumping again, although he has done plenty of workouts in the pool. He learned that he couldn’t just block out the pain and perform.

“Other injuries, I could play through them,” Lyons said. “This is one you can’t play through.”

Lyons suffered the injury when Gonzaga’s Mike Hart dived for a loose ball even though Lyons had a step on him. Hart dived right into Lyons’ left leg, which buckled.

“I thought it was worse, at first impact I thought it was my knee,” Lyons said. “I guess I am just fortunate. It could have been worse. I’m trying to look on the bright side.”

He said he is “past that,” when asked if he was upset about how the play happened.

“I know he didn’t mean to hurt me but when I look back on it, it was a bit reckless,” Lyons said. “But he didn’t mean to do it. He’s a player who’s always diving on the floor.”

Air Force has played reasonably well without Lyons, although there have been stretches in which the Falcons could have used his offense. Lyons was leading the Mountain West in scoring before the Gonzaga game. Lyons didn’t score against Gonzaga before the injury, and his average is holding at 16.2 points.

Air Force has gone 4-1 without Lyons, although that has been mostly against weak competition. And the Falcons were very competitive at Gonzaga, even though Lyons went out in the opening minutes.

“I think we’ve showed in the last four or five games that we’ve gone without him we can still play with anyone,” guard Todd Fletcher said.

That’s one reason Lyons is excited to get back. He has watched other players step into bigger roles, most notably freshman Kamryn Williams, who has been in Lyons’ spot in the starting lineup the past three games. He said he wants to simply fit in when he comes back, and allow his teammates to continue to take on more of the offensive load.

“I think it has been a blessing in disguise,” Lyons said. “Guys have stepped up in a lot of ways.”