FRESNO, Calif. - Azusa Pacific claimed a 79-69 win at Fresno Pacific on Tuesday, fending off a second-half comeback attempt by the Sunbirds. Molly Whitmore recorded a double-double to lead the way for the Cougars, scoring 22 points and pulling in 10 rebounds. Paige Uyehara scored 17 points and had six assists, five rebounds and two steals. Kayla Shaw finished with 14 points, and Kelly Heimburger was the fourth Cougar in double-figures with 13 points to go with eight rebounds and three assists. Kyra Zovak had a productive game off of the bench, scoring six points and tallying eight rebounds, including four on the offensive end.
 

How It Happened: Through the first quarter, neither team took a lead greater than two possessions as the two sides kept trading baskets. After the first 10 minutes of the game, the score was knotted up at 20-20. The Cougars went on the attack on both ends of the floor to open the second, using a 12-2 run to grab a 32-22 lead with a little over six minutes remaining in the first half. Uyehara put an exclamation point on the run for the Cougars, scoring five points in less than 10 seconds with a layup, a steal on the ensuing inbound pass, and then a three-pointer from the corner where she scooped up the ball that she knocked loose. Azusa Pacific would extend its lead over the remainder of the second quarter, entering halftime with a 46-30 advantage. After scoring just 10 points over the entirety of the second quarter, Fresno Pacific would have the hot hand to open the third, scoring 16 points over the first four minutes of the quarter to cut the deficit down to 55-46. The Sunbirds held the Cougars scoreless over the next three minutes of play, and the hosts pulled within five points at 55-50 by the first media timeout (3:35) in the second half. Azusa Pacific was able to cling to its lead over the remaining few minutes of the third, and the Cougars entered the final 10 minutes of the contest up 63-57. To open the fourth quarter, both teams stepped up their play on the defensive end. The Sunbirds held the Cougars scoreless over the first four minutes of the quarter, while Fresno Pacific was only able to score a lone triple during that span to make it 63-60. The first Cougar basket came at the 5:46 mark, when Heimburger had a layup to make it 65-60. Heimburger's layup started a 6-0 run that grew Azusa Pacific's lead to 69-60 with 4:44 left. 
 

Turning Point: Not only did Heimburger's layup start a 6-0 run over the next minute, but it was the beginning of an even larger run of 10-2 over nearly two and a half minutes to grow the Cougar lead to double digits and put the game out of reach for the Sunbirds.
 

By the Numbers: The Cougars were able to shoot a higher percentage (46% | 30-66) than the Sunbirds (39% | 27-70), and also hit nine three-pointers while Fresno Pacific made six. Both teams were able to find success inside, with Azusa Pacific finishing with 40 points in the paint while the Sunbirds tallied 34. The heavy bulk of the scoring for both teams came from the starting five, with the Sunbirds ending with just eight bench points and Zovak accounting for all six of the Cougars' reserve scoring.