by Joel Simeone
HONOLULU, Hawai’i – For the second consecutive year and third time since 2016, Azusa Pacific won the PacWest women’s basketball tournament, defeating Concordia by a final score of 76-65 Saturday afternoon in McCabe Gymnasium. Paige Uyehara was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player after putting up 16 points and 10 assists in the championship game.
How It Happened: Azusa Pacific spread the offense around to start, with four different players scoring their first four baskets to jump out to a quick 8-2 lead. Concordia, playing in their first-ever tournament final, answered right back with an 8-0 run of their own as the lead would never be more than six at any point in the first half. The Cougars’ final nine points of the opening quarter would all come from beyond the arc, with Kelly Heimburger knocking down a triple to put the Cougars up 17-12, though they would settle for a three-point advantage at quarter’s end.
Concordia would again tie up the game early in the second and again briefly assume the lead at 24-22 four minutes into the period. But Heimburger tied it up with a jumper that put her in double figures, and after the teams traded baskets, Amayah Kirkman gave the Cougars the lead for good on a layup with just over four minutes left before halftime. Azusa Pacific watched Concordia climb back within two late in the period, but Alex Lowden knocked down her second triple of the game on the team’s last shot of the half to put the top-seeded Cougars ahead at the break, 37-32.
After a slow start to the second half, the Cougars put their stamp on the game with a 12-0 run that spanned four minutes, turning a three-point game into a 49-34 chasm that the Golden Eagles would never be able to bridge. All five Cougar starters scored in this run, and Concordia would not be able to get within single digits until the dying seconds of the contest.
By the Numbers: Heimburger led the team in scoring with 21 points. Uyehara had 16 points, 10 assists, and 4 rebounds. Lowden came up with 15 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 steals. Kirkman chipped in 11 points off the bench, while Molly Whitmore had 9 points and 9 rebounds. Besides MVP Uyehara, Heimburger and Lowden were also named to the all-Tournament team. Lowden and Uyehara were both on the all-Tournament team last season as well. This is the third PacWest tournament title for the Cougars, having won previously in both 2016 and 2022. Azusa Pacific is now 11-5 all-time at the PacWest Tournament, and have won five consecutive tournament games, the second-longest streak in conference history.
