SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. - Azusa Pacific opened the 2022-23 regular season on Friday at the CCAA/PacWest Challenge hosted by Cal State San Bernardino, and the Cougars came up just short against Cal Poly Pomona, falling 62-57 to the Broncos.
Amayah Kirkman matched her career-high in points, scoring 17 on 6-for-13 shooting, which included five three pointers. Defensively, she tallied four steals. Joining Kirkman in double-figures was TyLee Manuel, who recorded a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds, and Kelly Heimburger, who added 10 points.
How It Happened: Through the first two quarters of action, the game had six lead changes, three ties, and neither team taking a lead larger than two possessions. Cal Poly Pomona was up 12-7 early, but back-to-back triples from Amayah Kirkman gave the Cougars their first lead of the season, taking a 13-12 advantage with a little over three minutes to play in the first quarter. A pair of free throws from the Broncos' Alicia Jones was the only scoring over the remainder of the first, which set Cal Poly Pomona up with a 14-13 lead to start the second quarter.
The offensive struggles for both teams continued into the second, with the first points not occurring until about four minutes into the quarter, as Paige Uyehara knocked down two free throws to put the Cougars back up 15-14 with a little over six minutes on the clock before halftime. With two and a half minutes to go, the Cougars matched their largest lead of the first half on a layup by TyLee Manuel that made it 24-20, but Cal Poly Pomona's Breanne Ha hit back-to-back threes to give the Broncos a 26-24 advantage. On the ensuing Cougar possession, Kirkman would find her way into the lane, finishing with a layup to knot it at 26-26 with 1:21 to go before the break, and that score would remain at halftime.
The second half would turn out to be just as much of a back-and-forth battle, with neither team taking a lead larger than two possessions. With 5:20 to go in the third quarter, Azusa Pacific held a 37-36 lead, but a 7-0 run for the Broncos put Cal Poly up 43-37 (2:13 in the third), which was the game's largest margin at that point. As she did in the first half, it was Kirkman that provided a spark for the Cougars, knocking down consecutive three-point attempts to tie the game up at 43-43, which was the score entering the third quarter.
The Broncos would open the final quarter of play by matching their largest, as Cal Poly went up 51-45 with seven and a half minutes to go in regulation. The Cougars would respond once again, using their second 7-0 run of the contest to regain the lead at 52-51 with 5:26 left. The lead would be short-lived, with Ally Bates hitting a three-pointer on the Broncos' following possession to retake the advantage. While a Manuel layup a few plays later tied the game at 54-54, another three-pointer by the Broncos made it 57-54 Cal Poly, and they would maintain the lead for the remainder of the game.
By the Numbers: Both teams struggled to take care of the basketball, with the Cougars finishing with 22 turnovers, while the Broncos had 21. Cal Poly Pomona scored 18 points off of turnovers, and the Cougars converted the Bronco miscues into 13 points. Azusa Pacific finished 36% from the floor (20-for-55) and 30% from downtown (9-for-30), and Cal Poly Pomona shot at a 39% clip (21-for-54), including 35% from three (7-for-20). The Broncos outrebounded the Cougars 38-31.
Up Next: The Cougars will not have to sit on the loss for long, as they are right back on the court tomorrow afternoon in San Bernardino, when they take on host Cal State San Bernardino at 3:00 pm. The game can be watched live on the CCAA Network.
