BOX SCORE
LA MIRADA, Calif. --- Despite holding an 11-point lead with 4:35 remaining, Biola was unable to pull off the upset, falling 63-59 to No. 22-ranked Point Loma Nazarene on Thursday night in a GSAC men's basketball game at Chase Gymnasium.
The Eagles drop to 3-3 on the season and 1-2 in the GSAC with their second-straight loss while the Sea Lions improve to 6-1 and 2-0 in conference play.
Biola had three players score in double-digits, led by senior forward Danny Jones, who scored 16 points and added 14 rebounds. Sophomore forward Rocky Hampton added 14 points and 18 boards.
The game started out with the two teams battling back and forth through the first 10 minutes. Biola broke an 18-18 tie with a 9-3 run with five points coming from sophomore guard Marlon King. The Eagles would take that momentum into half, holding a 32-26 lead at intermission.
They would quickly extend that lead to 10 points, three minutes into the second half and held a comfortable lead throughout most of the period. Hampton converted on a second free throw to put Biola up 57-46 with 4:35 remaining and it looked as though the Eagles would send the home crowd home happy.
But the Sea Lions suddenly awoke, draining shot after shot while holding the Eagles without a field goal over the final six minutes of the game. Point Loma went on a 13-1 lead over a three minute stretch, taking its first lead of the half at 59-58 with 1:49 left in the game.
Neither team was able to score over the next minute, but Biola had a chance to tie the game, but freshman guard Luke Duperron missed a pair of free throws chances with 39 seconds left. After the Sea Lions converted on one of two free throws on the other end, King was fouled near half court and awarded a pair of free throws. However, he was only able to make one of the two and Point Loma hit both on the other end to seal the deal.
The Sea Lions were led by 17 points of guard Josh Anderson, who also had four assists and four rebounds. Curtis Carlson added 13 points.
The Eagles return to action on Saturday (Dec. 1), hosting Cal State Maritime in a non-conference game at 7:30 p.m. in Chase Gymnasium.
