AZUSA, Calif. -- At the heart of the analytics movement in basketball lies a simple truth:  three is more than two.  That simple equation was on full display Saturday evening in the Felix Event Center, as a barrage of first-half three-pointers proved decisive for the Azusa Pacific Cougars in a 98-76 decision over visiting Dominican.

After a back-and-forth opening five minutes, freshman Ken West and Ben Avera hit threes on consecutive possessions to put the Cougars ahead 14-10.  Azusa Pacific would never trail again as those shots kicked off an 18-4 run.  Dominican would slowly crawl their way back into the game, and would get within five at 38-33 with 2:39 remaining in the first half.  But the Cougars would put their stamp on the game in those next two and a half minutes, making five consecutive shots from beyond the arc to take a commanding 53-37 lead into the locker room.  In all, the Cougars made 12 three-point shots in the first half.

While the Cougars' hot shooting from long range cooled off after the intermission, they simply shifted their focus to the interior, with Selom Mawugbe having another strong effort, the senior forward leading the team offensively with 18 points, nine rebounds, and four blocks.  In all, five Cougars scored in double figures, as Mawugbe would be joined by Jake Spurgeon (16 points), West (15 points), Avera (13 points) and Brennan Rymer (10 points).  For the game, Azusa Pacific made 50.7% of their shots from the field.

Excellent ball movement was key to giving the Cougars enough open looks to make 15 three-point shots on the night, and the team ended up with 24 assists on 35 made baskets over the course of the game.  West and Avera were part of an enormous advantage in bench scoring for the Cougars, whose reserves outscored their Penguin counterparts by a margin of 46-9 to extend their winning streak to 16 in a row.  All 12 Cougars would score at least a point in the victory.

The win, coupled with a Point Loma loss, extends the Cougars' advantage at the top of the Pacific West Conference standings.  Azusa Pacific is now 21-3 on the season, 16-2 in conference play with four games left in the regular season.  The Cougars will conclude their five-game home stand with a Thursday night game against Academy of Art.  At that game, the Cougars will honor their seniors, Selom Mawugbe, Jake Spurgeon, Ben Taufahema, and Noah Bundrant, who will be playing their final regular-season home game that evening at 7:30 p.m.