Kamrin Oriol came off the bench to score 18 points and Jordan Caruso and Kaleb Lowery pulled down a combined 27 rebounds to lead Master's men's basketball to a 64-63 exhibition win over the NCAA Division 2 Azusa Pacific Cougars in Azusa Tuesday night.
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The Cougars, which received votes in the NCAA D2 pre-season Top 25 Poll, finished second in the 11-team PacWest Conference last season with a 21-10 overall record, 15-4 in conference. They have been picked to win the conference championship this year.
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"We were really scrappy and just found a way to get it done," said Associate Head Coach Troy Leaf. "It was a physical game and a good college basketball game. APU is a team picked to win the PacWest, so to go into their gym and beat them is a huge testament to our guys believing in what we do."
As a team Master's shot 38% (21-55)Â from the field, 37% (11-30)Â from behind the arc, and near perfect from the free throw line (11-12). The Mustangs out-rebounded the Cougars 44-36.
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Oriol, a freshman from St. Petersburg, Fla., was 7-of-14 from the field, 4-of-8 from three-point range, and 2-for-2 from the line. Caruso added 11 points to go with his 14 rebounds, Lowery also scored a double-double with 10 points and 14 rebounds, and Deondra Early also got into double-figure scoring with 10 points.
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The tough non-conference schedule will continue Thursday as the Mustangs will travel to Glendale, Ariz. to play the Oklahoma City University Stars on a neutral court before returning home to begin a seven-game home stretch next Wednesday.
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"We have more big tests coming up, so we have to keep getting better," Leaf said. "Guys need to continue to stay together."
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