Robins worker leads AF team to victory Published May 21, 2009 By Wayne Crenshaw 78th Air Base Wing Public Affairs ROBINS AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. -- The All-Air Force men's basketball team, which has close ties to Robins, won the Armed Forces Basketball Tournament for the fourth consecutive year. The team held its training camp at Robins, and its entire coaching staff is from Robins, and a key player is stationed here. The team went 6-0 to win the double round-robin tournament against teams from the Army, Navy and Marines. The tournament was held in Millington, Tenn., May 11-18. Each team played every other team twice, and the team with the best record in the end was the winner. The Air Force actually clinched the championship in its fifth game on Saturday with a win over the Marines, said head coach John Bailey. Bailey and his two assistants, Jeff McClain and project officer Eddie Goad are Robins employees. Bailey credited the Air Force win to a balanced scoring attack and the team's desire. "It was a will to win," he said. "They just refused to lose. They executed and being a team full of veterans, they were really poised." The team's toughest win was in the first game of the tournament against Army. Air Force had handily defeated Army twice in exhibition games during training camp, including a 23-point win at Robins. Bailey said those wins may have led to some complacency because Army led most of the way in the first game of the tournament before the Air Force pulled out a four-point win. Center Tysen Pina, a former Air Force Academy player and a captain in the 116th Air Control Wing, was one of five Robins Airmen to try out for the team, but was the only one to make the final cut. Bailey said Pina played a key role in the tournament success. He said Pina would have been picked for the All-Armed Forces team, made up of the best players from each squad in the tournament, but he couldn't serve because his wife is due to give birth, Bailey said. As coach of the winning team in the tournament, Bailey will coach the All-Armed Forces team that will play in a tournament in Lithuania starting June 7. Teams made up of military personnel from 12 other countries will play in the tournament. Last year's U.S. team, coached by Bailey, won the international tournament for the first time since Bailey played on it in 1988.