OCEANSIDE, Calif. – The No. 3 Cal State San Marcos men's basketball team walked off the court in relief after an 81-76 win over Biola on Tuesday night at MiraCosta College.

After expanding their lead to 16 with 8:10 remaining, the Cougars saw their lead dwindle to just four with 1:22 on the clock. However, Biola was unable to convert key possessions in the final minute as CSUSM iced the game with a 7-of-8 clip from the charity stripe down the stretch.

CSUSM improves to 18-2 overall while Biola drops to 13-4.

"Biola plays a certain style and we got caught up in it. They played great and frustrated us, but we made enough plays to win an ugly game. This happens sometimes," said CSUSM head coach Jim Saia. "Overall, as coach [John] Wooden says, 'winning is a lot better than losing', so we'll take the win and move on."

Taran Brown led the Cougars with 20 points and hit three key 3-pointers during a 21-6 stretch that handed the Cougars their biggest lead of the game midway through the final stanza. He went 6-of-9 from behind the arc for the entire game.

Julian Camper caused fits inside for Biola on his way to a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Wade Collie continued his upswing with 17 points, four boards and three blocks on the night. Point guard Blake Nash provided a serviceable eight points and a game-high nine assists.

Late in the game, Biola found its own 3-point stroke. Pierre Zook ignited a 21-9 run to bring the score to 74-70 with just 1:22 left in the second half. Eight of thos points came from Zook, who scored 17 second-half points en route and led the game with 24 points. He entered the night shooting over 50-percent from 3-point range.

"Offensively, we actually played really well. Defensively, we didn't guard really anybody; there really wasn't an energy today. Our bench played well and picked us up," said Saia.

CSUSM shot 45.9 percent for the game and made 10-of-22 3-point baskets. The Cougars survived being outrebounded, 49-36, and were the fortunate recipients of Biola's 11-of-19 mark from the free-throw line.

CSUSM hosts Menlo (1-13) this Saturday in a matinee at 3 p.m.