by Corey Langerveld, APU Communications
AZUSA, Calif. – No. 6 Azusa Pacific earned its 10th straight win, cruising to a commanding 101-49 victory over the visiting Chaminade Silverswords. The Cougars are now 13-1 overall and 9-0 in PacWest play.
Kayla Shaw finished with 26 points, shooting 10-for-15 from the floor, including 6-for-10 from beyond-the-arc. Amayah Kirkman went a perfect 5-for-5 from three, finishing with a career-high 16 points while also grabbing six rebounds. TyLee Manuel recorded the first double-double of her Azusa Pacific career, coming off of the bench to score 12 points and collecting 12 rebounds. Molly Whitmore (12 points) and Paige Uyehara (11 points) also reached double figures in scoring. Alex Lowden, who was selected as this week’s PacWest Defender of the Week, had three steals, three blocks, seven rebounds, and dished out eight assists.
How it Happened: From the outset, the Cougars were in full control of the game. Azusa Pacific jumped out to a 12-0 lead, with the Silverswords first point not coming until three and a half minutes had been played. By the end of the first quarter of play, Azusa Pacific built a 37-16 lead. The Cougars shot 13-for-18 from the floor in the first, including an 8-for-12 effort from deep. All 13 of the Cougars’ field goals were assisted on.
In the second quarter, Chaminade was as close as 17 points at 37-20 with just over eight minutes before halftime, however, Shaw hit back-to-back threes to increase the margin back above 20 points. Azusa Pacific would remain up by 20 or more for the rest of the second quarter, taking an advantage as large as 28 (55-27, 1:38 mark). At halftime, the Cougars entered the locker room with a 55-29 advantage.
Over the first five and a half minutes of play in the third quarter, the Silverswords would only score three points, while the Cougars continued to roll on the offensive end to the tune of 20 points. With 4:25 to go in the third, Azusa Pacific was in firm control of the contest at 75-32. The Cougars held Chaminade to just seven points over the entire third period, allowing Azusa Pacific to enter the fourth and final 10 minutes of play with a 84-36 lead. In the third quarter, the Cougars did not commit a single turnover, and Azusa Pacific scored 16 of its 29 points from inside the paint.
The largest margin of the evening came with three minutes to play, when Manuel knocked down a pair of free throws to increase the Cougar lead to 54 points at 95-41. Christiane Carlisle broke the century mark for the Cougars, as the freshman knocked down a triple from the left wing with 35 seconds to make it 101-49.
By the Numbers: When all was said and done, the Cougars finished just two assists shy of the Azusa Pacific single game record of 33 assists. Of the Cougars’ 39 made field goals, 31 of those were assisted on. Lowden’s eight assists led a group of Cougars that finished with four or more assists. Azusa Pacific committed just six turnovers in the game, which ties the team’s lowest single-game total this year. The Cougars shot 51% (39-for-76) overall, and made a season-high 17 threes at a 55% clip (17-for-31).
