AZUSA, Calif. -- Five minutes.

That was all it took for Azusa Pacific to erase almost all of a 15-point lead that took California Baptist 30 minutes to build, transforming the Felix Event Center from a 3,500-seat structure into the same familiar force that shaped the Cougars' 10-game home winning streak against the Lancers which dated back to 2007.

Although the Cougars' 16-3 run put California Baptist on its heels, the No. 5-ranked Lancers never relinquished the lead throughout the momentum swings of the final minutes to hang on for an 80-77 victory and put an end to CBU's Felix Event Center nightmare.

"That was a great game, with big-time shots at both ends, defensive stops, phenomenal passes, and physical rebounds," Azusa Pacific head coach Justin Leslie said. "The fans got a show tonight because it was a fantastic game, but being on the losing end of it is hard. There's a lot of basketball left to be played, and this was a performance we can continue to build on and gain momentum. If we play like this, we're going to win a lot of basketball games."

Corey Langerveld and Connor Peterson each scored most of their team-high 16 points in the second half, helping Azusa Pacific get back in the game after Michael Smith's three-pointer with 10 minutes left pushed California Baptist in front by 15, 64-49.

Peterson started the comeback with a three-pointer, and Austin Dyer's triple with eight minutes left was answered by Jordan Heading with another three-pointer to extend the cushion back to 12, 67-55. That's when the rally picked up steam, starting with a Joey Schreiber jumper in the key before Peterson found Selom Mawugbe for an easy layup. With 5:23 left, Peterson turned a steal into an easy two on the fast break, and he knocked down jumpers on the next two possessions to finish off a 10-0 run that trimmed the margin down to two points, 67-65, while sending the Felix Event Center into a frenzy.

"We were able to slow them down and bust up their rhythm on the offensive end, and that bought us the time we needed to get ourselves going," Leslie said. "Connor had that stretch where he put us on his back whether it was creating his own shots or passes to teammates, and that was the stretch that gave us a shot to win at the end."

California Baptist used another Heading three to extend the lead to 72-65 with 2:54 left, but the Cougars got back within two in less than a minute behind a Petar Kutlesic layup and Justin Byrd three. However, Smith answered with a tough drive to the basket for a three-point play, and the Pacific West Conference's leading scorer converted four free throws in the final minute after Langerveld pulled the Cougars within three, 75-72, with a mid-range jumper with 1:25 to play.

Smith's free throws on consecutive possessions pushed the lead to 79-72 with 21 seconds remaining, but Langerveld kept the Cougars alive, trailing 79-75, with a three-pointer with 14 seconds to play. Mawugbe tied up the ballhandler on the ensuing inbounds play to give Langerveld a look at another three that could have made it a one-point game with 10 seconds left, but the shot rattled out and California Baptist secured the rebound to hang on for the win.

"California Baptist is a fantastic team – they've got great chemistry and they read the game very well," Leslie said. "When we made mistakes, they made us pay, and that's the sign of a great team."

Smith finished with a game-high 23 points, despite being held to just four points in the first half, and he was also the Lancers' leading rebounder with nine. Kalidou Diouf added 19 points and eight rebounds, while Heading added 13 points.

Peterson dished out a game-high nine assists to go with his 16-point effort, and Schreiber finished with 15 points and tied Kutlesic for the team-high in rebounds with seven. In just 10 minutes of action off the bench, Mawugbe produced two points, three rebounds, and a game-high four steals.

"They were able to drive on us a little bit too easily, so we put the big freshman in there and let him protect the paint," Leslie said. "They shot a lot of jump shots with him in the game, and I thought he did a fantastic job of anchoring that zone."

With the loss, Azusa Pacific dropped to 8-10 overall and 3-5 in PacWest play, while California Baptist extended its winning streak to six and improved to 14-1 overall and 6-1 in the PacWest.

The Cougars are home for seven of their next nine games, starting Saturday afternoon when Azusa Pacific hosts Academy of Art at 3 p.m.