Junior guard Matt Oliver came off the bench to score a career-high 14 points, including 9 from beyond the arc, to lead the Cougars to the near wire-to-wire victory. Other than Westminster scoring the game's first basket (the first time the Cougars have trailed this year), Azusa Pacific led the entire way, but the Cougars were never able to put away the Griffins, much like they did to their first 2 opponents when they sprinted out to 20-point leads in the first 7 minutes of play.

To keep itself in the game, Westminster instead slowed the tempo of play, worked the shot clock and raced back on defense to thwart the Cougar fast-break from getting into high gear. The game plan worked well, but it had to be executed to perfection for Azusa Pacific was up to the task.

Though Azusa Pacific never trailed after the opening minute, Westminster was never too far off pace, frequently rallying from double-digit deficits, including a 35-25 hole at halftime. However, the Cougars kept Westminster at bay, due in large part to Oliver.

"They control the tempo so much and run the clock that you have to play 35 seconds of defense each possession," said Cougar coach Bill Odell. "It gets you out of your rhythm, and we're very much a rhythm team."

Griffin guard Jordan Jacobs tallied all of his team-high 12 points in the second half on the strength of 4 3-point field goals. His final bomb pulled Westminster to within 4 at 59-55 with 2:34 left in the game. Oliver, though, answered for Azusa Pacific, draining a deep counter trey from the left wing to essentially clinch the victory.

"It started off well tonight and just continued throughout the game," said Oliver. "When you make your first 3-pointer and the opposing coach immediately calls a timeout, it makes you feel good and boosts the confidence."

Oliver made 3-of-4 from 3-point territory to go along with 3 assists, 3 steals and a blocked shot of a Griffin 3-pointer, not bad for guy who is playing point guard for the first time in his career.

"Matt is a smart player and is a good shooter," Odell added. "He came into this season with confidence because he worked so hard in the off-season. He worked himself into a position to play because we couldn't keep him off the floor."

Azusa Pacific got 27 of its 69 points from the point guard. Junior Khalif Ford added 13 while teaming with Oliver to run a near flawless offensive scheme. Azusa Pacific committed just 5 turnovers as compared to Westminster's 15.

"It's taken time to get used to playing the point," said Oliver who has been a shooting guard during his first 2 seasons with the Cougars, "but this is a fun offense to run. It's a good system in which you have a lot of options for shooters plus you can get your own shot too."

Senior forward Tristan King added 11 points and 4 rebounds, and none was bigger than the carom he collected off a Cougar miss that he put back after Westminster had pulled to with 4 at 49-45 midway through the second half. A Mike Danielian steal led to another Oliver trey, and the Cougars were back up by 9 at 54-45 with 7 minutes left.

"I was pleased with how we kept answering each time they closed the gap," said Odell. "Westminster does a great job of rebounding, and that hurt us in the first half. We did a better job in the second half, particularly on the offensive end."

Senior forward Scott Zea finished with 7 points and a game-high 9 rebounds.

Azusa Pacific collects its first-ever on-the-court victory over Westminster in 5 tries (the Griffins forfeited a game in the 1970s) and improves to 3-0 on the season. The Griffins falls to 3-2.