Box Score SAN FRANCISCO — It wasn't easy but the Dominican University of California men's basketball team on Tuesday night clinched a berth in the inaugural Pacific West Conference tournament at Azusa Pacific University on March 7-9.

Devin Golston netted 20 points and teammate Jammall Clark scored 18 of his 20 points in the second half as the Penguins, after leading by 11 points early, had to rally from a seven-point deficit in the second half to defeat Academy of Art  87-84.

“It is a relief,” said Head Coach Booker T. Harris. “But it's not done. We still want to get into the conference tournament on a good note. We still have to get better getting ready for the tournament where it's win or go home. This win was a grind.”

Golston gave Dominican (14-10/10-6) the lead for good, 81-80, with a basket with 2:15 to play, then delivered a key block on the other end with a minute to go. That led to a driving hoop by Clark for a thee-point edge with 24.7 seconds remaining. With 14 seconds left, Dominique Taplin (who had 12 points) sank two free throws – he has made 39 of his last 42 foul shots – then Clark sealed the victory with two foul shots with .8 on the clock.

“Those guys made plays,” Harris said.

With Clark sinking 12 of 13 tries from the foul line, the Penguins connected on 26 of 31 attempts against the Urban Knights (7-15/5-10) in the contest. It also clinched their first winning season since 2008–09.

“We weathered the storm and found a way to get to the free throw line,” Harris said. “It was not a typical trademark defensive win for us.”

Dominican, predicted to finish in seventh place this season in a PacWest coaches' preseason poll, currently holds the No. 5 seed for the tournament, a half game behind BYU-Hawaii, whom the Penguins defeated in their only head-to-head meeting this season.

Trailing 64-57, the Penguins were struggling to score in the second half against Art U. A Myles Carrillo 3-pointer allowed Dominican to regain the lead 68-67 with 6:10 to go and the Penguins eventually prevailed.

The Penguins appeared ready to coast in the first half with an 11-2 run midway through the first half. A Ricky Wofford steal and assist to Taplin for a fastbreak layup got Dominican going, then Taplin punctuated the streak with a one-handed slam.  Art U asked for time when Golston took a Carrillo pass (one of his four first-half assists) and swished a three-point shot for a 27-18 advantage with eight minutes remaining in the opening half.

Dominican extended its lead to as high as 11 points, 34-23, when Golston hit his third three-pointer of the  half. He had 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting yet the Penguins had to settle for a 42-36 lead at intermission.

The Penguins will finish their regular season schedule at home on the next two Saturdays. On Feb. 23 they will host Holy Names University, then on March 2 – Senior Night – they will entertain Art U. Game time in the Conlan Center for both contests is 7:30 p.m. with live coverage available at www.dominicanathletics.com/live.