COSTA MESA, Calif.- Dominican men's basketball (11-8, 6-7) squared off against the Lions of Vanguard University Thursday afternoon in a tight PacWest showdown. Coming into this game, only one game separated these two in the conference standings and they played like it tonight as this game went down to the final seconds. The Lions defense stepped up at the end collecting a crucial block and a steal to squeak out the 77-74 victory.

The Penguins had lot of contributors on offense in this one as four players finished the night with 10 or more points with senior Darius Best leading the way dropping 16. Best showed off his versatility from inside the paint as he tore up the Lions defense early on with a couple of floaters and mid-range jumpers. He was also perfect from behind the arc and went an efficient 4 for 6 from the charity stripe.

Speaking of getting to the line, fellow senior Austin Johnson provided a spark off the bench for the Pengs by constantly driving it hard inside the Lions defense forcing them to send him to the line where he went a perfect 6 for 6. The Richmond native would finish with 13 points tied with Nick Medeiros who also dropped 13 while also dishing out a game high six assists. Jorge Ochoa would round out the top scorers for the black and gold as he collected 11 points while grabbing a team high five boards.

This game was back-and-forth for much of the first half. The duo of Best and Medeiros would lead the Pengs to a seven-point advantage heading to the lockers. Dominican would open the second half by going on a run led by Stephen Ransom and Johnson who showed off his sweet looking jump shot. Sargent Jeffery and Johnson combined for big points off the bench with Jeffery scoring at ease against the smaller Lions defenders.

With a minute to go the game was all squared up at 72. After a tough defensive stand from the Pengs, Ochoa hauled in the rebound and went coast-to-coast giving the black and gold a two-point advantage with 30 seconds. The Lions would hit a well defended three-point shot late in the shot clock to give them the narrow three-point victory.

Dominican will be back on the court Jan. 31^st at 3 pm when they travel to APU.