AZUSA, Calif. -- Senior guard Troy Leaf scored a game-high 36 points to lead No. 1-seed Azusa Pacific to a 75-67 win over Western Oregon in the first round of the NCAA Division II Men's Basketball West Regional tournament Friday night.
Leaf scored 21 of his 36 points after halftime, including eight points of a 14-0 run which turned the game around for good. His layup with 10:02 to play erased the final Western Oregon lead, tying the game at 49-49, and he added a conventional three-point play which gave Azusa Pacific a lead it never relinquished. With 5:28 left, he drilled a pull-up three on a fast break, pushing the lead into double digits at 61-49 with 5:28 to play.
The Western Oregon scoreless stretch lasted more than six minutes, and the Wolves were held without a field goal for a span of more than eight minutes. By then, Azusa Pacific held a 13-point edge, its largest lead of the game. The cushion gave the Cougars some breathing room as Western Oregon caught fire from long range with five consecutive three-pointers within the final 2:30 of the game. As the Wolves narrowed the gap from beyond the arc, Azusa Pacific hit 10-of-11 free throws to answer each trey in the final 2:19.
With the win, Azusa Pacific advances to a semifinal matchup Saturday night against Cal Poly Pomona, which won the first meeting between the teams in Pomona in overtime in the Cougars' second game of the season. The teams meet up at 7:30 p.m., following the Division II West Region semifinal matchup between No. 3-seed California Baptist and No. 7-seed Seattle Pacific at 5:00 pm Saturday.
Leaf was six-for-six at the line, while Stafford knocked down four-of-five to help the Cougars keep trading two points for each Western Oregon three-pointer. For the game, Azusa Pacific made 17-of-18 (.944) from the line to break the program's single-game free throw percentage record, which was previously .931 (27-for-29) in a Dec. 20, 2000 game against Albertson (now College of Idaho). In addition, Leaf's 36-point effort was only three points shy of his career-high, and it was his career-best in regulation (scored seven of his career-high 39 points at Dixie State in overtime).
Senior point guard Robert Sandoval was the only player besides Leaf to score in double figures, finishing with 11 points and tying for the team rebounding lead with six boards. Leaf added five assists and a steal, and he also blocked a shot during the Wolves' extended scoring drought. Led by three different players with six rebounds each, Azusa Pacific finished with a 43-35 edge on the boards.
Western Oregon featured three double-digit scorers, with Andy Avgi posting team-highs of 19 point and 8 rebounds while Julian Nichols added 14 points and seven rebounds. Avgi scored five points early in the game to lead the Wolves to an 11-0 lead just over four minutes into the contest, but Sandoval cashed a corner three with 15:25 left in the first half to give the Cougars their first points of the game.
It took just over five minutes for the Wolves' lead to completely evaporate, as Leaf tied the game at 15-15 with 9:57 to play and knocked down a three with 9:39 to play to give Azusa Pacific an 18-15 lead. Neither team led by more than four points again until the Cougars made their run late in the second half.
With the win, Azusa Pacific improves to 25-5 overall while Western Oregon finishes the season with a 23-7 overall record
VIDEO: Azusa Pacific Postgame Press Conference (Quarterfinals)
