AZUSA, Calif. -- Fresno Pacific scored 11 straight points in a crucial five-minute stretch late in the second half, and the Sunbirds held on in the final minute to notch a 94-90 upset over No. 19-ranked Azusa Pacific Saturday afternoon at the Felix Event Center.

The Cougars were seemingly in control of the game when junior forward Joey Schreiber hit a three-pointer with just under six minutes to go, giving Azusa Pacific an 85-77 edge which was its largest lead of the game. However, as the Cougars went cold from the field, missing its next eight shots including six three-point attempts, Fresno Pacific chipped away at the lead.

The Sunbirds cut the margin to two points, 85-83, on a Tyrone Viney Jr. three-pointer with 4:06 left, and Viney Jr. followed Spencer Krannitz's game-tying layup with a three-pointer that gave FPU the lead for good with just under a minute to play. Viney Jr.'s two crucial long-range makes gave the Sunbirds an 88-85 edge, and it wasn't until Gabe Solarin added a pair of free throws to extend the lead to 90-85 before a LyDell Cardwell three ended the Cougars' scoring drought with 27 seconds left. Solarin added four more free throws in the final 25 seconds to seal the victory.

Viney Jr. finished with 13 points, and Krannitz led all scorers with a 30-point effort as Fresno Pacific shot 54 percent (33-for-61) against Azusa Pacific, which entered the game as the Pacific West Conference leader in field goal percentage defense. The Sunbirds were at their best in the second half, hitting 67 percent (18-for-27) including five-of-10 three-pointers after halftime.

"Give Fresno Pacific credit for having some quick hitter plays, but we fell for every one of them even when we knew it was coming," Azusa Pacific head coach Justin Leslie said. "We dominated the game with our defensive mistakes tonight. We scored 56 points in the second half, but it was just a complete lack of focus on the defensive side of the ball. They absolutely destroyed us out there, and now it's time for us to get back to the drawing board, regroup, and have a gut check to see what we're made of."

Coupled with Monday's road defeat at Dominican, Azusa Pacific relinquished its place as the PacWest leader, falling to 15-5 overall and 9-3 in the PacWest. The Cougars return to action Monday night, continuing a six-game PacWest homestand by hosting Hawai'i Pacific.

"Frankly, this one hurts," Leslie said. "We're in bad shape after an awful week like this one, because the PacWest is a good league. The teams that beat us this week are well-coached teams who play hard, and our guys have to learn that when you're out front, you're going to take everyone's best shot. When you don't respect that opportunity and you aren't ready to play in a league full of good teams, players, and coaches, then you're going to get beat."

Cardwell scored a game-high 20 points to lead Azusa Pacific's scoring, which was its third 90-point offensive effort in the past five games, and Schreiber added 19 points. Senior forwardJared Zoller contributed 12 points off the bench, and sophomore forward Petar Kutlesicadded 11 points.

Cardwell scored 12 of his 20 points in the opening half, scoring the last two baskets of a 10-4 run at the end of the first half to chop an eight-point Fresno Pacific lead down to a narrow two-point margin, 36-34, at the break.

Schreiber drilled a pair of three-pointers early in the second half, helping the Cougars erase a three-point deficit with a 16-6 run, and later in the half he put Azusa Pacific in front by seven, 73-66, by finishing off an 11-3 run by making all three free throws on a three-shot foul with 8:53 to play.