LA MIRADA, Calif. – The D2 era of Azusa Pacific men's basketball came to a close Saturday night against longtime archrival Biola, with the Eagles claiming the final contest by a score of 80-67 inside Chase Gymnasium.
How It Happened: The Cougars started hot, making their first four shots and racing out to a 10-2 lead in the opening two minutes. Biola would scratch their way back, catching the Cougars with an 11-2 run of their own, and the track meet was on for the rest of the half. The Eagles would grab the lead at 30-29 and proceed to pull away for a double-digit advantage in the latter stages of the half, though the Cougars' hot three-point shooting kept them within hailing distance, as a 9-21 first half from beyond the arc kept the deficit to 51-40 at the break.
The hot shooting disappeared in the second half for both teams, as the Cougars made only 5 shots over the first 16-plus minutes of the second half. That drought's lone saving grace was that the defense held Biola to only 27% shooting from the field over that same time span. The Cougars finally pulled back within double figures , but had too much trouble getting the ball to go through the hoop, and by the time they finally got a couple more threes to fall, there were only two minutes to play and the Eagles were able to make their foul shots down the stretch.
By the Numbers: Shad Thomas pulled off one last double-double, his 14th of the season, finishing with 10 points, 12 rebounds, and 3 blocks. EJ Bryson led the team with 21 points, while DM Sanders scored 18 in his final collegiate game. Biola largely won the game in the paint, outscoring the Cougars in the key 44-16 and outrebounding Azusa Pacific 52-32. The season series with Biola ends in a split, so each team earns 5 points towards the Cornerstone Cup.
With tonight's result, the Cougars end the season with a record of 7-20. Over their 14 seasons in Division II, Azusa Pacific compiled a record of 245-157, which equates to a .609 winning percentage. That total includes three PacWest regular season titles (2015, 2016, 2020), one PacWest tournament championship (2024), and qualification for the NCAA Tournament six times, including winning the 2015 West Regional.
