ST. GEORGE, Utah -- A late first-half cold spell cost Azusa Pacific its early lead and forced the Cougars to play from behind the rest of the way in an 88-73 road defeat at Dixie State Saturday afternoon.
Over the last eight minutes of the first half and the first two-and-a-half minutes of the second half, Dixie State erased a five-point Cougar lead with a 28-6 run. Included in that run was a 21-6 margin over the final 8:09 of the first half, giving Dixie State a double-digit halftime lead, 41-31, which extended to 48-31 when the Trailblazers opened the second half with a 7-0 run.
Petar Kutlesic scored a game-high 25 points and collected a game-high 14 rebounds, giving the senior forward his second consecutive double-double as he established season-high efforts in both categories.
The loss was Azusa Pacific's first setback in Pacific West Conference play, dropping the Cougars to 6-5 overall and 2-1 in the PacWest, while Dixie State improved to 5-4 overall and 2-0 in the PacWest.
How It Happened: Azusa Pacific answered a quick 5-0 deficit to start the game with 12 straight points to capture the early lead. Kutlesic opened the scoring with a three-point play, and he scored 10 of the Cougars' first 12. However, Dixie State reeled the game back in to regain the lead at 20-17, on Trevor Hill's three-point play with 10:43 remaining in the first half.
Kutlesic answered with another layup inside, kicking off an 8-0 run after back-to-back three-pointers from Corey Langerveld and Will Ferris gave Azusa Pacific a 25-20 edge with 8:55 left in the half. However, Dixie State turned the game around from there and took control with its game-changing 28-6 run.
Mandrell Worthy capped a 9-0 run which cut the lead back down to single digits, 48-40, with 14:41 left, but Hill promptly made a layup to push the lead back into double digits for good. Dixie State expanded the lead to 18 points at 67-49, its largest lead of the game, with 7:27 left, and the Cougars got as close as 10 points three separate times in the final five minutes of the contest.
Turning Point: A three-minute stretch midway through the first half turned the game in Dixie State's favor, as the Trailblazers answered Azusa Pacific's early 12-0 and 8-0 bursts which gave the Cougars the lead in both instances. Darien McClain hit a three-pointer with 5:19 left in the half, keeping Azusa Pacific within four, 32-28, but it took the Cougars another eight minutes to make another shot from the field, as the only three points over that span came from the free throw line.
Azusa Pacific Standouts: Kutlesic posted his second consecutive double-double, and his third straight game with double-digit rebounds, with a 25-point, 14-rebound effort. He was 10-for-19 from the field and was the Cougars' only player to shoot over 50 percent from the field. McClain added 19 points, scoring 16 in the second half, and Worthy contributed 14 points off the bench. Despite being limited to 11 minutes with foul trouble, Selom Mawugbe notched four blocks, and Kutlesic added three blocked shots.
Dixie State Standouts: Brandon Simister engineered a balanced scoring effort for the Trailblazers, scoring 19 points with 7 assists while three others reached double figures for Dixie State. Trevor Hill scored 15 points, while Dub Price came off the bench with a 13-point, 6-rebound effort. Kyler Nielson finished with 10 points and a team-high 9 rebounds.
By The Numbers: Azusa Pacific picked up 19 offensive rebounds, but the Cougars were still out-rebounded by a 46-42 margin… Dixie State also edged the Cougars in second chance points, 16-13… Azusa Pacific shot 35 percent (25-for-72) from the field, but that included a 10-for-40 clip (25 percent) on three-pointers… Dixie State shot 43 free throws to Azusa Pacific's 19, and the Trailblazers capitalized by hitting 79 percent (34-for-43) from the line… One player from Dixie State fouled out (Trevor Hill), and three Cougars were disqualified with five fouls each (Mawugbe, Ferris, Worthy).
What's Next: Azusa Pacific wraps up the calendar year with three PacWest road games, starting with a Saturday, Dec. 16 visit to Holy Names and continuing in the Bay Area at Notre Dame de Namur on Monday, Dec. 18. The Cougars return from the Christmas holiday break with a Dec. 30 road game at Concordia.
