SAN RAFAEL, Calif. – Azusa Pacific won an overtime thriller against Academy of Art by a score of 76-67 in the first round of the 2019 PacWest Men’s Basketball Championships on Friday thanks to a 9-0 run to start the overtime period led by Selom Mawugbe’s strong play in the post on both sides of the floor.

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No. 4 seed Azusa Pacific led by as much as five in the final two minutes of regulation when No. 5 seed Academy of Art’s Andrija Blatancic went on a 4-0 run to cut the lead to a single point, 63-62. The Cougars pushed the lead back up to three with a pair of free throws, and the Urban Knights had the final possession.
 
Stefan Milivojevic took a potential game-tying 3-pointer with four seconds left, but missed. Victor Ruiz de Carranza grabbed the rebound for the Urban Knights and ran out to the arc to take a turnaround 3-pointer from the corner. The shot looked like it was coming up short and Mawugbe jumped up for the rebound. However, he grabbed the ball before it came below the level of the rim and got called for a goaltending as the buzzer went off, sending the game to overtime.
 
The Urban Knights’ lineup was affected by foul trouble going into overtime, and the Cougars rushed out to a big lead. The Cougars went on a 9-0 run that began and ended with lay-ups by Mawugbe. The junior finished the game with a game-high 25 points to go along with six blocks and a steal on the defensive end. It was also Mawugbe’s post play that forced the Urban Knights into foul trouble throughout the game.
 
With the win, Azusa Pacific advances to the PacWest semifinals for the fourth year in a row and improves to 20-10 on the season. This is the Cougars’ fourth 20-win season in the last five years. The Cougars will go on to play against No. 1 seed Point Loma at 2:45 p.m. It will be the first meeting of the two teams since Point Loma completed the season sweep in the first week of 2019. Academy of Art finishes the 2018-19 season with an 11-17 record after making its first PacWest Tournament in program history.
 
Academy of Art never trailed in the game until Azusa Pacific opened the second half with a 5-0 run, taking the lead on a Will Ferris 3-pointer. The Urban Knights only led for 18 seconds for the rest of the game and that lead was erased when Jake Spurgeon hit a go-ahead triple.
 
Cobe Williams made history for Academy of Art, setting the program’s career 3-pointers record as he made his first three attempts of the game. Andrija Blatancic added 17 points for Academy of Art off the bench, making 7 of 12 shot attempts.
 
Along with Mawugbe’s 25 points on 9-for-15 shooting, Spurgeon and Garrett Beetstra each added 13 points in the victory. Noah Bundrant made important contributions on the defensive end with three steals and a block in just 19 minutes.