MONMOUTH, Ore. – In its official home opener of the 2014-15 season, Western Oregon University's men's basketball team nearly completed a second-half comeback before falling in the final minute to the Cougars of Azusa Pacific University, 81-74, in the second game of the 2014 WOU/Doubletree by Hilton D2 Shootout Friday inside the New PE Building.

The Wolves (1-2) were led offensively by junior Andy Avgi with 18 points on 7-of-18 shooting from the field, while senior Lewis Thomas and junior Devon Alexander chipped in with 11 and 10 points, respectively. Senior Adam Hastings provided nine points of WOU's bench to go along with eight-point nights by senior Marwan Sarhan, junior Julian Nichols, and junior Jordan Wiley. Nichols also led Western Oregon with seven rebounds, while he and Alexander combined to hand out nine assists for the Wolves.

Azusa Pacific (3-1) was led by Troy Leaf with a game-high 33 points on 10-of-15 shooting from the field that included a 5-for-8 performance from beyond the three-point line to go along with a perfect 8-for-8 at the free throw line. Along with Leaf, Bruce English and Will Ward scored 11 points each with Petar Kutlesic pulling down a game-high 11 rebounds for the Cougars. Robert Sandoval tied Alexander with a game-high five assists for APU.

In the opening seven minutes, Azusa Pacific built a double-digit lead (22-11) on a lay-in by Ward with 12:46 on the clock. Over the next four minutes, Western Oregon used a 13-2 run to tie the game at 24-all on a lay-in by Thomas with 8:31 left. The visiting Cougars would quickly push their lead to 16 points (43-27) via a 19-3 run over a span of six minutes, as Austin Dyer knocked down a jumper with just over two minutes left to cap the run. Western Oregon would slowly cut into APU's lead, as the Wolves closed out the half with a buzzer-beating three-pointer by Alexander that pulled WOU within 11 points (46-35) at halftime.

The second half would begin with Western Oregon using a 17-6 run over the opening seven minutes to tie the game for the fourth time at 52-52 on a lay-in by Avgi with just under 13 minutes remaining. The Wolves would take their first lead of the night less than one minute later when Avgi knocked down a three-pointer from the top of the key to put Western Oregon ahead 55-54 with 12:25 on the clock. A quick 5-0 run by Azusa Pacific over a span of two minutes would put the Cougars ahead by four points (59-55) on an old-fashion three-point play by Christian Katuala with 10:31 left. WOU would battle back to tie the game at 61-all on a three-pointer by Thomas with just under eight minutes left. Unfortunately that would be as close as Western Oregon would get, as Azusa Pacific used a 7-1 run over a span of three minutes to pull ahead by six points (68-62) on a pair of free throws by Leaf with 4:48 on the clock. Over the next three minutes, Western Oregon cut the Cougars' lead to a single point (72-71) by using a 9-3 run that concluded on a lay-in by Avgi with 1:44 remaining. A jumper and three-point basket by Leaf would put Azusa Pacific back ahead by five points (77-72) only to have Western Oregon get back within three points (77-74) on a lay-in by Avgi with under 20 seconds left. The Wolves would have a prime opportunity to tie the game with one possession, as APU missed back-to-back free throws only to grab the offensive rebound that forced WOU to foul with 15.6 seconds left. Over the final seconds, Leaf would hit four free throws with Western Oregon missing its final two chances from beyond the arch resulting in the 81-74 victory for Azusa Pacific.

As a team, Western Oregon combined to shoot 28-for-69 (40.6%) from the field that included a 7-for-24 (29.2%) showing from beyond the three-point line to go along with an 11-for-17 (64.7%) performance at the free throw line. On the other hand, Azusa Pacific was a combined 28-for-59 (47.5%) from the field, 7-for-25 (28.0%) from long distance, and 18-of-22 (81.8%) at the charity stripe.

Western Oregon will return to the hardwood tomorrow – Saturday, November 22 – in the fourth and final game of the 2014 WOU/Doubletree by Hilton D2 Shootout against Colorado Christian, who defeated Saint Martin's, 63-53, in Friday's opening game, beginning at 7:00 p.m. inside the New PE Building in Monmouth.