Down seven points with six minutes remaining, men’s basketball came from behind to defeat Pomona-Pitzer 73-70. The win was the first for the Eagles since their season opener on Nov. 9 against West Coast Baptist College.

Pierre Zook lead the team with 19 points, including five assists and three rebounds. The junior guard was a consistent 7-11 shooting from the field and was on fire from the three-point line, going 4-5.

Senior forward Andre Murillo picked up his second double-double of the season with 18 points and 14 boards.

The Eagles led for the first six and a half minutes of the first half until Pomona guard Xavyr Moss hit a three to give the Sagehens a two-point lead.

Biola battled back over the next 10 minutes, building a sizeable lead. Zook hit back-to-back threes to put the Eagles up eight. The Eagles then saw their lead disappear after Pomona-Pitzer sunk several three-pointers of their own. The first-half buzzer sounded with the Sagehens leading by four.

Both teams traded points for the first part of the second half. After a Murillo layup with four minutes remaining, and a two point lead for PP, guard Dakari Archer scored seven unanswered points to give the Eagles the lead.

Pomona-Pitzer scored twice to retake the lead, but Archer struck for the Eagles again, this time sinking a three-point with less than two minutes to play. Thanks to solid defense and a few misses by the Sagehens, Biola held on to win by a close 73-70.

The win was instrumental in getting the men back on track after a rocky last three games. With losses to No. 15 Cal State San Marcos, Carroll College and Montana Tech, the 1-3 Eagles appeared to be slipping in the early stages of the season.

The win puts them in striking range of .500 with a big rivalry game up next. Biola will travel north to take on Azusa Pacific University at 7:30 p.m. this Saturday. The Eagles have lost two out of the last three meetings, and have yet to beat the Cougars since they left for the NCAA.