Azusa Pacific junior guard Allison Greene gave the Dixie State defense fits all game, penetrating the paint as she did on this layup attempt in their 74-69 win against the Red Storm on Monday, Jan. 20.
Photo by Steven Mercado
Azusa Pacific women’s basketball is getting back into the groove. After the Cougars’ loss to Point Loma Friday night, they bounced back Monday with a narrow 74-69 win against Dixie State at the Felix Event Center.
After a quick start, Dixie State got into foul trouble early in the first half. With 13:02 left in the first quarter, the Red Storm committed seven more fouls than Azusa Pacific (8-1). The Cougars took full advantage of this, hitting 14 of their 15 free throws in the first half.
As the Cougars tried to stop Dixie State’s sharpshooting junior guard Kaylah Miller, who hit six treys in the first half, the Cougars’ bench proved essential.
“We did a pretty good job of limiting the game. Another huge gift was our bench,” APU head coach T.J. Hardeman said.
The bench scored 14 of the Cougars’ 45 first-half points, while the Red Storm’s bench only had six. Junior forward Sendy Valles also contributed quite a bit in the first half, and ended the game with 18 points and five rebounds for the Cougars.
Dixie State started the second half with a full court press and caused problems for the Cougars. The pressure resulted in several turnovers and missed rebounding opportunities.
“We had some turnovers and some bonehead plays ourselves but just said, ‘Hey, we don’t want to do that again and [we’re] going to keep playing hard,'” Hardeman said.
The Red Storm calmed before the Cougars hit a slump halfway through the second half and junior guard Allison Greene continued pushing. She led her team in scoring with 23 points and 11 of the Cougars’ last 12.
“I just thought through the whole game, when we were in our flat series, she did a great job of penetrating and finding open players and also drawing fouls. … She’s so hard to stay in front of,” Hardeman said.
Greene hit a crucial three-pointer with 1:43 left, giving APU the late lead. The Cougars kept this lead for the remainder of the game.
“[Greene] is such a savvy ballplayer as far as anticipating where they want to go and knowing where they should go and being able to bend that. And then shooting free throws, she was money,” Hardeman said.
Greene went a perfect 12-for-12 from the free-throw line, hitting six of those within the final minute of the game. Her free throws solidified the win for the Cougars, boosting their conference record to 8-1.
The Cougars will face off against Cal Baptist Friday, Jan. 24 at the Felix Event Center. Tip off is at 5:30 p.m.