RENO, Nev. - For the fifth-straight season, Nevada opened Mountain West play with a win, this time routing Air Force, 74-57, in the front half of the two-game series Friday night at Lawlor Events Center.

The teams wrap the series Sunday at 3 p.m. before going on the holiday break.

Nevada (6-2, 1-0 MW) broke a 41-41 tie early in the second half with seven-straight points, and never relinquished that lead the rest of the night. Desmond Cambridge, Jr., capped that run with a 3-pointer, highlighting his third-straight game with at least 20 points, finishing with 23.

Air Force (2-3, 0-1 MW) would close the gap to two thanks to five-straight points from Glen McClintock, but Grant Sherfield's four-point play with 13:45 to play would give the Pack breathing room at 52-46, spurring a 9-0 run that would start the rout.

Sherfield finished with eight points to snap his season-opening run of seven games scoring in double figures, but he set up much more, finishing the night with a career-high nine assists.

Forward Warren Washington proved tough to handle for the Falcons inside, hitting 6-of-7 shots and getting to the line eight times, making four to cap a 16-point night. Washington was also one of three Pack players to finish with at least seven rebounds, matching Cambridge, Jr.'s output and finishing just one off of team leader Zane Meeks.

Meeks enjoyed his best night since joining the starting lineup Dec. 7 against William Jessup. The sophomore forward scored 14 points to go with his eight boards, and forced his way to the line for a game-high nine attempts, converting seven, both career highs.

The shooting of Washington and Meeks helped spark Nevada's second game this season in which it hit at least half of its attempts, shooting 51.1 percent (24-for-47) on the night.

With the Pack leading, 57-48, with 12:29 to play, Meeks and Washington combined to score Nevada's next 11 points, outscoring Air Force, 11-5, over a span of six minutes, 41 seconds. Washington opened that run with a pair of free throws, followed by Meeks hitting a triple then picking up an and-1 to pad the Pack's lead at 65-50.

Overall, it was another strong second-half response by the Pack, which started fast before yielding momentum to the Falcons as the opening half came to a close. Cambridge, Jr., hit two of his four triples on the night and scored eight points over Nevada's game-opening 13-4 run, and the Pack's lead grew as large as 11 at 39-28 with less than four minutes until halftime.

But McLintock and A.J. Walker, who led Air Force with 15 and 14 points, respectively, closed that gap. McClintock hit a pair of 3-pointers while the Pack turned the ball over four times and missed its only two field-goal attempts over the final 3:54, cutting Nevada's lead to 41-39 at the break.