SAN DIEGO, Calif. – In the semifinal round of the PacWest Conference Tournament, No. 6 Azusa Pacific took down No. 2 Academy of Art 79-72 on Friday afternoon. The win advances the Cougars to the Championship game tomorrow and improves their record to 13-16 overall.

It was a great team win for the Cougars as six different players scored led by four players who had double digits. For the second game in a row, George Reidy led the Cougars in scoring this time with 22 points against the Urban Knights. Ken West added 21 points of his own plus led the team in rebounds with 12. Rounding out double digit scoring were Bryce Sloan with 14 points and six assists and Ethan Speaker who added 11 points and eight rebounds.

How it Happened: For the first four minutes of the game, each team went back and forth scoring until the Cougars, up by two, found settled into a groove. With 15:15 still to go in the second half, Kaleb Taylor came up with a big dunk followed by a three-pointer from Reidy and a free-throw to put the Cougars up 17-9. 

Although the Knights responded by piecing together a scoring run of their own, the Cougars remained in control of their lead for the remainder of the half. 

The Cougars found themselves up by eight points again with 13:40 left on the clock and at the 5:47 mark however, Academy of Art never let them pull away. Overall, the half saw five three-pointers from Azusa Pacific as they went into halftime with a 32-29 lead over the Urban Knights.

Coming out of halftime, Academy of Art earned the first points but the Cougars responded with back-to-back scores from Reidy and Sloan to maintain their lead. 

With 12:48 left in the half, the Urban Knights were able to tie it up 45-45 but the Cougars got hot as Sloan, Reidy, and West each scored from beyond the three-point line. Although the Urban Knights snuck in a free-throw, the Cougars were able to take a 54-46 lead with 10:54 left in the game.

The game remained close until finally the Cougars came up with a five point scoring run to put them up by double digits for the first time all game. Now up 66-55 with five minutes left in the game, it was a matter of finishing strong.

While the Urban Knights were able to bring the game back within three, Speaker scored back to back jump shots to give the Cougars a 75-68 lead with a minute remaining. 

Then it came down to free-throws for both teams as Azusa Pacific was able to keep a hold of their lead resulting in a 79-72 win.

By the Numbers: Azusa Pacific continued to shoot well from beyond the arc finishing with nine triples while shooting 29-for-57 from the field (50.9%). Academy of Art shot 24-for-61 (39.3%) from field goal range including 6-for-23 (26.1%) from the three-point line. Although they pulled off the win, the Cougars still look to improve their shooting from the free-throw line as they shot 12-for-20 (60%). Meanwhile the Urban Knights shot 18-for-25 (72%) from the charity stripe. However, the Cougars led in rebounding for the third game in a row with 40 boards versus the Urban Knights' 32 rebounds. 

Up Next: Azusa Pacific advances to the Championship game of the PacWest Conference Tournament which will take place at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday. They will be taking on the tournament's hosts, Point Loma in the final.