On Saturday, Feb. 11, both Biola’s men and women basketball teams welcomed the Azusa Pacific teams to La Mirada. The women won a thriller and triumphed 79-72 while the men fell 75-64. 

WOMEN CLING TO LEAD LATE

Through three quarters of the game, the Eagles dominated the Cougars, outscoring them by 17 points with a 69-52 lead. Azusa started the fourth quarter with a deficit but made a comeback and outscored Biola 20-10 in the final frame.  This last push was not enough for Azusa to prevail, as Biola was able to successfully cling to a 79-72 victory against their long-time rival. 

The victory was a well-rounded team effort. Graduate guard Aysia Johnson led the team with 18 points, four assists and four rebounds as well as a block and steal. She shot an efficient 8-11 on the night, going 2-3 from three-point range. Redshirt sophomore guard Laila Walker also had a big bulk of the teams scoring with 17 points. She tacked on four assists and four rebounds as well to round out her solid performance. 

MEN BLOWN OUT IN FIRST

The men’s game was opposite the women’s game. In the first half, the Eagles were outscored a whopping 40-19, but made a minor comeback, outshooting the Cougars by 10 in the final half. The effort was not enough to win but prevented an embarrassing blowout. Sophomore guard Daniel Esparaza and redshirt senior Alex Wright led the Eagles with 20 and 18 points respectively. In addition, sophomore forward Hunter Ruck was able to get a double-double, with 11 points and 12 big rebounds. While they didn’t get the result they wanted, it was still a well fought effort for the Eagles. 

Up next, both men and women teams visit Concordia on Thursday, Feb. 16. Stats from the match can be found on the Biola Athletics website.