The University of Pikeville fought through adversity on Wednesday night, using a 7:25 stretch of the second half to score 25 of 27 points and knock off Johnson (Tenn.) University 86-49 at Appalachian Wireless Arena.
 
The win gave the Bears a sweep of the regular-season series, having beaten the Royals 79-57 in Knoxville on Nov. 19.
 
It was a battle of two injury-prone teams, and things got worse for the Bears with 37 seconds left in the first period. Sophomore Taylor McKenzie went down with an injury, meaning the Bears played the rest of the half with only six players.
 
None of it seemed to matter, however. Freshman Kyra McAlarnis nailed a three-pointer with 1:08 left in the first frame to give UPike a 14-11 lead after one.
 
The basket not only gave the Bears the lead but also sparked a 10-0 run. The second quarter began with a three by sophomore Jaaliyah Warren, followed by jumpers by freshmen Anika Stehbens and Sophie Adkins to push the lead to 21-11.
 
Meanwhile, the Royals were ice cold, going 6:23 without scoring and 8:39 between baskets, a stretch in which it missed eight consecutive shots.
 
At the half, UPike led 37-25.
 
Early in the third period the Royals had a 2:16 stretch in which it outscored the Bears 6-2, with sophomore Megan Biliter scoring four, including the layin with 6:10 remaining to cut the UPike lead to 44-32.
 
But the Bears immediately answered with nine of the next 11 points. UPike took 3:32 off the clock and got points from four different players, including a three by sophomore Hazley Matthews with 2:38 left to make the lead 53-34.
 
A basket for Johnson stooped the run, but it was only temporary; the Bears scored the next the final nine of the period as part of a 16-0 run that took only 3:18 off the clock. Five different players scored, and when Stehbens scored inside with 8:45 left, the 25-2 overall run had UPike on top 69-36.
 
The lead grew to as much as 38 when the Bears led 76-38 with 6:11 left in the game.
 
Stehbens led the Bears with a career-high 28 points. She also had five rebounds and led the Bears with four assists and three steals.
 
Warren followed with 17 and six rebounds, while McAlarnis and Adkins finished with 12 points and seven rebounds apiece.
 
Senior Jaidy Mejia-Andrade, who scored eight points, finished with 13 rebounds, five blocked shots and four assists. Mejia-Andrade led the Bears to a dominating 47-22 on the glass.
 
Johnson, which fell to 6-9 on the season and 5-4 in the league, got 11 points from Biliter.
 
UPike, 8-9 overall and 7-2 in the AAC, has a much-needed week off before returning to Appalachian Wireless Arena next Wednesday to host Bryan (Tenn.) College. The Bears and Lions will tip off at 5:30 p.m.