COSTA MESA, Calif. — Behind a historic performance from Shad Thomas and a suffocating defensive effort, Azusa Pacific secured a hard-fought road victory on Thursday night, defeating Vanguard 72-63 at the Freed Center.

Thomas was the focal point of the Cougars' dominance, recording his second consecutive double-double with 19 points and 19 rebounds. His elite glass cleaning represents the highest single-game total by an Azusa Pacific player in nearly six years, matching the mark set by Selom Mawugbe against Biola on March 6, 2020. Thomas was relentless in the paint, collecting 13 defensive rebounds and six on the offensive end while shooting 8-of-12 from the floor.

"Shad was a man possessed on the glass tonight," said APU head coach BJ Porter. "To see a performance like that, since a generational player like Selom Mawugbe it just shows the heart and effort he's playing with right now. We talked all week about winning the physical battle, and Shad led that charge. When we rebound like that and defend the way we did in the second half, we're a very dangerous team."

Azusa Pacific (6-9, 4-6 PacWest) utilized a controlled second half to keep the Lions at arm's length. Leading 37-30 at the break, the Cougars maintained their intensity  against Vanguard (9-7, 5-5 PacWest) outscoring them 35-33 over the final 20 minutes.

Box Score Highlights
Azusa Pacific:  Shad Thomas – 19 Points, 19 Rebounds, 37 Minutes
Vanguard: Erik Howlin – 16 Points, 13 Rebounds, 5 Assists

Key Stats & Notes

• Vanguard only lead for 19 seconds of the game
• The Lions had a 28-16 advantage over the Cougars in the Bench Points category.
• Vanguard shot 0-for-11 from the beyond-the-arc in the second half en route to shooting just 1-for-21 across the entire contest.
• Caleb Oden nearly missed a double-double of his own with nine points and nine rebounds.

Up Next
The Cougars will look to keep the momentum going next Thursday with a PacWest Conference clash against Hawai'i Hilo at 7:30 PM.