POMONA, Calif. -- Azusa Pacific fell on the road by a 73-61 final at Cal Poly Pomona on Saturday afternoon in the SODEXO Classic.

Nate Kleppe was the Cougars' leading scorer with 14, finishing 5-for-7 from the field (3-for-4 from three) and also collecting a team-high four rebounds. Kleppe was joined in double figures by McKelary Robertson, who tallied 13 points. 

How it Happened: To open the game, the Cougars were stifled by the Broncos' zone defense, as Azusa Pacific did not make a field goal within the three-point line for the entirety of the first half (0-for-10). Cal Poly's biggest lead in the first half was 18 points, when the Broncos went up 30-12 with 7:24 on the clock. The closest the Cougars would get before the intermission was 13 points, with the Broncos eventually taking a 40-24 advantage into the locker room. Azusa Pacific's 24 points came by way of seven three-pointers (7-for-18) and three made free throws (3-for-5). On the other end, Cal Poly shot 49% (15-for-31) from the floor, and hit three of seven looks from deep. 

In the second half, Cal Poly started to blow the game wide open, taking a lead as large as 60-31 with just about eight minutes of action played. While Azusa Pacific was unable to cut the deficit down to single digits, the Cougars were able to get the margin down below 20 points for the final three minutes of play. The 73-61 final score was the smallest lead of the second half for the Broncos. In the second half, Azusa Pacific outscored the Broncos 37-33, and shot 48% (11-for-23) from the floor over the final 20 minutes. After shooting just five free throws in the first half, the Cougars were able to more than double that number with 11 opportunities from the charity stripe in the second, where they converted on nine attempts.

Turning Point: Cal Poly held a 17-9 lead with 12:44 remaining in the first half. Over the next five minutes, the Broncos went on a 13-3 run that led to the eventual largest advantage of the first half (30-12). The stretch was a costly one for the Cougars, with Azusa Pacific unable to find itself within single digits of the Broncos for the remainder of the contest.

By the Numbers: Cal Poly's zone forced Azusa Pacific into a total of 21 turnovers, which led to 27 points on the other end for the Broncos. On the glass, Cal Poly Pomona posted a 41-33 rebounding advantage. Of the 41 rebounds for the Broncos, 15 were offensive and led to 12 second chance points. The Cougars pulled in 10 offensive rebounds, scoring five second chance points. From beyond-the-arc, Azusa Pacific finished 13-for-31 (42%) on the game, with eight different players knocking down at least one triple.