Biola men’s basketball team fell 71-58 to Vanguard University in Costa Mesa on Saturday night.

Two-and-a-half minutes into the first half, senior Jeremy Pope hit a 3-pointer to put the Eagles up 3-0. However, the Eagles would not lead for the rest of the game.

The first half ended with the Lions leading 40-20. Biola had a 33.3 field goal percentage compared to Vanguard’s 47.2 percent.

Sophomore Mike Kurtz added eight points and two rebounds in the first half, and senior David Cline picked up six points and four rebounds.

Going into the second half with 19:20 on the clock, Cline hit a layup to make the score 42-22 and get the Eagles going. Vanguard’s junior Christino Zaragoza missed a 3-pointer, but Biola’s junior Zack Zaragoza got the rebound, which led to a good jumper by Cline. Cline went on to score the next four points for the Eagles.

Sophomore Dakota Anderson hit two free throws with 14:06 left on the clock, which contributed to his nine points in the game.

With 30 seconds left in regulation, sophomore Kyle Bailey got the last 2-point jumper, but it was nowhere near enough to save the Eagles, as Vanguard won the game 71-58.

“We played much better in the second half. We cut down on turnovers, we played better defense, we were more aggressive,” Kurtz said.

Biola made some improvement in the second half, scoring 22 points in the paint to Vanguard’s 12 points. Biola’s field goal percentage also improved to 50, while Vanguard’s was 34.5 percent.

Pope finished with 15 points, Cline added 14 points and eight rebounds, Kurtz had 12 points and six rebounds, and Bailey with six points.

“There's no secrets to winning in this league. If we cut down our turnovers, play aggressive, get back on transition-D [defense], and rebound we can win any given night,” Kurtz said.