FRESNO, Calif. – No. 1 seed Azusa Pacific is headed to the championship game of the PacWest Tournament, following the Cougars' 85-71 win over No. 5 Biola on Friday night. 

All five of the Cougars' starters scored in double figures, while Kelly Heimburger came off the bench to 10 points. Paige Uyehara led the way with 17 points and five assists, Laura Pranger added 16 points and two blocks, Alex Lowden finished with 15 points (5-for-10 3FG), six rebounds and five assists, Molly Whitmore scored 12 points, and Kayla Shaw had 11 points. 

How it Happened: The story of the first half was on the offensive end for both teams, as both teams shot over 50% through the first two quarters. From beyond-the-arc, Biola knocked down nine of its 18 attempts, while the Cougars entered halftime at a clip of 6-for-11 from deep. 

Biola jumped out to the early lead in the game, as an Amiah Simmons triple put the Eagles up 13-5 at the 6:39 mark in the first quarter. While the Cougars were able to cut it down to one possession at 13-11 (5:37 mark), Biola would maintain the lead and take a 25-20 advantage into the second. 

Through the first four minutes of the second, the Eagles would go on a 15-5 run to push their lead up to 40-25, which would prove to be the biggest margin of separation in the first half. Up to that point, Biola had shot nearly 70%. The Eagles began to cool off at that point, while Azusa Pacific maintained a steady and consistent offensive attack on the other end. With a little under four minutes to go before halftime, Biola held a 45-32 lead. The Cougars would hold the Eagles scoreless for the remainder of the quarter, scoring 10 unanswered points to cut it down to a 45-42 score at intermission.

To open the third, the Cougars scored on their first four possessions while holding the Eagles scoreless, which flipped the game into a 53-45 game in the Cougars favor. A Kayla Shaw three put Azusa Pacific up 47-45, which marked the first time that the Cougars led in the contest. In the third quarter, Azusa Pacific outscored the Eagles 20-5, which sent the Cougars into the fourth and final quarter with their biggest lead of the game to that point at 67-50.

While the Eagles would outscore the Cougars by a 21-18 margin in the fourth quarter, it was far too little, too late, and Azusa Pacific secured its spot to the title game with the victory.

Turning Point: Undoubtedly, the game changed on the Cougars 23-0 run that ranged from the 3:49 mark in the second quarter until the 5:00 mark in the third. During that stretch, Azusa Pacific erased its biggest deficit of the contest, took its first lead, and extended the advantage into double digits. 

By the Numbers: The Cougars finished at 55% from the floor (32-for-58), including 48% from three (11-for-23), while Biola finished 43% (26-for-60) overall and 39% (14-for-36) from distance. Azusa Pacific forced the Eagles into 14 turnovers, scoring 21 points off of those opportunities. While the Cougars committed quite a few turnovers early, they finished the game with just 12.