AZUSA, CALIF. -- Azusa Pacific overcame a sluggish start to walk away with a 70-26 nonconference victory over Occidental in the Cougars' home opener Tuesday night.

Occidental led 13-12 with 6:53 remaining in the first half, when the Cougars went on a 13-0 run, led by 8 straight points from freshman Allison Box, to take a 25-13 lead with 3:07 to go.

"When I came in, we knew we needed to pick up the intensity," said Box, who made 4-of-7 from behind the 3-point line. "We were looking for a spark from anybody, and I'm glad it happened to be me."

Box and junior center Jennifer Barbone led all scorers with 16 points. While Barbone added 8 rebounds. Senior forward Jessica Herman chipped in 10 points and 7 rebounds.

The Cougars outscored Occidental 41-9 in the second half, using 14 second-half steals, including 6 from sophomore Charlene Simril to keep Occidental from mounting a serious challenge to the Cougar lead. The Cougars continued to pull away, outscoring the Tigers 26-2 over the final 12:17 of the game.

With the win, the Cougars improve to 2-1 on the season, while Occidental falls to 0-2. Azusa Pacific returns to action Nov. 30 at Pomona-Pitzer.