LA MIRADA, Calif. -- In the first installment of the 2018-19 Cornerstone Cup rivalry, the Azusa Pacific men's team picked up right where the Azusa Pacific women left off, posting a 73-59 win in a game which was not as close as the final score indicated to complete the men's and women's program sweep of Biola in convincing fashion.

The Cougars never trailed in the game, taking the lead less than two minutes into the game on a Gerritt Beetstra three-pointer. With 1:53 left before halftime, Azusa Pacific grabbed a 32-21 lead on a three-pointer by senior Will Ferris. Biola faced a double-digit deficit for the remainder of the contest, including a 26-point deficit with 10:35 left in the game.
 
How It Happened: Azusa Pacific posted an overwhelming advantage from beyond the arc, as the Cougars shot 12-for-24 (50%) from the three-point line, while Biola went 3-for-10 (30%) from deep, with all three of those makes coming with less than two minutes left in the game. The Cougars had seven different players make a three-pointer: Beetstra, Ferris, senior Darien McClain, junior Noah Bundrant, junior Ben Taufahema, sophomore Terrence Becvar, and Jonathan Davis each hit at least one shot from distance. Meanwhile, Biola's Michael Bagatourian was the only Eagle player to make a shot from beyond the three-point line. Overall, Azusa Pacific shot 44.9 precent (22-for-49) from the floor, and Biola went 19-for-47 (40.4%). The Cougars also shot better from the free throw line, as they went 17-for-22 (77.3%), compared to Biola going 18-for-26 (69.2%) from the charity stripe. Azusa Pacific's bench scored 22 points, led by a seven point performance from Taufahema. Biola's bench scored just 13 points. Azusa Pacific was also able to create turnovers, as they forced Biola into 15 turnovers, which led to 17 points off turnovers.
 
Turning Point: Coming out of the locker room at halftime with a 37-23 lead, Azusa Pacific took firm control of the game by holding the Eagles scoreless for nearly seven minutes. That allowed the Cougars to put together an 11-0 run to open the second half. While dominant defense helped set the tone for the second half, the play of the night came from junior Selom Mawugbe and senior Darien McClain, with 16:42 left in the game. McClain found himself on the right wing, when Mawugbe went to set a ball screen. McClain was able to draw two Biola defenders to him, creating a lane for Mawugbe to roll towards the basket. Through a tight window, McClain threaded a beautiful behind-the-back pass right to Mawugbe, who rose up towards the rim and threw it down over a Biola defender who fouled him and led to a three-point play for a 45-23 lead. The ferocious slam provided the exclamation point on the victory, and the Cougars led by as many as 26 points and still held a 25-point lead with less than three minutes left.

Azusa Pacific Standouts: Ferris and Mawugbe led the way for Azusa Pacific. Ferris finished with a team-high 20 points, as he went 6-for-11 from deep, and he also added three rebounds and an assist. Mawugbe scored a season-high 18 points, while also posting eight rebounds, two blocks, two assists and a steal. Mawugbe also went 10-for-10 from the free-throw line. Defensively, the Cougars received a huge performance from Bundrant, as he finished with a game-high four steals, and also had a block. McClain had a game-high five assists.
 
Biola Standouts: The Eagles had two players score in double figures, as Bagatourian finished with a game-high 24 points, and Trevor Treinen had 16 points. Treinen made just three field goals in the game, although he went 10-for-14 from the free-throw line. Alex Talma had a game-high 10 rebounds.
 
What's Next: The Cougars will close out 2018 with a pair of PacWest road games in the Bay Area, as they will face Dominican on Monday, Dec. 17, and Academy of Art on Wednesday, Dec. 19. Azusa Pacific is currently 6-6 overall, and 3-2 in PacWest play.