MONMOUTH, ORE. – Azusa Pacific validated 6 previous blowout wins against less than stellar opponents with an
impressive a 77-56 victory over NCAA Division II Western Oregon, relying on a rarely-used defense and the ever-surprising John Bourne.
 
The WolfPack Classic MVP, Bourne poured in 20 points in just 19 minutes of play against the Wolves.  He converted 6-of-8 field goal attempts, including a trio from the top of the 3-point arc.  In fact,
Bourne opened both the game and the second half with treys, propelling the Cougars to quick starts.  Azusa Pacific never trailed in this contest, jumping out to a 14-8 lead with Bourne scoring 8 points in the first 7 minutes of the game. 
 
Bourne, who at one point last summer could have been considered a tag-along recruit with guard Steve McIlwain out of Canada College, has evolved into the Cougars' top offensive player after putting together his third straight solid performance.
 
In the first half, the Cougars held WOU scoreless for 5 minutes in en route a 27-11 lead.  They then went to a stifling 2-3 zone defense early in the second half, which quickly turned an 8-point halftime cushion into 26-point runaway at 56-30, a little more than 8 minutes into the second half. 
 
"In scouting them last night, (assistant coach) Greg (Pappas) noticed that Western Baptist had some success with a zone defense on Western Oregon," said Cougar coach Bill Odell. "He figured that Western Baptist knew Western Oregon a lot better than we did, so we decided to try the zone as well."
 
The Cougars, who are known for their loyalty to a man-to-man defense, nonetheless forced WOU into 1-for-12 shooting and 5 turnovers in the first 9 minutes of the second half with their relentless zone that spurred in a 22-4 Cougar run.  Azusa Pacific eventually led by 31 points on several occasions, the last coming at 73-42 with 3:44 left in the game.
 
Western Oregon finished the evening's work with a paltry 31% shooting and a hefty 21 turnovers, becoming the seventh straight Cougar foe to commit over 20 miscues.
 
The win is extremely notable because the Cougars had not played a quality opponent since suffering a season-opening loss to Dillard, and as a result were still somewhat of an enigma 3 weeks into the season.  
 
"I challenged them before the game that this wasn't going to be a cakewalk," said Cougar coach Bill Odell, "and they responded with an excellent effort.  This was a very good win for us."
 
Bourne, along with his frontcourt mates Justin Leslie, Gary Dredge, Anthony Haggins and Brett Michel, out-played a bigger Wolfpack frontline that featured 6 players who stood 6-foot-7 or taller.  Leslie, who joined Bourne on the all-tournament team, tallied 19 points and 9 rebounds and led the defensive effort with a career-high 5 blocked shots.  All told, the aforementioned Cougar front-court amassed 57 of the Cougars' 77 points and 30 of their 43 rebounds.
 
With the win, Azusa Pacific pushes its winning streak to 7 straight and improves to 7-1 on the season. 
 
The Cougars gladly come home for a healthy stretch of games, including the next 5 in a row and 7 of the next 8.  Interestingly, through the first 8 games this season, the Cougars have played 2 games in Santa Clarita, Calif., 2 in Azusa, 2 in Atherton, Calif., and 2 in Monmouth, Ore.  Seemingly, no place is home.