HONOLULU, Hawai?i -- A trip to Hawai?i may seem like the perfect opportunity to savor the island paradise, but No. 14-ranked Azusa Pacific needed to put in a full game's work to hold off upset-minded Hawai?i Pacific in a 77-74 win Saturday afternoon at the Neal Blaisdell Center in Honolulu.
The Cougars never trailed and led by as many as 17 points with less than 13 minutes left in the game, but Hawai?i Pacific slashed the lead to one with less than two minutes to play to set up a nail-biting finish. After HPU's Darry Jones Jr. knocked down a three-pointer to cut the Azusa Pacific lead to 71-70 with 1:54 remaining, senior guard Kevin Stafford answered on the next possession with a three of his own to extend the lead to four at 74-70.
After Justin Long made two free throws with a minute left, each team turned it over with an offensive foul, and the Cougars got the ball back with nine seconds left after Long's potentially game-tying layup was off the mark. Senior guard Troy Leaf made it a two-possession game by sinking a pair of free throws, which Long answered with a quick coast-to-coast layup, and Leaf hit the first of two free throws with three seconds left to provide the final three-point margin.
Stafford scored all 12 of his points from three-point range, and Leaf scored 15 of his game-high 21 points in the second half to lead Azusa Pacific, which improved to 18-3 overall and maintained its position as the PacWest leader with an 11-2 conference mark. Leaf has now scored at least 20 points in seven consecutive games, his longest career streak of 20-point games. The Cougars wrap up their three-game trip to Hawai?i with a Monday night visit to the Big Island to take on Hawai?i Hilo.
By most statistical measures, Azusa Pacific escaped with a game it shouldn't have won. After all, the Cougars were out-rebounded, 36-31, shot 12 fewer free throws than the Sharks, and were limited to just 30 percent (seven-for-23) from three-point range. Most importantly, however, Azusa Pacific only committed eight turnovers and forced 15 from HPU, which resulted in a crucial 16-3 advantage in points off turnovers.
The Cougars also enjoyed a 38-20 edge in points in the paint, shooting 47 percent (30-for-64) overall, including 13-of-21 first-half two-point field goal attempts while building a 38-30 halftime edge. Senior forward Christian Katuala scored nine points while hauling in a team-high eight rebounds, and freshman forward Petar Kutlesic added six rebounds.
In the first half, Azusa Pacific held HPU without a field goal for a five-minute stretch, using a 12-2 run to take its first double-digit lead of the game, 17-7, with 12:01 remaining in the first half. The Cougars led by 11 points on four separate occasions before taking an eight-point lead into the second half. After halftime, a Jones Jr. three-pointer pulled the Sharks within five at 40-35, but Leaf answered with a conventional three-point play and followed it with his first three-pointer to spark a 17-5 run that led to a 57-40 margin, the Cougars' largest of the game, with 12:49 to play.
Hawai?i Pacific was led by Luke Hager, who scored a team-high 19 points with eight rebounds, and three others were in double figures for the Sharks. Jones Jr. tallied 16 points, Long added 15, and Clayton Guy was a rebound away from a double-double, posting 10 points with a game-high nine rebounds.
