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SAN DIEGO, Calif. -- Hayden Lescault dropped in 19 points, including three clutch free throws in the final minute, and Point Loma Nazarene held on to beat Hope International University 66-61 in Golden Gym Tuesday Night.

The win pushes the Green and Gold to 16-6 overall, surpassing their win total from last season. They also improved to 9-4 in the GSAC, still just one game back of Westmont College for first place.
 
Lescault, a sophomore, went 5-9 from the field and 7-9 from the free throw line to co-lead the game in scoring. He also racked up six rebounds and dished out three assists. Sophomore Marek Klassen added 16 points on 7-10 shooting.
 
Aaron Woods paced the Royals with 19 points, nailing four of his eight 3-point attempts. Steve Jurich tallied 15 points, and his game-high 12 rebounds were more than double any other player.
 
The Sea Lions shot a blistering 55 percent (23-42) from the field, including 50 percent (6-12) from 3-point range, while dominating the boards (34-24) to pick up their fourth straight victory in the Golden State Athletic Conference.
 
Jurich opened the scoring with a jumper for the Royals, who shot just 30 percent from the field in the first half.
 
The Sea Lions roared back with an 11-0 run powered by seven consecutive points from sophomore Marek Klassen. However, Woods nailed three straight 3-pointers to tie the game at 11 with 12 and a half minutes left in the first half.
 
After a few traded baskets, the Sea Lions switched to an erratic 1-3-1 zone defense, smothering the Royals and leading to another Green and Gold surge.
 
But the Royals were able to stay in the game thanks to near spotless free throw shooting and a flurry of shots from behind the arch. Still, the Sea Lions maintained control and entered the break leading 32-23.
 
After halftime, the Royals continued their scorching shooting from the line and from deep. A nearly four-minute dry spell by the Sea Lions brought HIU to within four points until Klassen found senior Jake Johnston underneath on a backdoor cut to make it 48-42 Sea Lions, with about 11 minutes remaining.
 
Hope International pushed the Sea Lions' lead down to just two points with eight minutes left, and, after a pair of PLNU 3-pointers, the Royals fought right back to set the score at 62-61, Sea Lions, with a minute to play.
 
With the clock winding down, the Green and Gold attacked the rim and got to the line, where they sank four of their final six freebies to put the game away.
 
On Saturday, the Sea Lions will travel up to La Mirada to take on Biola University in another GSAC match. Tipoff is at 7:30 pm.