AZUSA, Calif.-- It was nearly déjà vu all over again.

Back in January, Vanguard became the first No. 1-ranked team from the GSAC and just a few hours later, Azusa Pacific spoiled the party by erasing a 13-point second half deficit and sneaking away with a buzzer-beating win.

In a near carbon copy, Vanguard lost all of its 13-point second half lead, but this time the Lions thwarted the Cougars’ rally and hung for a dazzling 99-94 win in both team’s regular-season finale in Azusa.

With the loss, the NAIA's No. 16-ranked Azusa Pacific drops to 22-9 overall, 14-6 GSAC. Vanguard, ranked No. 2, improves to 27-3, 18-2 and wins its third straight conference crown.

This one was about as good as it could get. Neither team gave in as it quickly became a shootout. The teams combined for 22 three-pointers, 11 in each half.

In the end, though, despite surrendering its hefty second-half advantage, the Lion defense turned it up when it needed to, holding the Cougars without a field goal over the final 5 minutes. Even still, after Lacey Burns missed a pair of free throws with 28 second left, the Cougars, who were trailing by 3 (97-94) still had a chance to force overtime. Ashley Oakes’ game-tying attempt with 11 seconds missed, and Rachel Besse converted a pair of free throws for the final margin.

Kelsey Hudson saved her best for last. Playing in her final regular-season game in the Felix Event Center, Hudson could do little wrong ash she scored a game- and career-high 33 points. She had 17 in the first half, including 3 of her 4 treys.

On 3 straight possessions, Vanguard hit 3-pointers, and Burns pushed the Lions’ 53-46 halftime lead into a 66-53 lead just 3:10 into the second half. The Cougars began chipping away, scoring 7 straight points in the next 1:25, the last 5 from Monica Somers to make it a 6-point (66-60) game. The Lions kept the Cougars at bay for the next 10 minutes, keeping at least a 2-point cushion, but no lead grew bigger than 8.

The Lions led 89-85 when Hudson scored 5 straight to give the Cougars an 90-89 lead with 4:19 to play. It was the first lead since a 40-38 advantage with 4:58 left in the first half. The Lions out-scored the Cougars, 10-4, to end the game.

Ten different players reached double-figures. Kelly Schmidt led Vanguard with 26 points and 12 rebounds. Lacy Mills hit 6 treys to key her 20 points, and Lisa Faulkner finished with 18 points and 10 assists.

Somers added 17 points, and Lindsey Rice, also playing in her final regular-season home game, chipped in with 14 points and 10 rebounds.

The Cougars jumped out to a 20-11 lead as Hudson buried 2 of her treys in the first 7 minutes. They led 33-26 on a Somers’ jumper with 8:17 to play in the first half when Vanguard began to take over. Faulkner hit a trey, and the Lions out-scored the Cougars 27-13 to close the half. The Lions hit 7 first half 3-pointers, 4 of them in the final 8 minutes of the half.

Both teams begin play in the GSAC Tournament Thursday. Vanguard is the top-seed and will host California Baptist. Azusa Pacific is the fourth-seed and will host Westmont at 5:30 p.m. The GSAC Tournament champion earns the conferences’ automatic berth into the NAIA National Tournament, which begins March 16.