by Steve Ramirez, San Gabriel Valley Tribune, West Covina, Calif. , San Gabriel Valley Tribune

The visiting Firebirds, ranked No. 14 in NAIA, are flying high at 12-3 overall and 5-0 in GSAC play. The Cougars, ranked in the NAIA top 25 to begin the season, are 10-5 and 3-2.

APU, which went through a 3-3 stretch where it held the lead late in its three losses, also appears to be catching Fresno Pacific at the right time. The Cougars, led by Dominique Johnson (18.8 points per game) and David Burgess (10.6 points, 9.6 rebounds per game), have won their past two -- a 73-61 victory over rival Biola in which APU led by double digits for much of the game, and a steady 70-50 win over Point Loma Nazarene.

The difference has been defense, where APU smothered Biola for much of the game last week before pulling away from Point Loma on Saturday.

"Defense is where this team is going to have to hang its hat for the rest of the season," APU coach Justin Leslie said.

The Cougars are also getting production from a variety of sources. Johnson and Burgess have been their big options, but Caleb Burgess, Brayden Bell and Mike Caffese have shown the ability to score in the past two games.

"In a long season you have injuries and illness and guys have to step up," Leslie said. "(Saturday) it was Brayden and Caleb.

Two weeks ago, they weren't even getting off the bench. However, they were prepared and (got) fired up."

LA VERNE UPDATE: The Leopards women's basketball team is off to a solid start in the chase for the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Association regular-season title.

La Verne, which won its first six games before losing back-to-back encounters in the Grand Canyon Classic in Phoenix, opened conference play with wins over Pomona-Pitzer and Whittier last week.

The Leos are led by Trenecca Jones, who is averaging 15.3 ppg, and Ashley Paul, who is averaging 13.3.

La Verne, which advanced to the NCAA Division III tournament last season, plays host to Caltech at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday.

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