IRVINE, Calif.-A flurry of early threes, stifling defense, and contributions throughout the lineup equated to the Fresno Pacific Sunbirds (3-7 overall, 1-3 PacWest) thumping the Concordia-Irvine Golden Eagles (2-8 overall, 1-4 PacWest) 81-63 for their first conference win of the season Saturday night at the CUI Arena.

"I thought we had a really comprehensive effort today," Fresno Pacific head coach C.J. Haydock said. "Our defensive execution was especially good."

The Sunbirds offense came out firing from the beginning of the game. Marten Maide knocked down a three just seconds into the game.

Darrin Person Jr. hit a pair of buckets off a pair of impressive post moves before three consecutive three pointers from FPU. Spencer Heimerdinger knocked down one from each wing before Maide punctuated the run to put Fresno Pacific in front 16-5 and forced a CUI timeout just minutes into the game.

Person Jr. and Maide continued to create problems for Concordia-Irvine on the drive as Fresno Pacific stretched its lead to 13 with around six minutes remaining in the half.

Fresno Pacific only solidified its lead with a 60% field goal percentage in the half. The Sunbirds carried a 39-19 advantage into the locker room.

Coming out of the half, the Sunbirds fed Person Jr. and Kendricks for a 7-0 run. The advantage to swell to as much as 29 for FPU.

The Sunbirds continued to pull away in the second half, pushing the lead to 27 as Person Jr. continued to pour in points. Person Jr.'s run included a five-point play after a layup that was backed up by two technical against CUI.

The defense was stifling from the start, holding CUI to just 7 of 28 from the field in the first half.

"Michael Mensah and Marten Maide did a great job on one of the most prolific scorers in the league," Haydock added. "And collectively we did a really job helping, rotating and winning rebounds."

Person Jr. finished with a team-high 19 points and helped maintain the double-digit lead with 13 of those coming in the second half. Person Jr. was 8-10 from the field and grabbed 5 rebounds for FPU.

Maide propelled the offense from the opening minutes and finished with 15 points on an ultra-efficient 60% shooting night from the field and the arc.

Kendricks rounded out the double-figure scorers with 12. Heimerdinger, who added 8 points, finished with a team-high 8 rebounds.

Ryan Abbott snagged 7 boards and chipped in 6 points off the bench.

It's the first conference win of the season for FPU and it snaps a four-game skid.

"We will try to get a quick turnaround against the premier program in the league," Haydock concluded. "We want to keep some momentum, toughness and togetherness going into the Christmas break."

With its first conference win in hand, Fresno Pacific will swing down to San Diego Monday afternoon for one final test before Christmas break against the PacWest leading Point Loma Sea Lions.

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