HILO, Hawaii – The Fresno Pacific women's basketball team picked up a PacWest Conference victory on Thursday night, defeating Hawai'i Hilo 73-64 on the road. The win gives the Sunbirds eight in league play, their highest conference total since the 2013-14 season.
 
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Final: Fresno Pacific 73, Hawai'i Hilo 64
Records: FPU (10-13 8-7 PacWest), UHH (6-8, 4-7 PacWest)
Location: UHH Gymnasium | Hilo, Hawaii   
All-Time Series: Fresno Pacific leads 4-3
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HOW IT HAPPENED:
• Five different Sunbirds found the bottom of the net in the opening quarter, but the Vulcans jumped out to a 16-10 lead.  
• Behind a pair of threes from Bree Alvarez, Fresno Pacific began the second quarter on a 12-0 run en route to outscoring their hosts 25-10 for the period.
• Alvarez wrapped up her first half with 11 points, including nine from behind the arc.
• Megan Lee and Jessica Malazarte each got into double-figures in the second half, helping the Blue and Orange to clinch the victory.  
 
STATS OF THE GAME:
• Vulcan freshman Allie Navarette led all scorers with 25 points while finishing a rebound shy of a double-double.
• Alvarez and Lee paced the FPU offense with 15 points apiece, with the latter collecting five boards. Malazarte finished her night with 13 points behind a 5-of-9 shooting effort from the floor.
• The Sunbirds outrebounded their hosts 49-35 and won the turnover battle by a margin of 12-9.
• FPU's bench came away with 27 points, helping the Blue and Orange to lead by as many as 15 in the third quarter.
 
BEYOND THE BOX:
• The Sunbirds have forced more turnovers than they have committed in all but three PacWest games this season. Thursday night was the fifth game this year with less than 10 FPU turnovers.
• The win over UHH puts Fresno Pacific in sixth place in the PacWest standings, keeping them in the hunt for the conference tournament, which is set to begin on March 1 in Riverside.
 
UP NEXT:
• FPU returns to action on Saturday, when they wrap up their Hawai'i road trip against Chaminade. Tipoff from Honolulu is slated for 4:30 p.m. PST.