NAMPA, ID. - The Cougars dropped their opening game of the NNU Invitational against the Northwest Nazarene Nighthawks by a final score of 67-60 on Friday night. Ken West led the offense for Azusa Pacific, scoring 21 points and Michael Saba joined him in double digit scoring with 10. Saba also collected nine rebounds and West knocked down five three-pointers.

How it Happened: It was an even battle on the hardwood through the first 20 minutes of play, as both teams traded off leads. Northwest Nazarene jumped out to an 11-6 lead before West came through with one from beyond-the-arc and Kaleb Taylor had a layup to even the game at 11 a piece. A jumper by Nashawn Holmes and layup from Allan McBride gave the Cougars a 15-13 advantage before a three pointer by Nate Kleppe followed by a layup from Trevan Martin extended Azusa Pacific's lead to 20-15. 

Northwest Nazarene started closing in on the Cougars lead, but good offense near the hoop gave Azusa Pacific a seven point advantage with seven minutes remaining in the first half. The Nighthawks eventually took the lead with five minutes to go (28-26), but Kleppe knocked one down from beyond-the-arc to regain the lead at 29-28. The Nighthawks continued to chip away at the Cougars lead, but both teams found themselves tied after Bryce Sloan made two shots from the charity stripe. Northwest Nazarene ended up taking a 35-31 lead into halftime. 

The Nighthawks maintained a lead through the first 10 minutes of the second half before a layup by Saba gave the Cougars a 46-45 advantage. Free throws by West and Holmes followed by a three pointer from West gave the Cougars a 52-47 lead before Northwest Nazarene began to close the scoring margin. With 3:30 left in the game, both teams found themselves tied at 54 a piece, but West knocked down another three pointer to give Azusa Pacific a 57-54 advantage. 

The Nighthawks went on a six point scoring run to take the lead again before another three pointer by West tied it at 60. The Cougars missed their next three shots and Northwest Nazarene capitalized offensively in the final minute as Azusa Pacific fell 67-60 in a hard fought battle to open play in Idaho. 

By the Numbers: The score was tied 10 times throughout the game, while each team gained a lead seven times over the full 40 minutes. Azusa Pacific capitalized on second chance points, scoring nine and bench points, having 19 compared to the Nighthawks 13. Although, the Cougars had 19 turnovers in the game and Northwest Nazarene took advantage, scoring 22 points off Cougar miscues. Azusa Pacific shot 45.1% from field goal range, 46.7% from beyond-the-arc and 70% from the free throw line in the loss, and the Cougars still hold the overall series record against the Nighthawks at 6-2. 

Up Next: The Cougars will be back in action at the NNU invitational tomorrow against Central Washington. Tip off is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. (PT) | 2:00 p.m. (MT) and you can livestream the game HERE.