Box Score FULLERTON, Calif. --- Facing Tougaloo College on day one of the Hope International Classic was a date circled on the calendar for the Biola Men's Basketball coaching staff as one of the toughest early-season matchups.
 
It played out to be a game that was all that it was cracked up to be as a finely tuned Biola defense slowed down the Bulldogs just enough to earn a 69-64 victory and improve to 8-0 on the year.
 
Dakari Archer was again the little engine that could as he put out a gritty effort to lead the team in scoring with 14 points and also bring down nine rebounds.
 
Rebounding and scoring off of Tougaloo turnovers were points of big difference between the two sides in a game that was within a four to six point margin for just about all 40 minutes on Friday night.
 
The Eagles and Bulldogs both turned the ball over 13 times on the night, but Biola got four more points than Tougaloo in capitalizing off the extra possessions. Winning the rebound battle 42-34 (including 11 offensive boards) was also a help as Biola needed to keep the high-tempo offense from getting any extra chances.
 
Biola played big in the game with all but four of its 28 field goals coming inside of the arc. Steve Herve and Jeff Gonzalez were the biggest difference makers inside.  Herve went 4-for-6 and ended with 10 points and Gonzalez ended with a double-double, getting 12 points and 10 rebounds.
 
After the lead changed eight different times in the game Biola took the lead for good with back-to-back baskets from Gonzalez with about four minutes to play. That was in the middle of a stretch of seven straight points that Gonzalez netted for BU down the stretch that put the game out of reach.
 
Biola's ball movement was another area that helped them edge out the Tougaloo team that was content to take the first shot that opened up. The Eagles garnered a team total of 16 assists in the game, compared to just five for the Bulldogs.
 
The win moves Biola to 8-0 and puts Head Coach Dr. Dave Holmquist just one game away from history with win no. 899. He will have a chance at 900 tomorrow night at Hope International as Biola faces Westminster at 5:30 p.m. The Griffins are 1-0 with a 77-64 win over College of Idaho.
 
The game is played at Darling Pavilion on the campus of Hope International and will be streamed live at http://portal.stretchinternet.com/hiu/