Thursday’s 88-57 victory advances women’s basketball to a 13-3 record
After a strong victory last week against Concordia, Azusa Pacific’s women’s basketball team continued their four-game home stretch on Thursday night against the Hawai’i Hilo Vulcans. The Cougars continued their hot streak, winning their fourth contest in a row, 88-57.
The game started brilliantly for the Cougars, as they opened scoring with a quick three-pointer from senior captain Savanna Hanson. While the Vulcans responded with a three of their own on their next possession, the Cougars had the hot hand throughout the first quarter. A 10-0 run led APU to enter the second quarter with a 22-13 lead.
The Cougars continued to impress offensively in the second period. Both squads struggled to shoot in the first three minutes of the quarter, but APU began to find more success and attacked the paint with tremendous aggressiveness. Out of the 24 points that the team scored in the second quarter, 13 were scored by layups or from the line.
With the game already steadily in grasp, the Cougars simply maintained their approach. They entered the second half with an attacking mentality, and APU added onto their lead. Before the eight-minute mark, the Cougars went on an impressive 10-3 run, making it a 27 point differential over the Vulcans.
UHH was incapable of stopping the bleeding, and entering the final quarter of play, the Cougars had already reached the 70 point mark, while the Vulcans were only able to put up 42 points. The final 10 minutes were a perfect time for head coach T.J. Hardeman to give solid minutes to several bench players. Once again, the Cougars showed their versatility, as every player who was capable of playing received court time.
When the final horn sounded, APU claimed their 13th victory of the season, including their seventh conference win. Along with this, the Cougars improved their home record to 7-1, with seven home contests remaining on the schedule.
Once again, Hanson was the Cougars leading scorer, with 25 points, including six buckets from behind the arc. This is the fourth time overall and the third consecutive game this season where Hanson has led the team in scoring.
Despite falling short on the scoring sheet, senior point guard Zoe March was a heavy contributor in the game as well, mainly thanks to her solid ball movement. March’s eight assists on the game were her highest of the season so far.
Freshman Molly Whitmore was sensational off the bench, scoring 17 points and leading the team with three steals. Backup guard Paige Uyehara also had a career night, scoring nine points along with five assists. Uyehara also took advantage from the line, shooting a team-high five free throws and making four of them.
Next up for APU is a matchup against their biggest rival, Biola, with a chance to add onto APU’s Cornerstone Cup lead. Currently, in the 2019-20 match list, the Cougars hold a 30-20 lead over the Eagles. With a win, the Cougars have a chance to add five more points to the university’s total. The game is on Saturday at 5:15 p.m.