MONMOUTH, Ore. -- Although Azusa Pacific's postseason ride came to an end, concluding the outstanding careers of a pair senior leaders, the bright future of the Cougars' next leaders was on full display in a 72-68 defeat to No. 3-seed California Baptist in the NCAA Division II West Regional Tournament semifinals Saturday night.
Sophomore Mandrell Worthy led all scorers with a season-high 24 points, including 14 in the second half to get Azusa Pacific back into the game after trailing by 14 in the first minute of the second half. Worthy brought the Cougars within a point of the Lancers twice in the second half, first on a three-pointer that slashed CBU's lead to 54-53 with 8:12 left and again with a pair of free throws two minutes later that made it 56-55 with 5:59 remaining.
Selom Mawugbe registered a pair of blocked shots, pushing his season total to 89 to break the previous Azusa Pacific single-season record for blocked shots, which was set in 2001 by current head coach Justin Leslie.
With the loss, Azusa Pacific finishes the season 21-11, posting its third 20-win season in just four seasons of NCAA Division II active membership.
How It Happened:
After trailing by 10 points at halftime, 34-24, and falling behind by 14 in the opening minute of the second half, Azusa Pacific patiently chipped away at the lead until taking a one-point lead (57-56) on a pair of Petar Kutlesic free throws with 5:34 to go to set up a finish that went down to the wire. The Lancers responded with six straight points, but the Cougars fought back and made it a one-possession game down the stretch after Corey Langerveld drilled two free throws with 1:21 to play to close the gap to 66-63.
California Baptist was perfect from the free throw line in the final minute, including two Kalidou Diouf free throws with 19 seconds to play, but Will Ferris drained a long pull-up three with 12 seconds left to cut the margin to 68-67. After CBU converted another pair of free throws to take a three-point lead, the Lancers fouled Ferris with 3.1 seconds remaining. After making the first, Ferris missed the second intentionally to give his team a chance at an offensive rebound and putback, but the shot barely missed the rim and gave the ball back to the Lancers. Two more Diouf free throws sealed it for the final 72-68 margin.
Turning Point: Each four-minute stretch of the second half pulled Azusa Pacific a little bit closer until the Cougars edged in front on Kutlesic's free throws with 5:34 to play. After Diouf gave California Baptist its largest lead of the game, 39-25, in the opening minute of the second half, Darien McClain nailed a three-pointer before Ferris converted a three-point play to trim the margin to eight points, 39-31. Langerveld added a three-pointer with 16:57 left to cap the 9-2 run and cut the lead to 41-34.
In the next four minutes, Mawugbe provided a three-point play to make it a four-point game, 47-43, with 12:54 left, and Kutlesic got the Cougars within a basket by converting his own three-point play with 8:47 to go to cut the margin to 52-50. Worthy's three-pointer on the next possession answered a Diouf bucket to make it a one-point game and set up the game's back-and-forth conclusion.
Azusa Pacific Standouts: Worthy was the Cougars' leading scorer in both halves, keeping the Cougars within striking distance in the first half with 10 points before pouring in 14 after halftime for a season-high 24 points. Kutlesic didn't miss a shot in the second half, hitting 3-of-3 field goals and 5-of-5 free throws as he finished with 15 points and a team-high 7 rebounds. Ferris added 10 points, including a pair of three-pointers, and Mawugbe tallied 8 points, 6 rebounds, and the record-tying and –breaking blocks to finish the season with 89 blocked shots.
Langerveld moved into a tie for ninth on Azusa Pacific's career 3-pointers list with his crucial second-half three. He finished his career with 148, tying Kevin Stafford (2012-15) for ninth on the list. Noah Bundrant had an outstanding defensive performance, forcing CBU point guard Jordan Heading into 6 turnovers, while the rest of the Cougar defense limited the Lancers' top 3-point threat Cory Lange to just 2 points.
California Baptist Standouts: Diouf went 2-for-8 from the field in the first half but bounced back late in the second half for 16 of his team-high 20 points. He added a team-high 7 rebounds, while De'Jon Davis carried the offensive load for the Lancers early in the game by scoring 11 of his 13 points in the first half. Heading added 15 points and 5 assists, while Bul Kuol scored 11 points before fouling out.
By The Numbers: California Baptist shot 53 percent (25-for-47) from the field, including a 56 percent (10-for-18) clip in the second half… The Lancers also knocked down 17-of-18 free throws (94 percent)… After shooting 30 percent (9-for-30) in the first half, Azusa Pacific heated up and shot 60 percent (12-for-20) after halftime to finish the game at 42 percent overall… Both teams registered 10 assists and 13 turnovers… California Baptist produced a slight edge in points off turnovers (15-10) and points in the paint (30-26), and Azusa Pacific held the edge in second chance points (7-6) and bench scoring (27-24).
What's Next: The West Region tournament moves on without Azusa Pacific, matching up semifinal winners California Baptist and top-seeded host Western Oregon University on Monday, March 12, at 7:30 p.m.
