Box Score LA MIRADA, Calif. ---
Adijat Adams scored 13 points and
Amy Freet added 10 as Biola pulled out a 58-40 win over La Sierra University in a non-conference game on Thursday night at Chase Gymnasium.
The Eagles rebound from a tough loss on Saturday to record the decisive win, improving to 6-2 on the season while the Golden Eagles fell to 3-15.
Adams overcame early foul trouble to finish with 13 points, right rebounds and a block, hitting 6-of-8 from the field to pace Biola's offense. Freet also had a solid night with 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting, adding seven rebounds a block and a steal.
But the real story of the night was the Biola defense, which held La Sierra to just 14-of-48 shooting (29%) and forced 16 turnovers. The Eagles also held a decisive edge on the glass, out-rebounding the Golden Eagles 54-37 including 24 offensive rebounds which led to 14 second-chance points.
The rebounding edge helped Biola's early shooting woes. The Eagles would hit just one of their first nine shots, but managed seven offensive rebounds on those first eight missed shots. Despite those second and more chances, the Eagles still failed to shoot well until midway through the first period.
Trailing 15-12, Biola started to catch fire, closing out the half on a 20-4 run to take a commanding 32-19 halftime lead.
The Eagles would stretch that lead to 21 in the first five minutes of the second half as a fast-break layup by Jamie Elias would give them a 44-23 lead with 14:45 remaining. The Golden Eagles could get no closer than 16 the rest of the way.
The Golden Eagles received a team-high nine points from Natalia Hawthorne who hit the only two three-pointers for the road team.
Kristine Thoe came off the bench to score nine points for the Eagles, adding a pair of rebounds and a steal in 14 minutes. Reserve point guard Becca DeVere scored five points and had a team-high nine rebounds all in just nine minutes played.
Biola closes out play before its Christmas Break with a key GSAC road contest, traveling to Santa Clarita to face The Master's College on Saturday at 5:30 p.m. The Eagles and the Mustangs are both in the receiving votes category and this early-season contest could go a long way toward determining playoff and national ranking seedings.
