AZUSA, Calif. - Azusa Pacific is now 6-0 in PacWest play after beating Chaminade by an 82-55 score in the Felix Event Center on Saturday afternoon. The Cougars are 12-3 overall, and have won their last eight games.
For the second-consecutive game, it was a balanced offensive attack for the Cougars, led by a trio of double-digit scorers.
Amayah Kirkman scored a game-high 15 points, while
Paige Uyehara and
Elyse Mitchell each added 10 points. On the glass, Kirkman, Manuel and Whitmore shared the team-lead in rebounds with seven apiece.
Lauren Jones had four offensive rebounds.
How It Happened: The Cougars opened the game on fire offensively, scoring 27 points on nearly 67% shooting throughout the first quarter. The Cougars also went 4-for-5 from deep. On the defensive end, Azusa Pacific limited Chaminade to just 14 points, and the Cougars forced the visitors into seven turnovers, which they turned into seven points on the offensive end.
The Cougars increased their defensive energy in the second quarter, holding the Silverswords to just 10 points on 3-for-15 shooting, including just 1-for-7 from three. In addition to its defensive effort in the second, Azusa Pacific also ramped up its intensity on the offensive glass, grabbing 10 offensive rebounds, which turned into 11 second chance points. The Cougars' largest lead of the first half came at 48-20 with 3:15 to go before halftime. At the break, the hosts took a 48-24 lead into the locker room.
Midway through the third quarter, the Cougars took their first 30-point lead of the afternoon, as a
Kelly Heimburger layup made it 60-30. Azusa Pacific maintained a lead of 25 or more through the remainder of the third.
The Cougars' largest lead of the contest came with four and a half minutes to play in the game, as Jones scored a layup to make it 77-43.
By the Numbers: Azusa Pacific finished 31-for-74 from the field (42%), including a 12-for-29 performance from beyond-the-arc. On the other end of the floor, Chaminade shot 33% (19-for-58) overall, and just 6-for-21 from three (29%). The Cougars posted significant advantages in rebounding (53-37), points off of turnovers (20-9) and second chance points (21-6).
Up Next: The Cougars will continue their homestand on Wednesday, Jan. 10, when Westmont visits the Felix Event Center for a 5:15 pm contest.
