LA MIRADA – After 10 months and one of the worst pandemics in the history of our country, a bright light has shown on the campus of Biola University – the return of sports and the men’s and women’s basketball seasons.

A season that was supposed to begin in early November finally tipped off inside Chase Auditorium last Saturday as the Eagles hosted Northwest Nazarene University from Nampa, Idaho for a nonconference game.

A few of the usual things, however, were missing – the cheerleaders, the noise, the parents and, of course, the loyal fans.

The players were just finally glad to have a live game. Former Biola women’s basketball coach and current senior director of athletics, Bethany Miller, who along with athletic trainer Cory Smith, were the only ones in the stands throughout the games. Both women’s teams did show up in the second half of the men’s games, though.

Both Biola teams begin PacWest Conference action tonight (Friday, Jan. 22), as the women host rival APU at 2 pm, followed by the men at 5 pm.

APU will host Biola on Saturday for a pair of games with the same start times.

"This has meant so much to us after 10 months of hard work to get to this point," Miller said. “There have been so many protocols, so many administrative layers and really our focus on student-athletes putting in such hard work to return to sport. So to get to this day, to be day one of a competitive season for our basketball programs and really for our entire university, has just been a tremendous sacrifice."

With all of that, the games still went on and after two action-filled contests, the Eagles came out with a split on the afternoon.

In game one of the doubleheader, the Biola men fell to NNU, 90-81, followed by a nail-biter victory by the women, 64-60.

The men had balanced scoring, as six players scored in double figures, led by senior guard/forward Michael Bagatourian (7-12 FG) with 15 points.

“We’re just happy to be playing,” Bagatourian said. “The different part wasn’t the game, but the pre-game routine. It was held outside. And we sat apart from each other (on the bench) in the game. It was really interesting as it was easier to hear my teammates and the plays during the game.”

Other double-figure scoring for the men were: junior guard Alex Wright (6-13 FG, 6 RB) and senior guard Chris Rossow (6-15 FG, 2-2 FT, 5 RB, 9 A) had 14 points each and junior guard Whitten Dominguez (5-7 FG, 3-4 3PM) and senior forward Jesse Elrod (4-5 FG, 4-4 FT) scored 13. Freshman center Max Milovich (4-7 FG, 5 RB) added 10 points.

NNU was led by former Damien High School player, Ezekiel Alley, with a game-high 23 points.

The women, who had four players in double figures, were led by sophomore guard Stephanie Lee (4-12 FG, 5-6 FT, 6 RB) with 15 points.

Also leading the way for the women were junior guard Aysia Johnson (3-9 FG, 6-8 FT, 4 RB) and redshirt junior Danita Estorga (5-11 FG, 2-5 3PM, 6 RB) with 12 points. Senior forward Jazz Benn (3-6 FG, 2-2 3PM, 2-2 FT, 7 RB) added 10 points.

Men’s highlights:

The fast-paced game started and ended with three-point baskets by Alley in the first half and in between the Nighthawks knocked down 10 three-pointers and shot 35 in the game (16-35).

The Eagles were led by a trio of three’s, with two coming from Whitten in the half.

Biola (0-1), which ended the season last year in the championship game of the PacWest, trailed Nazarene by five points twice in an otherwise close half.

A short jumper by Bagatourian tied the game at 37-37 with 3:42 left in the opening half. A dunk by Wright later kept the game close, 40-39, but the Nighthawks finished the half strong.

They went on a 12-4 run to lead 52-43 at the intermission.

NNU built up a 20-point lead, 83-63, with 7:13 left in the game, but the Eagles ended the game with a flurry.

Biola finished strong with an 18-7 run, connecting on seven of 13 shots, led by Dominguez with seven points, which included a 3-pointer.

Dominguez was actually seen diving for a ball at midcourt with just seconds left in the game.

“Honestly, it doesn’t surprise me,” Bagatourian said. “He just keeps playing.”

Elrod also said of Dominguez’ hustle to the end, “…That’s just competing at the end of the day. That’s what Biola athletics is all about.”

Women’s highlights

“I think our players really appreciate the chance just to compete and everything that the university has done for them,” Biola Women’s coach Alan Nakamura said. “The players talk about that often. It’s healthy and it’s good and character building.

“The final score is a nice bonus for them.”

Biola (1-0) jumped out to a quick 7-0 lead behind five from Lee and stretched the lead to 11 on a 3-pointer by Estorga for a 13-2 advantage halfway through the opening quarter.

The Eagles kept the pressure up maintaining an 11-point lead, 21-10, until the 7:43 mark of the second quarter before NNU came alive. The Nighthawks made a game of it with an 11-0 run of their own to tie the game at 21-21.

