NAMPA, Id. (Feb. 9) -- Yusef Aziz's steal and layup in the final 9 seconds capped a second-half comeback as 8th-ranked Seattle Pacific University won its fifth in a row, 86-83, over Northwest Nazarene in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference basketball game Saturday night at Montgomery Fieldhouse.

Daniel Sandrin (Jr., 6-7, Bothell, Wa./Bothell) put the Falcons ahead for good with 24 seconds left and the Aziz (Jr., 6-4, Seattle, Wa/ Foster-Highline CC) stripped Josh Cooprider off the dribble and scored at the buzzer for the final margin.

The victory gave SPU (12-1, 20-2) its fastest 20-win season and fourth in a row. Seattle Pacific had twice taken 23 games to win its 20th game and, calendar-wise, had never done it before Feb. 12.

Nick Johnson (Sr., 6-3, Burlington, Wa./Burlington-Edison) led the Falcons with 19, 15 coming in the second half. Brannon Stone (Sr., 6-9, Oak Harbor, Wa.) and Eric Sandrin (Sr., 6-10, Bothell, Wa./Shorecrest) each added 14 points--they combined for 21 first-half points--and Stone also pulled down 10 rebounds.

The Crusaders (5-9, 7-14) hit 8-16 treys in the first half 13 treys overall. They were paced by the 21 of James Thomas, who was 5-10 outside the arc. A trey by Thomas gave NNU a 55-44 lead with 17:09 to go. Cooprider finished with 16, making 10 of 11 free throws.

Seattle Pacific trailed by as much as 11 in the second period and never led by more than one until the final buzzer. A 22-10 run early in the final period provided its first advantage since the opening minutes and the lead exchanged hands 13 times in the final nine minutes.

Following Daniel Sandrin's two free throws, NNU twice called timeouts. After the second, Cooprider took a pass and tried a crossover but Aziz stole the ball and bolted downcourt uncontested.

A flurry of three-pointers--four in a row at one stage--pushed Northwest Nazarene in front and then five consecutive free throws by Cooprider with 38 seconds left the Falcons in a 49-40 hole at the break.

SPU shot 56 percent from the field (30-54) but was out-boarded, 32-29.

Michael Gely, the Crusaders' 7-foot center, had 12 rebounds and 13 points.

SPU continues its stretch of five straight road games at Western Washington Saturday night.

SEATTLE PACIFIC (12-1, 20-2) -- Cato 3-8 0-0 7, Aziz 4-13 3-6 11, Stone 4-8 2-2 14, N. Johnson 7-9 4-4 19, e. Sandrin 6-8 2-3 14, Lee 1-2 0-1 2, Harris 0-0 2-2 2, Keely 0-0 0-0 0, Woodard 2-2 1-2 5, D. Sandrin 3-4 6-6 12. totals 30-54 20-26 86.

NW NAZARENE (5-9, 7-14) -- Cooprider 2-10 10-11 16, Richard 3-9 2-2 10, Graves 0-1 0-0 0, Thomas 6-14 4-4 21, Gely 6-9 1-2 13, Marquez 0-0 0-0 0, Jeans 5-12 0-1 14, T. Johnson 4-4 1-2 9. Totals 26-59 18-22 83.

Halftime--NNU 49, SPU 40. 3-Point goals--SPU 6-15 (Stone 4, Cato, N. Johnson), NNU 13-32 (Thomas 5, Jeans 4, Cooprider 2, Richard 2). Fouled out--none. Technicals--SPU bench. Rebounds--SPU 29 (Stone 10), NNU 32 (Gely 12). Assists--SPU 14 (Aziz, Cato 4), NNU 19 (Cooprider, Thomas 5). Total fouls--SPU 22, NNU 21. A--763.