By Tim Peterson
(Los Angeles) – Azusa Pacific had four players in double figures and shot over 50 percent from the field in a 82-74 win over Central Washington Saturday night in the NCAA Division II West Regional Semi Finals.
The game was back and forth throughout as neither team was able to establish separation. Azusa Pacific finally pulled away late to go up by ten which was the largest lead by either team. Central Washington’s biggest lead was three which came in the first half.
There were ten lead changes in the contest and the game was tied seven times. In the first half APU jumped out to a 7-1 lead but the Wildcats battled back and even took the lead at 21-20 with 9:24 left in the half and the two teams traded punches the rest of the way.
George Reidy had a huge first half for the Cougars scoring 18 points as he hit 7 of 11 shots from the floor including 2 of 3 from three-point land. Ken West had nine for APU in the half with a three. Central Washington hung around as Anjaylo Lloyd had 12 points and Cavin Holden had nine including a pair of three-point bombs.
West heated up a in the second half as well as Bryce Sloan as they both came out firing. Azusa Pacific led just 57-55 with 9:42 left. West then hit three straight buckets for the Cougars as they opened up a six-point lead.
Later in the half Sloan’s steal and a score tuned into three-point play when he was fouled. Ethan Speaker also had a huge three the old-fashioned way to make it 75-67 with just over two minutes left. Speaker also splashed a three from behind the arc with a minute left for an eight-point margin which proved to be the dagger.
West led the team with 21 points, 12 in the second half. Sloan finished with 20, 18 in the second half and ten of Speaker’s 13 points came in the second half. Reidy totaled 18- all in the first half in a balanced attack.
In addition to the Cougars high shooting percentage from the field, they also shot 42 percent from three-point land hitting nine overall.
For Central Washington Holden led the team with 24 and Lloyd had 22. No other Wildcat was in double figures. The Wildcats shot 40 percent from the field overall and 33 percent from long distance.
The Miracle March continues for Azusa Pacific. The Cougars have now won seven consecutive games since losing to Hawaii Pacific on February 22. They will play Cal State Bernardino Monday night at Cal State LA in the West Regional Championship game. Tip-off is set for 7:00 p.m.
Big congratulations to APU for their incredible title run, and a big WOW to Duane Barker for capturing that block, freezing the ball in perfect detail. That’s a photo Reidy will proudly show his kids and grandkids in the years to come.