LA VERNE, Calif. — Joe Cookson scored 27 while Ty Bergman posted 15 points and 11 rebounds as Pomona-Pitzer men's basketball earned a narrow 78-77 win over La Verne Saturday afternoon on the road. 
 
Season Impact: The win puts the Sagehens' final regular season record at 15-10, including 9-7 in SCIAC play. Pomona-Pitzer secured a spot in the SCIAC Tournament as the No. 5 seed and will take on the No. 4 seed on the road Wednesday night. 
 
Cookson reached 27 points on 10-of-18 shooting, adding seven rebounds, two steals and two assists. Bergman scored 15 points on 6-of-12 shooting to go with 11 boards and three assists. With six points in today's game, Pete Boyle reached the 1,000 career points milestone. 
 
Teams traded baskets to start the game, with a pair of Cookson layups followed by a lay-in by Peyton Mullarkey bringing the score to 21-20 for the Leopards. La Verne pushed its lead to 10 with two minutes left in the half, but layups from Cookson and Bergman brought the Sagehens within seven, 46-39, at the break. 
 
Pomona-Pitzer came back to tie things up at 53 midway through the second half following an Owen Avdalovic layup and a Bergman free throw. Teams traded baskets, with Bergman nailing a trey off a Cookson assist to put the Sagehens up a point, 69-68. After a Bergman layup put Pomona-Pitzer up 73-72 with 1:44 left, Samir O'Brien drained a three-pointer to put the Sagehens up 76-72 with 56 seconds remaining. 
 
The Leopards answered with a three of their own, but Cookson hit a pair of free throws from the line to give Pomona-Pitzer a 78-75 lead with nine seconds remaining. La Verne then knocked down a pair from the line, making it 78-77. The Leopards had one more chance to take the lead after O'Brien missed the front end of a one-and-one, but the Sagehen defense held strong, as Pomona-Pitzer came away with the 78-77 win. 
 
Up Next: The Sagehens will take on the No. 4 seed on the road in the opening round of the SCIAC Tournament on Wednesday, Feb. 26.