AZUSA, Calif. – The Fresno Pacific men's basketball team fell to red-hot Azusa Pacific, 87-64, on Wednesday night in PacWest play. FPU couldn't overcome a slow start as the Cougars picked up their fourth-straight win.
 
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Final: Azusa Pacific 87, Fresno Pacific 64
Records: FPU (4-11, 2-5 PacWest), APU (10-5, 6-1 PacWest)
Location: Azusa, Calif. | Felix Event Center
Series: The Sunbirds trail 76-24
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HOW IT HAPPENED:
• APU led by as many as 16 in the first half, but the Sunbirds closed the last six minutes of the period on a 15-5 run to cut the APU lead to 36-30 at the intermission.
• Sam Holmes then opened the second half with a three for FPU to cut the deficit to three. The Sunbirds wouldn't come any closer, however, as the Cougars shot 55 percent in the second half to run away from FPU.
 
STATS OF THE GAME:
• Aamondae Coleman led the 'Birds with 21 points and six rebounds off the bench, while Jake Straughan added 14 points with four threes.
• Holmes scored 11 points, Toby Christensen had nine points and seven rebounds, Adrian Antunez pulled down 10 rebounds and had three assists, and Elijah Hill amassed six assists, four rebounds and two points for the Sunbirds.
• FPU was held to a season low of 34 percent shooting as a team on the night. The Cougars outscored the Sunbirds 36-20 in the paint and 20-4 in fast-break points.
• Darien McClain led APU with 19 points, while Mandrell Worthy added 18.
 
BEYOND THE BOX:
• Coleman's 21 points marked a career best, which was previously set at 20.
• Antunez also amassed a career high in rebounds.
• FPU had won the two previous meetings against APU, as the setback marked the first loss for the Sunbirds under head coach C.J. Haydock.
 
UP NEXT:
• The Sunbirds are back in action on Friday at Concordia. Tipoff is slated for 7:30 p.m.