HILO, Hawai'i - Azusa Pacific found a way to earn a victory on the road at Hawai'i Hilo on Monday evening, holding off the Vulcans by a 64-62 score on a pair of clutch free throws from Paige Uyehara with just 0.3 seconds left. The Cougars improved to 14-3 overall, and 9-1 in PacWest play, which has them atop of the conference standings currently.
Molly Whitmore scored 20 points, while also grabbing seven rebounds, dishing out three assists and posting two blocks. Uyehara finished with 15 points, including a 3-for-5 effort from three, and she had two steals on the defensive end. Amayah Kirkman also went 3-for-5 from beyond-the-arc, finishing with 13 points.
How It Happened: The Cougars opened the contest with a 7-0 run over the first four minutes of the contest. With 2:25 to play in the opening quarter, Kirkman scored her 10th point of the quarter on a layup, which gave Azusa Pacific its first double-digit lead of the game at 16-6. The first would come to a close with the Cougars up 18-8, as they finished 8-for-14 from the floor, while holding the Vulcans to 3-for-14 shooting.
On the Cougars' second offensive trip of second quarter, Whitmore converted a traditional three-point play to put Azusa Pacific up 21-8, but over the next six minutes of play, Hawai'i Hilo would go on a 15-3 run to pull within one at 24-23 with 3:09 on the clock before halftime. While the Vulcans were unable to gain the lead before the break, the hosts were able to send the game to a 29-29 tie at the break.
Hawai'i Hilo would take its first lead of the game on its first possession of the third quarter, as Jenna Waki scored to put the Vulcans ahead 31-29. The Vulcans would hold the lead for nearly the entire third quarter, pushing their lead to as large as 11 at 43-32 (4:39). The Cougars would roar back over the final four minutes of the third, going on a 15-2 that was capped off by a Alex Lowden three-pointer that gave the visitors the lead at 47-45 heading into the fourth quarter.
The final 10 minutes of the game served as a fitting conclusion to the contest, as the two teams battled to the final second. In the fourth quarter, there were five ties and four lead changes, however, it was the Cougars that entered the final minute of regulation with a five point lead at 58-53. The Vulcans' Bree Olson got the home crowd back into the game with 48 seconds to play, as she knocked down a triple to make it 58-56. Uyehara would push Azusa Pacific's lead up to 60-56 with 29 seconds to go on a pair of free throws, but the Vulcans would answer back with a layup to make it 60-58. The lead was back up to four on two free throws from Whitmore that made it 62-58 with 19 seconds remaining, but once again, the Vulcans scored quickly to get back within one possession at 62-60.
Following a pair of missed free throws by the Cougars on their ensuing possession, Hawai'i Hilo had the ball with a chance to tie or take the lead. Azusa Pacific would commit a pair of fouls to slow up the Vulcans, but with four seconds left, Mandi Kawaha drove baseline and she was fouled, which was the Cougars' fifth foul of the quarter, sending Kawaha to the line for two shots with a chance to tie the game with 3.8 seconds to play. Kawaha would deliver, but an Azusa Pacific timeout following Kawaha's second make allowed the Cougars to advance the ball for a sideline inbounds on their end with a chance to win.
Uyehara inbounded the ball to Whitmore, who gave it right back to Uyehara as she stepped in bounds beyond the arc for a three. On the shot, a Vulcan fouled Uyehara, sending her to the line for three shots with 0.3 seconds remaining. After missing the first, Uyehara calmly knocked down her final two shots to put the Cougars up 64-62. Hawai'i Hilo was unable to get a shot attempt up on a full court inbound attempt, sealing the victory for the visitors.
By the Numbers: As the final score indicated, the two teams were fairly even from a statistical standpoint. Azusa Pacific finished 21-for-59 (36%) from the floor, which is the second-lowest percentage that the Cougars have shot this season. The Cougars took care of the ball throughout the game, committing just 11 turnovers, which is Azusa Pacific's second-lowest total this season, while Hawai'i Hilo also turned the ball over just 11 times, which is the fewest committed by any Cougar opponent this season.
Up Next: The Cougars' second of three games on their Hawai'i trip will be this Wednesday (Jan. 18), when they visit Hawai'i Pacific for a 4:30 pm HT tip (6:30 pm PT). The Sharks enter Wednesday's contest with a 8-7 overall record, and a 6-2 conference mark, which puts them in fourth place.
