AZUSA, Calif. – Beating the No. 2 ranked team in the nation is always sweet. When you do it against your rival, it's even better.
On Saturday evening Azusa Pacific overcame an 11-point halftime deficit to post a 74-63 against California Baptist.
It is the second straight year the Cougars have beat second ranked team in the nation after beating Cal Poly Pomona last season.
"I thought we were working hard in the first half but breaks don't always go our way. We talked about just keeping at it and keep the pressure on them and see what we can," head coach T.J. Hardeman said. "They were switching on our screens and we told our guards, Allison especially, you got to be ready to shoot those shots when they are open. When we started hitting our shots in the second half they had to respect our jump shots which was different than what happened in the first half."
Each team struggled from the floor in the first two quarters but the Lancers' 37.1 percent (13-for-35) performance yielded better results than Azusa Pacific's 10-for-31 effort (32.3 percent). During the final periods Azusa Pacific rallied for a 39.5 percent (17-for-43) shooting act while holding the Lancers underneath 30 percent (28.9).
Maggie Dumphy led the way for the Cougars with a 17-point effort. She also grabbed nine rebounds and blocked three shots. Cydnie Jones added a vital 16-point performance while notching five assists and five steals.
Kelly Hardeman recorded her fourth straight double-double by scoring 12 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. Rounding out the double figure scorers were fellow starting five members Allison Greene (14) and Miriam Zabinsky (12).
The opening two quarters belong to California Baptist. Azusa Pacific took a brief lead to start the game but the Lancers methodically grew their advantage. With 4:42 left in the second quarter Cassidy Mikalko's three-pointer gave the visitors their largest lead of the game at 33-20. They limited the Cougars to a 0-11 shooting effort from behind the arc which the Lancers turned into a 35-24 lead at intermission.
Despite the halftime deficit the Cougars rallied quite nicely in the third quarter. They erased the 11-point Lancer lead when Zabinsky nailed a three-point just past the period's halfway point which tied the score at 40-40. With 30 ticks left in the frame a Hardeman lay-up gave the Cougars their first lead since early in the contest. Azusa Pacific took a 45-44 lead into the final 10 minutes.
The nip-and-tuck battled continued in the final quarter. A Cydnie Jones steal and fast break lay-up gave the Cougars their largest lead 56-50 with just under five minutes remaining. Jones continued her scoring prowess with back-to-back three-point plays and the Cougars were up 64-56 with just under three minutes left.
Azusa Pacific kept their rivals at bay the rest of the game as the Cougars pulled away to move to 16-2 all-time vs. California Baptist at the Felix Event Center.
"Cydnie's speed makes it hard for them to guard and just go make them respect you. And in the second half she certainly did a good job of making her presence felt," Hardeman said.
"I just wanted to put pressure on the defense. The whole game they weren't getting back that fast so I wanted to apply our offensive pressure and make them respect our speed," Jones said.
As the Cougars raised their overall record to 8-2 and 2-0 in league games they will take the next two weeks away from competition. Azusa Pacific next plays Dec. 19 at Dixie State.
"We played a really tough stretch of games to start the season. We knew that those non-conference games would help us as we move into PacWest play. It does wear on you but tonight the crowd, the band gave us some extra energy. It was a great atmosphere," Hardeman said.
