FRESNO, Calif. - Azusa Pacific ended its regular season and conference play with a victory, defeating Fresno Pacific 70-58 on the road Saturday evening. With the win, the Cougars end the regular season with an 11-16 record and a 10-10 conference record, which earns them the sixth seed heading into the conference tournament on March 7-10th in San Diego, Calif.
Sloan collected 22 points, going 8-for-11 from the field, 4-for-6 from beyond-the-arc with six assists and one steal. Ken West and Ethan Speaker joined Sloan in double-digit scoring with 12 points each.
How it Happened: The Cougars found themselves tied up at 15 with 8:08 left in the first half before they began to pull away. A three-pointer from Sloan and layup by Nashawn Holmes put Azusa Pacific up by six. With 1:50 left, back-to-back shots from beyond-the-arc by Sloan ended the first half with the Cougars up 34-23.
Azusa Pacific opened the second half with a dunk by Reidy and three-pointer from Speaker to give themselves offensive momentum and a 14 point advantage. The Sunbirds put themselves within five with 12:09 left in the game, but Azusa Pacific created separation once again, going on a 12-point run with offensive help from Allan McBride, West, Speaker and Sloan take a 61-44 lead.
The Cougars maintained a double-digit lead for the remainder of play as they defeated Fresno Pacific by a final of 70-58 to close out PacWest play.
By the Numbers: The Cougars shot 54.3% (25-for-46) from the field compared to Fresno Pacifics 34.6% (18-for-52). Over the last 10 matchups between the two teams, the Cougars have a 7-3 record and hold a 33-17 record on the road at Fresno Pacific. West ends the conference season ranked first in 3-PT field goals with 78 (41.9 3PT%), averaging 2.9 per game. He also ranks sixth in scoring with with 446 points, averaging 16.5 points a game and in field goal percentage (45.8%). Sloan ranks first in assists with 104, averaging 4.3 a game and in rebounding, Speaker ranked ninth in the conference, averaging 5 defensive rebounds per game and 6.1 total per game.
Up Next: Azusa Pacific will set their sites on the PacWest conference tournament which will take place at Point Loma, Calif. From March 7-9. The Cougars (No. 6) will face Hawai'i Pacific (No. 3) on Thursday, March 7th at 12:30 p.m.
