SAN RAFAEL, Calif. – Selom Mawugbe turned in a dominant statistical performance as the Azusa Pacific Cougars clinched at least a share of the Pacific West Conference title with an 83-68 victory over Dominican Saturday night at the Conlan Center.

Azusa Pacific never trailed in this one, as Selom Mawugbe and Jake Spurgeon combined to score 14 of the Cougars' first 16 points, jumpstarting a 15-3 run that broke open the game early in the first half.  The Cougars would continue to have an answer for every attempt Dominican made to get back in the game the remainder of the half, eventually pulling ahead by as many as 18 before a couple late Penguin baskets left the margin at 12 at intermission.  Mawugbe had a double-double by halftime, entering the locker room with 13 points and 11 rebounds.

Try as the Penguins might, they were never able to get closer than seven points in the second half, the last time at 64-57 with 7:27 to play.  The Cougars methodically responded with a 10-2 run that spanned the next three minutes.  Mawugbe and Spurgeon both played a role in that run, then handed the baton off to backup guard Terrence Becvar, who would score seven consecutive points, allowing the Cougars to seal the deal and secure their 18^th consecutive victory.

Mawugbe finished the game with 22 points, 18 rebounds, and 5 assists.  Half of his rebounds came on the offensive glass, the lion's share of the 16 offensive boards the Cougars had in the game, which they converted into 25 second chance points.  Spurgeon added in 20 points and 9 rebounds, and Becvar ended up with 15 points off the bench.  The Cougars' reserves outscored their Penguin counterparts by a margin of 27-5.

With the victory, the Cougars improve to 23-3 on the season, 18-2 in conference play.  Azusa Pacific has clinched at least a share of the regular season title, and because they own the head-to-head tiebreaker with second-place Point Loma, they have already clinched the top seed at the conference tournament, which the Cougars will host March 5-7.  The Cougars' three-game road trip will continue on Monday when they head to Oakland to take on Holy Names.