FRESNO, Calif. – The Fresno Pacific women's basketball team picked up a key victory on Thursday night, defeating Chaminade 76-59 at the Special Events Center. The win keeps the Sunbirds in the hunt for the PacWest Conference Tournament, which will be held in Riverside from March 1-3.
 
QUOTABLE:
"This was our third game in six days, so we could have played better tonight. Defense is the standard for a championship effort, and while we want to push the ball offensively, we want defense to be something that we are proud of. Notre Dame de Namur has a couple players playing very well right now, so we will have to make some adjustments. Saturday is an important game for us." – assistant coach Doug Carter
 
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Final: Fresno Pacific 76, Chaminade 59
Records: FPU (9-11, 7-5 PacWest), Chaminade (1-10, 1-8 PacWest)
Location: Special Events Center | Fresno, Calif.  
All-Time Series: Series tied 3-3
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HOW IT HAPPENED:
• The Silverswords scored the first six points of the night, but the Sunbirds answered with a 42-13 run that lasted for the duration of the half.
• The Sunbirds turned in their most productive quarter of the night in the second quarter, outscoring their guests 28-11.
• Bree Alvarez went a perfect 5-of-5 from the charity stripe to land in double-figures over the game's first 20 minutes, while eight of her teammates found the bottom of the net, as well.
• Chaminade was able to cut the FPU lead to as little as 15 in the fourth quarter, but the Sunbirds were able to cruise to their ninth victory of the season.  
 
STATS OF THE GAME:
• Cassie Pisik turned in a productive evening for the Blue and Orange, recording a double-double with 14 points and a team-high ten rebounds.
• Alvarez led the team with 15 points, while Malazarte poured in 13 points of her own.
• Malazarte dished out five assists, while Pisik and LoCastro combined for five blocks.
• PacWest leading scorer Destiny Castro went for 15 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Silverswords, and teammate Alicia Dugan led all scorers with 16 points.
• Fresno Pacific outrebounded the Swords 44-35 while winning the turnover battle by a 19-16 margin.
 
BEYOND THE BOX:
• The Sunbirds have forced more turnovers than they have committed in all but two PacWest games this season.  
• Pisik has now turned in a double-double in two of her last four games and four times overall this season.
• Alvarez has now led the Sunbirds in scoring on four occasions this year.
 
UP NEXT:
• The Sunbirds return to action on Saturday, when they wrap up their five-game homestand with another vital showdown against Notre Dame de Namur. Tipoff from the Special Events Center is scheduled for 2:30 p.m.