The Eagles answered with a 6-2 run to end the half, 27-23, highlighted by a 3-pointer by Benn with 16 seconds left.

Nazarene led only once in the opening half.

The second half was even with both teams scoring 37 points each.

Nazarene last led, 56-54, with 2:33 left in the game, but Biola hung on for the 64-60 win. The Eagles were led by seven points from Lee in the final minutes.

Biola red-shirt sophomore Abigail Laberge (4-5 FG, 1-1 3PM, 3 RB), who sat out the entire 2019-20 season with an injury, finished with a strong nine points for the Eagles.

NNU coach Steve Steele and his team just finished their third consecutive road game to start the season.

“All three teams that we played had no scouting reports because none of them had played any games,” said Steele, who is from Southern California and coached at Brea O’Linda High School. “I was happy that the ball went up and it’s been a long time since everyone’s played games.

“Alan (Nakamura) is a great guy and he worked hard to make this game happen.”

What they said after game one:

Women’s coach Alan Nakamura: “That was hard earned, wasn’t it?

“It seemed like the shutdown went on forever. We just take it a day at a time. It’s been a long wait. Those girls hadn’t played a game in almost a year.

“Abigail didn’t play in a game for two years. She did well.

“I hope our players really appreciated the chance just to compete.”

Jazz Benn, sr. forward: “[No fans] was definitely different. I don’t think it made a difference to us. Of course, it’s nice to have fans to support you. I know everyone’s parents are watching online.

On the nonconference game: “This is like practice for us to prepare for our next game.”

On the year 2020: “It’s definitely a different senior year than I thought I would have. It’s a unique experience and I’m just really here to support my team. We’re taking in everything we can and making the most of it.”

Stephanie Lee, sophomore guard: “It was really exciting. Playing without a mask was a lot different. A lot of the girls on the team said we could breathe easier. I feel like we were a lot quicker and were able to have good endurance in the whole game.

“Halfway through our game, some of the guys (men’s team) were cheering us on.

On the game vs. Northwest Nazarene: “I feel like getting this win set the tone for our season. I feel like it gives us good momentum going into this week playing APU. From this game we can definitely learn from our mistakes and capitalize on that and improve for this week.

On the “pod” schedule: “We’ll just have to get used to it. Playing back-to-back we have to make sure we keep our bodies healthy and prepare for the second game.

Chris Rossow, sr. guard: “It felt good. There were a lot of emotions for not playing in 10 months. This is the first competitive game and it felt good to just get back out there and play with the guys.

“I felt good and got my teammates involved. A little rusty, but just have to get in that game rhythm.

Jesse Elrod, sr. forward: “[Saturday] was our first time playing five-on-five in about 10 months.

“It’s a grind at the end of the day. We’ve been practicing for four and a half months and we haven’t had a lot of guys in practice.

“At the end of the day, if we can create our own energy and feed off of each other, especially on the defensive end, obviously that’s what we need to improve on, then I think we can compete at the highest level against the best teams in our league.”

Alex Wright, sr. forward: “When the tip went up, it just felt good. Finally we can play and we’re back on the floor together. We’re all trying to get our game legs back and get the chemistry. It’s about time, it’s about time.

“We’re gritty and at the end of the day we want to out grind the other teams. Me, Chris (Rossow), Whit (Whitten) and Mike (Bagatourian), we’re coming at you with all we have.”

On having no Biola fans in the stands:

“It’s a lot different. We have to be in a little better shape this year to keep our energy up without the fans. We just have to rely on each other and get the love from our bench and there aren’t any fans to get love from. It has to be internal and internal as a team.”

On upcoming games: “We have Azusa (APU) coming up first and they’re always a good team. It should be a good challenge and Irvine (Concordia) also.”

What was it like once you started the game, with no fans and all of the different protocols?

“Even though it looks a little bit different, it’s still the sport that I love. That goes for everyone here. I know we’re still pumped. We’re still pumped to be playing again. We got our feet wet today (Saturday) on how everything is going to be with the protocols and the benches wiped. We’re already looking forward to next week.

“I’m excited. We have film to watch now and get after it this week in practice and that’s going to set the tone for our games for the rest of the season.”

Michael Bagatourian, sr. guard/forward: “My parents did watch the game online and did have questions of how different everything was. They were just excited to watch the game online.

“I would imagine we have the toughest 12-game schedule in the country. We basically have to come prepared each game (in this format). I’ve never been part of a season with back-to-back games (with the same teams). Winning the first game of each set is ginormous.”

On the late run in the game for a comeback attempt: “That’s not surprising when we’re down and we came back. That’s because of the guys we have.”