Alan Nakamura has been named the newest Biola Women's Basketball head coach, taking over for Dr. Bethany Miller as she transitions into the new role of Associate Athletic Director.

"It's an honor to join the Biola family," said Nakamura. "I am looking forward to being a part of this top Christian university. Biola has an outstanding reputation as being a loving, high-quality, Christ-centered university and I am thanful for the opportunity to build on the good work of Coach Miller, Coach Crawford and the players and coaches who have contributed to the excellent tradition of Biola Basketball over the years."
 
Nakamura comes to Biola having spent the previous 14 seasons by the beach as the assistant coach of Point Loma's women's basketball team. In 2014-15, he helped guide the Sea Lions to a third-place finish in the PacWest Conference and a playoff victory in the NCAA Regional First Round. Point Loma defeated the NCAA Division II No. 1 team, Alaska-Anchorage on their home court in that playoff first round game.
 
"Coach Alan Nakamura is an excellent fit for this position," said Miller. "He has a wealth of coaching expertise in the GSAC and the PacWest and is a strong man of faith and Christian character."
 
Nakamura is no stranger to the NAIA, as the Sea Lions are a former member of the Golden State Athletic Conference. He was a part of the Point Loma coaching staff when the team won at least 20 games and advanced to the NAIA National Tournament for seven of its final eight years in the NAIA.
 
His responsibilities in San Diego included developing the perimeter players, scouting, running the defense and handling recruiting. His Sea Lions gave up just 62.3 points-per-game to their opponents in 2014-15, ranking them No. 1 in the PacWest Conference, which was a NCAA powerhouse, sending three teams to the national tournament.

"The top priority will be to use godly means to provide the best experience possible for our student-athletes," said Nakamura. "We will focus on recruiting high-quality people who can excel in the classroom, on campus, in the community and on the court."
 
Nakamura brings a ton of coaching experience with him to Biola, as prior to his 14 years at Point Loma he was a high school teacher and coach. He has experience coaching baseball, football, surfing and girl's and boy's basketball. He's also got junior college and club coaching experience in football, basketball and baseball.
 
He graduated from San Diego State with a B.S. in Psychology and went on to get a M.S. in Education/Physical Education from Azusa Pacific.
 
"His priorities are the experience and growth of the student-athletes, and I cannot imagine a better person to take over this program," said Miller. "These young women will be blessed to be coached by a humble and passionate leader who will invest in their lives as athletes and as people."
 
In his spare time, Nakamura is an avid surfer. He's a two-time Southern California Master's Champion, won a national championship as a member of San Diego State's surfing team and spent some time of the Professional Surfing Association of America Tour.
 
Nakamura currently lives in the Claremont area with his wife, Franci, and their children Kealoha, Kalani, Alec and Selah-Joy.
 
He takes the reins of the women's basketball program heading into the fall of 2015.