Junior Nate Pratt came off the bench to score 5 of his game-high 16 points during the run in which Azusa Pacific turned a 22-16 deficit into a 35-26 halftime lead. Concordia, which has been the NAIA's No. 1-ranked team since early December, never got any closer than 6 in the second half as the Cougars posted their 18th victory in the past 20 meetings with Concordia.

The victory completes one of the more unique weeks of play in recent Cougar basketball history.

On Tuesday, the Cougars suffered their worst GSAC loss in nearly 16 years, a 32-point thumping to The Master's in Azusa. After trouncing Hope International on Thursday in a form that looked similar to the Cougars in past years, Azusa Pacific then collected its first-ever victory over a top-ranked team.

"Having more healthy bodies was the difference between Tuesday and tonight," said Cougar coach Bill Odell who over the past 3 weeks has had no less than 6 players miss games. "Tuesday was a wake-up call for us. We were embarrassed. However, tonight we forgot everything from The Master's game and came together as a team and played well together."

Concordia rolled out to a 9-3 lead in the opening minutes of the game and was up by as much as 9 at 14-5 following a Trae Fortier jumper. However, Azusa Pacific's defensive intensity wreaked havoc on Concordia's line-up and 6 different Eagles found themselves benched with foul trouble. As a result, the Cougar bench, led by Pratt's 11 first-half points, out-scored their Concordia counterparts, 17-5. The Eagles missed 7 of their final 9 shots of the half and committed 11 turnovers in the final 12 minutes. The Cougars took advantage and when Pratt drained his only trey of the night, Azusa Pacific had its first lead of the game 25-24 with 5:17 left in the half. The Cougars never relinquished the lead.

"We matched their intensity after the first 5 minutes of the game," said Odell, "but we're young, and I don't think we were mentally ready for the intensity that this game had. But after that first 5 minutes there were a few plays that helped us get our adrenaline started. We came alive and battled the rest of the way."

The Cougars seemingly had an equal and opposite reaction to every Concordia push in the second half. Senior guard Larry English, who didn't score in The Master's loss, tallied 15 points tonight, including 9 in the second half, converting 2 key baskets twice after Concordia had rallied back to within 7. Lance Socerberg added 14 points and nailed 2 second-half 3-point shots, including an important one from the top of the key when again Concordia was within 7 at 49-42. Yet, it was sophomore Jeff Bates' 3-pointer from the left corner with 4:49 left in the game that sealed the game's outcome, putting the Cougars up 62-51.

"This was obviously a huge game for us," said Odell. "I've always felt that we can play with anybody. We have not played well until tonight, so hopefully this means we've turned a corner."

Concordia was paced by All-American Tanner Luster and his 12 points and game-high 12 rebounds.

With the victory Azusa Pacific improves to 11-5 overall, 3-2 in the GSAC. Concordia falls to 13-3 overall and 3-2 in the GSAC.