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Micahel Bagatourian action shot with 81-71 score line
81
Winner Biola BIO 4-2,4-1 PacWest
71
Azusa Pacific APU 3-3,3-2 PacWest
Winner
Biola BIO
4-2,4-1 PacWest
81
Final
71
Azusa Pacific APU
3-3,3-2 PacWest
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Biola BIO 37 44 81
Azusa Pacific APU 25 46 71

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Bagatourian Blasts Off Against APU

Michael Bagatourian scores a career-high 31 points in big win.

AZUSA, Calif. --- Biola Men's Basketball used a major first-half run and consistent second-half in order to secure at least a split of the season series with Azusa Pacific on Friday night at the Felix Event Center.

The Eagles scored the final 12 points of the first half, with eight of those 12 coming from Michael Bagatourian, to lift BU to a decisive 81-71 win over APU to kick-off this weekend's home-and-home series.

Bagatourian was money all night long for Head Coach Dr. Dave Holmquist's bunch. The senior finished up with 31 points, a new career-high, and added six rebounds, two steals and a season-high four three-pointers to lift Biola to victory.

Biola scored nine three-pointers in this one. It was the first time this season the Eagles scored more three-point buckets than their opponents. That is saying something against an Azusa Pacific team that came into tonight's contest averaging 10.4 three-pointers per contest. Biola came into the night scoring 5.6 threes-per-game.

In fact, in the previous two meetings between these sides this season, APU had scored 23 triples compared to just 13 for Biola. The Eagles' defense keyed in on that and forced tough shots for the Cougars all night long. 

APU finished this one just 7-for-29 from deep for a season-low 24 percent. Biola's 48 percent (9-for-19) was second-best on the season, only to their 5-for-6 effort against Concordia. For Bagatourian, his four made threes equaled his season total coming into Friday's game.

Things were close between the two teams through the first 16 minutes as neither team ever seemed to really be ready to take control of the action. The lead changed hands or the game was tied 11 times over that first 16 minutes, until ultimately the two teams went into a timeout with the contest knotted at 25 and about 3:30 left on the clock.

Bagatourian and Biola would go 3-for-4 from the floor and 4-for-4 from the stripe over that final few minutes to grab control of the game and go into the break surging with confidence with a 37-25 lead. 

Biola would score the first two points coming out of the break as well to complete the 14-0 run. They'd expand that lead to as many as 19 points in the second half, before things settled in at the 10-point final margin.

Bagatourian's 31 points were 12 more than any other player in this game and six more than any other player in the PacWest Conference had on Friday night.

Alex Wright had 15 points and Chris Rossow 14 points to join Bagatourian in double-digits. Wright had an economical effort, going 4-for-6 and 6-for-7 from the free throw line. He had six rebounds as well, matching Bagatourian's six and finishing just behind Chris Rossow's team-high seven. It was the first time this season that anyone other than Wright led Biola in rebounds.

The win pushes Biola to 4-2 overall and 4-1 in PacWest Conference SoCal Pod play. Biola sits tied with Point Loma (3-0) at the top of the pod standings. The Eagles will host Azusa Pacific (3-3, 3-2 PacWest) Saturday at 4:30 p.m.

Tonight's win was victory no. 996 in the coaching career of Dr. Dave Holmquist.
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