AZUSA, CALIF. -- It was another in a long line of classic Westmont-Azusa Pacific games. And after Corey Blick's desperation 3-pointer fell short, the NAIA's No. 11-ranked Azusa Pacific came away with a crucial 82-79 GSAC win over No. 9-ranked Westmont, Tuesday night in Azusa.
"The win is huge and it shows the kind of kids we have," said Cougar head coach Bill Odell. "We battled, and guys came in and did the little things."
Warrior guard Kevin Falconer hit a 3-pointer with 10:54 left to give Westmont a commanding 65-56 lead against the then-ice-cold Cougars.
That is when junior guard Jerome Joseph got hot. In the first half, he couldn't hit anything in the first half, Joseph scored 8 points in a 21-3 Cougar run that gave Azusa Pacific a 77-68 lead with 4:13 left in the game. More importantly, the Cougar defense was able to force Warrior turnovers and get big rebounds.
"That 5-minute run was the best defense we have played this season," said senior All-American guard T.J. Walker.
But the Warriors wouldn't go away, cutting the lead to 77-75 with 2:45 to play. Then senior guard Jason Boswell made the play of the game. After Walker missed a short jumper, Boswell converted the put-back with 1 second left on the shot clock for a 79-75 lead.
"I was in the right place when I needed to be," said Boswell. "But more important was that we won."
The Cougars and Warriors both shot 45.5% in the first half, but the Cougars converted their free throws for a 41-39 half time lead. After the Cougars jumped out to a 47-41 lead in the second half, Westmont started to heat up.
The Cougars led 81-76 with 12 seconds left when Joe Ortiz hit a 3-pointer to cut it to 81-79. Junior forward Kevin Daley was fouled, but only made one of his free throws. That set up Blick's last second shot for the tie, but a stifling Cougar defense held, and Azusa Pacific escaped with the win.
"It's real big to come out and get the win," said Walker, who finished with 18 points, 7 rebounds and 7 assists. "We were just getting good shots off our execution and we played together real well."
The Cougar defense was able to hold GSAC Co-Player of the Year Brian Gomes to only 9 points, though he did grab a game-high 12 rebounds.
The Cougars, 20-4 and 7-2 in the GSAC, have now won 20 games for 7 straight seasons, tying the 1968-74 Cougar teams. The Cougars also own sole possession of second place, a game behind front-runner Biola. Westmont falls to 19-4 overall and 6-3 in the GSAC, dropping to third place.
