Massey clutch in crunch time; Storm win over APU

Sixth consecutive win keeps DSC in first place

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SAINT GEORGE – Senior guard McKay Massey (Payson, UT/Payson) scored a career-high 23 points to lead Dixie State over Azusa Pacific 67-59 in the teams' second Pacific West Conference meeting of the season Saturday night in the Burns Arena.

Collecting their sixth consecutive win was not easy. Two weeks removed from a 28-point win on the road, Dixie State (13-4, 8-1 PacWest) trailed for the majority of the game and did not take the lead until a Massey free throw with 3:14 left in regulation.

The Cougars (6-9, 3-4 PWC) held DSC to 41.7 percent shooting from the floor, but dropped their fourth straight game.

Junior forward Dalton Groskreutz (Santa Clara, UT/Snow Canyon) notched 16 points and eight rebounds, while sophomore forward Zach Robbins (Upland, CA/Upland) added 10 points and eight boards to round out three Storm players in double figures. Dixie State benefitted from the APU's physical play by drawing fouls and heading to the charity stripe 29 times – 22 in the second half.

For the Cougars, Will Ward opened the game with 10 consecutive points en route to 15 for the night. Troy Leaf had a trio of triples, but needed 12 shot attempts for his 15 points. Leaf added a season-high nine rebounds for APU.

Dixie State trailed by five at the half and never found themselves down by more than eight points. But the momentum of the game swung toward the home team in the final five minutes.

With 4:47 to play, APU's B.J. Porter missed a 3-pointer in an attempt to cascade the lead to seven. On the ensuing Dixie State possession, Groskreutz nailed an outside shot off a Robbins assist. After Leaf made one of two from the line, Robbins was fouled on the rebound and knocked down two shots to tie the game with 4:04 left.

Massey stole the ball during the first APU play out of a timeout. His first free throw gave Dixie State its first lead at 58-57. The Cougars handed the ball back to the Red Storm on a turnover inside the paint. Robbins pushed the lead to three with a 15-foot jumper. A third APU turnover in as many chances gave the ball back to DSC. Groskreutz was fouled in the act of a 3-point try and made two of three free throws for a five-point cushion.

Two late shots from distance did not find the bucket for the Cougars and late charity shots from Massey and Derek Owen (St George, UT/Dixie) - seven points, five rebounds - sealed the game.

Azusa Pacific won the battle of the boards 37-32 and had 14 offensive rebounds. Dixie State converted 16 APU turnovers in 19 points.

Dixie State, currently sitting atop the league standings, returns to the road next Saturday for a meeting with second-place Grand Canyon. Tipoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. from the GCU Arena.

The Lopes are a half game behind the Red Storm with an 8-2 league mark. DSC defeated GCU on Jan. 10 in the Burns Arena, 71-66. Grand Canyon is 17-4 overall and are undefeated at home (13-0).

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