THE COLLEGES : Chapman Gets Defensive at Right Time

For the first 15 minutes Friday night, Chapman College and Azusa Pacific played run and shoot.

Layups, jump shots, 3-pointers came one right after another.

But in the last 5 minutes of the half, Chapman added a new dimension. A little thing called defense.

The Panthers closed out the half with an impressive display of pressure defense, which led to a 94-74 victory in front of 250 at the Hutton Sports Center.

“I thought we played good, aggressive defense the whole game,” Chapman Coach Rich Prospero said. “But they tried to get 15 points in 30 seconds and we took advantage of it.”

Chapman outscored the Cougars, 13-2, during the final 5 minutes 16 seconds of the first half to turn a 37-36 lead into a 50-38 advantage.

During the run, the Cougars failed to get off a shot on 4 consecutive possessions, turning the ball over each time. Azusa Pacific had 12 turnovers in the first half and 21 for the game.

When the Cougars did get a shot off, they rarely got a second. It was a far cry from what they were used to.

Azusa Pacific (4-3) came into the game averaging 95.5 points. The Cougars’ offensive resume included a 124-39 victory over West Coast Christian and a 164-138 loss to Loyola Marymount.

“Loyola Marymount lets you score to get the ball back and West Coast Christian is not a very good team,” Prospero said. “So I felt those scores were deceiving. I’ve been telling the team all week that were going to run with these guys.”

And run and run and run.

The teams traded baskets for much of the first half at a pace that left little time for defense.

Azusa Pacific alternated between a 2-3 zone and man-to-man defense in the first half, neither of which was effective.

Chapman forward Russ Ortega made his first 8 shots and had 19 points by halftime. He had a season-high 28 points.

What kept the Cougars close was their shooting. Michael Benton, Ryan Rienstra and Mark Moses had 21 of their first 32 points.

But the Panthers never lost a step and took the lead for good, 33-32, on a free throw by Matt Honikel.