SANTA CRUZ, Calif.-Beginning with a dominant presence on the inside and opening up with a stellar longball display, the Fresno Pacific Sunbirds (5-12 overall) overpowered the UC Santa Cruz Banana Slugs (8-8 overall) 80-45 at the Kaiser Permanente Arena Thursday night.

The Sunbirds shot 50% from the field for the evening and 47% on 21 three-point attempts to earn a win in its final game of the road trip.

"We are working really hard to sort some habits collectively," Fresno Pacific head coach C.J. Haydock said. "We've got a ton of work to do, but this is a small step in the right direction."

Spencer Heimerdinger scored the first seven points of the game showcasing his versatile skill set. The senior forward knocked down a three and had a putback after an offensive rebound that helped staked the Sunbirds to a 7-0 lead.

The Banana Slugs scored the next eight points before the first timeout to inch in front of the Sunbirds.

Fresno Pacific scored the nine of the next ten as Kyle Monk, Nate Kendricks and Darrin Person Jr. all scored their first buckets of the night.

The Sunbirds maintained the lead as they continued to dominate the paint at both ends of floor, only surrendering a single basket in the painted area while scoring six times to build a 23-16 lead with 7:41 remaining in the first half.

Person Jr. was a primary factor in the 12-2 advantage in the paint and proved to be a matchup nightmare for the hosts.

Fresno Pacific held a 12 point lead at the half and came out firing, knocking down seven of its 10 shots to start the second half, widening the advantage to 21 points, after the next seven minutes.

Ryan Abbott and Marten Maide helped extend the lead as the duo combined for a stretch of threes. Monk added another that set FPU's advantage at 61-39.

By the time Fresno Pacific stretched its lead to 74-42, it had made 10 threes on the night, 7 of which came in the second half. Six different 'Birds hit at least one three, giving FPU its second game of the season with 10 or more threes.

Person Jr. helped extend the lead while Monk helped close it out and each finished tied for the game-high in points with 15.

"Its really good to see Kyle Monk hitting his stride on both sides of the ball," Haydock said of his freshman. "He's had two really good performances in a row.

Maide was the only other Sunbird in double-figures, finishing with 10 but Heimerdinger and Peralta each finished with 9. Kendricks added 7 points.

"Lots of guys touched the floor and we generate a little momentum," Haydock concluded. "Now, we've got an opportunity to learn and grow."

Fresno Pacific will return home for the first time in three weeks when it hosts Hawai'i Hilo on Tuesday. The 'Birds open their longest homestand of the series as they will play their next five games at the Special Events Center.

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