Preston Branson scored 23 points, and fifth-ranked Westmont dominated the second half in beating rival Biola 77-61 in the Golden State Athletic Conference men’s basketball opener Tuesday night at Murchison Gym.
Branson did most of his scoring on hard drives to the basket. Jordan Sachs scored 17 points and grabbed seven rebounds and CJ Miller added 13 points and six rebounds.
“Our two senior, four-year guys were special tonight,” said Westmont head coach John Moore in reference to guards Preston Branson and Jordan Sachs. “Between those two guys, they had six assists and no turnovers, lots of rebounds, and shot us into a win.”
Branson was returning to the team after experiencing a punctured lung on Dec. 29 in the Westminster game.
“Preston had a gutsy performance,” said Moore. “He went out there and played with a great tenor of mental toughness, making big shots for us. He made free throws that his arm didn’t feel like he could shoot. And Jordan had an extra special game.”
The Warriors closed out the first half on a 12-4 run to take a 40-35 lead into the locker room. Miller provided half those points, four on an “and-one” 3-pointer.
The scored remained close through the first six and one-half minutes of the second half. Then with 13:26 remaining in regulation, a layup by Cooper Damron (5 points, 8 rebounds) ignited a 10-0 Warrior run that gave Westmont a 56-41 lead with 10:23 to play.
However, eight straight points by the Eagles, including two 3-pointers by Kyle Bailey (16 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists), narrowed the Warrior margin to seven (56-49) with 7:52 showing on the clock. Three minutes later, the Eagles would pull to within six (60-54), but that was as close as Biola would get. Westmont scored its final 12 points at the free throw line.
Westmont improves to 13-3 on the season while Biola falls to 10-7.
Kyle Bailey was a perfect 5-for-5 shooting, including 3-for-3 from the 3-point line, to finish with 16 points for Biola. Mike Kurtz scored 14 points and Jeramy Pope added 11 points.
