LAS VEGAS — Milahnie Perry has a new No. 1.

By scoring a career-high 33 points and leading ninth-seeded Air Force to an 83-76 bracket-shaking upset over No. 1 San Diego State in the Mountain West quarterfinals on Sunday, Perry provided the kind of career-defining performance that only March basketball can provide.

“I can’t even put into words the feeling that we’re all feeling, that I’m feeling,” said Perry, who also tied a career high with nine rebounds. “I’m so proud of our team. It’s just such a blessing. I knew we could do it. I kept saying we could do it, and we did it.”

This marks the second trip to the semifinals in Air Force program history (joining the 2021-22 women) and the first time any Falcons team, men’s or women’s, has won two games in the Mountain West tournament. It was also the missing, defining piece to Perry’s record-setting career.

“The Milahnie Perry Game,” the Mountain West dubbed it on social media. The television crew in the following game noted that the winner awaits Air Force, and “nobody wants to face the Falcons and Milahnie Perry right now.”

Less than a week ago, when she broke the program’s all-time scoring record with 26 points on Senior Night, Perry tried to name her top three career moments. That dramatic home finale was one of them, but it was also in a loss. A victory over Grand Canyon, where she scored the game-winner in the closing seconds after setting Air Force’s NCAA Division I scoring record, was worth noting.

But she couldn’t come up with a third.

This one jumps that line.

“This is definitely No. 1 now,” said Perry, who also moved into second place on Air Force’s single-season scoring chart on Sunday — sliding past herself, trailing only herself.

The Falcons hung tough in a first half that saw six lead changes, but the Aztecs scored the final seven points to take a 32-26 halftime lead.

“Just keep pushing,” said Emily Adams – who scored 20 points with eight rebounds and six assists – of the halftime message. “We got to put that fire under our butts and just keep going.”

It set up a third quarter for the ages. With Perry scoring 14, the game saw ties at 38, 45, 50 and 54. San Diego State led by eight, twice. The Falcons built five-point leads three times. Every punch was met with a counterpunch.

An 8-0 Air Force run midway through the fourth quarter – with baskets from Alexis Cortez, Adams and Perry — staked the Falcons to a six-point lead. From there they did two main things — make free throws and hold on for dear life.

“Every time I thought we were trying to crawl into it or we would get it tied, they made some really big plays,” San Diego State coach Stacie Terry-Hutson said.

Air Force made 27 of 31 free throws in the game, including 15 of 17 in that clutch fourth quarter.

“Can’t say enough about how we performed down the stretch,” Falcons coach Stacy McIntyre said.

Even when Air Force stretched the lead to 10 with 43 seconds remaining, the Aztecs pulled to within three points.

Naomi Panganiban went 5 of 9 from 3-point range — hitting three 3s in the final 36 seconds — and finished with 29 points for the Aztecs, who had steamrolled through the season with a 19-1 record in conference play.

Air Force was able to inbound against San Diego State’s intense pressure, and Keelie O’Hollaren hit four free throws in the final 11 seconds, sealing the victory.

O’Hollaren scored 12 points, as did Jayda McNabb, and the Falcons set a season high in scoring.

“They just flat out beat us to the ball,” said Terry-Hutson, who felt the loss probably takes the Aztecs (25-5) out of NCAA Tournament consideration. “They beat us to 50-50s and, again, made big-time plays when they needed to. I thought they played a really good game. Eighty-three points from an Air Force team is not normal, and they made a lot of shots when they needed to. You make baskets, and you defend like they do, they’re going to win more games.”

The Falcons (15-17) will face No. 5 Boise State at 6 p.m. Monday with a berth in the conference championship game on the line. The Broncos (25-8), who will also be playing their third game in as many days, topped No. 4 New Mexico with a Tatum Thompson basket with six seconds remaining.

“I voted for Perry as Most Valuable Player (in the conference),” Boise State coach Gordy Presnell said. “She’s just a tremendous player. There are very few players who can just create their shot at any time and just go up strong.”

Boise State swept the season series with Air Force, winning by 11 and eight points. No matter, San Diego State had swept Air Force, with the win at the academy on March 3 coming by 17 points. Saturday’s opponent, Wyoming, carried an all-time 64-5 series edge into the first-round game the Falcons won 60-53.

“I kept saying we can compete and win against any team in this conference,” said Perry, one of five upperclassmen to play 22-plus minutes Sunday. “We know that, and we’re going to continue to show that.”

Perhaps Perry will need to make a little more room on her list of highlights.

KEY MOMENTS

Five scoring plays for Air Force that came at pivotal moments in an 83-76 upset of top-seeded San Diego State in the Mountain West quarterfinals

– Milahnie Perry drives for a layup three minutes, 32 seconds into the game. Air Force had fallen behind 6-2. The bucket put a pin to a ballooning deficit right out of the chute.

– Alexis Cortez hits a 3-pointer 36 seconds into the third quarter, pulling Air Force to within five points. The Aztecs had closed the first half on a 7-0 run, then scored the first bucket of the third quarter to build an eight-point lead.

– Perry’s 3-pointer with 4:55 remaining in the third quarter caps a 10-0 run for the Falcons and puts them in front by five. The sense that an upset was possible was palpable.

– Cortez hits a 10-foot jumper, set up by an offensive rebound from Emily Adams, to beat the shot clock with 7:20 remaining in the fourth quarter and Air Force trailing 58-55.

– Jayda McNabb hits a 3-pointer with 2:51 remaining, answering a 3-pointer from San Diego State and pushing Air Force back in front by six points at 68-62.

SINGULAR ACCOMPLISHMENTS

After scoring 33 points on Sunday, Milahnie Perry owns the top three single-season scoring marks for Air Force in its NCAA Division I history (since 1996-97).

1. Milahnie Perry (2023-24)  535

2. Milahnie Perry (2025-26)  531

3. Milahnie Perry (2024-25)  519

4. Madison Smith (2024-25) 505

5. Riley Snyder (2021-22)      490