Women’s Basketball
Top Performers
APU: Kelly Hardeman 14 pts, 18 reb, 2 stl
PLNU: Sydney Tonack 14 pts, 5 reb, 1 stl
APU fell 68-57 in overtime to Point Loma Wednesday night after a poor shooting performance, losing the season series against the Sea Lions.
“Well, we struggled offensively a lot,” said junior forward Miriam Zabinsky. “So we gotta work on new sets and plays.”
The Cougars were down by seven points with 1:03 left in the game. Maggie Dumphy forced a turnover coming out of a timeout, which led to more Cougar points. A few plays later Zabinsky hit a huge 3-pointer to take the game into overtime.
“I was kinda shocked because I wasn’t making shots, so I was kinda stoked when it went in at the end and counted,” Zabinsky said.
Other than her jumper, which opened the scoring for both teams in overtime, APU could not score in the extra period. Point Loma would end the game on a 13-2 run, handing the Cougars their seventh loss of the season.
Kelly Hardeman contributed with 14 points while reeling in 19 rebounds, a season high for the junior forward.
Point Loma’s Sydney Tonack led her team with 14 points, followed by Roya Rustamazda with 13 points, 11 in overtime.
“I don’t know what happened in overtime, but we didn’t play good defense,” Zabinsky said.
APU’s next matchup is against Dixie State at home. The Cougars beat the Red Storm 73-61 last Saturday.
Men’s Basketball
Top Performers
APU: Troy Leaf 20 pts, 1 ast, 1 stl
PLNU: Sam Okhotin 13 pts, 4 ast, 1 stl
After the APU men lost their last game in overtime and watched a 14-game winning streak come to an end, they came out determined to get back on track versus Point Loma Wednesday night. In front of the home crowd, the Cougars erased a five-point deficit at the half to beat Point Loma 74-64.
Despite a shaky first half, Troy Leaf led all scorers with 20 points, nearly matching his season average of 22.6 points per game. Robert Sandoval contributed with 17 points and five assists.
The Sea Lions had an early lead thanks to a great defensive effort, which left Azusa 0-6 from 3-point range in the first half.
But the Cougars came out as a different team after the break, hitting three long-range shots to start the second half of the game.
“It never ceases to amaze me with this group when they lock in, points happen,” said APU head coach Justin Leslie.
The Cougars played shutdown defense, allowing only four points in a span of six minutes, as well as ending the game on a 19-6 run.
“Well, I’m always totally thrilled. I told them how we defended to close the game is what won the game,” Leslie said.
Included in the victory, a single-game team record was broken. The Cougars hit 18-of-19 free throw attempts, finishing the game at 94 percent from the line.
With the win, Azusa Pacific improved to 16-2 on the season and 9-1 in the conference.
The next matchup for the men’s basketball team is Dixie State, the team that broke APU’s winning streak last weekend.