Feb. 1, 2006
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Second Half of WCC Play Opens at Home
Pepperdine (6-14, 3-4) will open the second half of West Coast Conference play this week when it hosts San Diego on Thursday at 7 p.m. (PT) and San Francisco on Saturday at 2 p.m. The Waves split with the two teams in the first meeting of the season losing to the Dons in double overtime and downing the Toreros for the team's lone road win this season.
About the Waves
Pepperdine is under the direction of second-year head coach Julie Rousseau. The Waves are 6-14 (3-4 WCC) on the year after falling to rival LMU last weekend on a buzzer-beater. Sophomore Daphanie Kennedy is leading Pepperdine this season with 11.8 points per game, while Jasmane Clarendon ranks second at 11.4.
About the Toreros
San Diego is led by Tiara Harris' 13.4 points per game this season. The Toreros are 2-5 in WCC play after earning a split last weekend, defeating Saint Mary's 70-58 before falling to Santa Clara 63-67.
About the Dons
Sophomore Dominique Carter's 13.0 points per game this season is tops on the San Francisco roster, while Nickie Warren's 9.4 ranks second on the team. The Dons have dropped their last three contests heading into the weekend.
Pepperdine head coach Julie Rousseau
Julie Rousseau is in her second season as the head coach of the Pepperdine Waves. She came to Malibu after a four-year stint with the Stanford Cardinal. Previously, she served as head coach for the WNBA's L.A. Sparks.
About the Pepperdine Program
In its 30th installment, the Pepperdine women's basketball team has posted an overall record of 313-258, including a 161-122 WCC record. Since the 1985-86 season, the Waves have posted six 20 win seasons, with an all-time high of 23 coming during the 2001-02 season. Pepperdine has advanced to the NCAA tournament three times since the 1999-00 season and the WNIT post-season tournament three times since the 1998-99 season.
Pepperdine in the Polls
Pepperdine is not ranked in either the ESPN/USA Today Coaches or the Associated Press Preseason Polls.
All-Time Series Recaps
Pepperdine is 26-18 all-time against San Diego and have won the 12 meetings dating back to the 1999-2000 season. Against San Francisco, the Waves trail by a 23-22 count after falling in the first meeting. The last two contests against the Dons have gone to double overtime.
Last Time Out
Bianca Ziemann's jumper as time expired lifted Loyola Marymount to a 50-48 victory over Pepperdine last Saturday in Malibu. Jasmane Clarendon's 13 points paced the Wave offense, while Teiosha George chipped in with 10 points in 22 minutes. Pepperdine held a 43-34 advantage in rebounds but only attempted 12 free throws to the Lion's 26.
Waves Against the West Coast Conference
Pepperdine holds a series lead over four West Coast Conference teams, including Portland, Gonzaga, Loyola Marymount and San Diego. Saint Mary's, Santa Clara and San Francisco are the only programs with winning records over the Waves. Since the 1999-00 season, Pepperdine is 63-26 against conference foes.
Home Winning Streaks Over WCC Opponents
The Waves have won five or more consecutive home games against three conference foes. With nine consecutive home victories, Pepperdine has not lost to Portland since the 1996-97 season, the longest streak of its kind. The Waves have not lost to San Diego since the 1998-99 season, a span of seven games. Pepperdine has downed Saint Mary's in each of the last five home meetings dating back to the 2000-01 season.
Waves at home in Firestone
Built in 1973, Firestone Fieldhouse has been home to the Pepperdine women's basketball program in each of the team's 29 years of competition. During that time, the Waves have posted an overall record of 261-148. Pepperdine has won 10 or more games 14 times with a season-high of 15 coming during the 1980-81 season. The best winning percentage years came in 1979-80 and 1999-00 when both teams went 11-2 (.846) at home.
A Shot at the Record Books
Prior to Pepperdine's game against San Diego (1/8), the Pepperdine Waves were shooting just over 61 percent from the free throw stripe. Against the Toreros, the team connected on all nine attempts in the first half and then made true on its first 16 of the second half. With just 20 seconds remaining in the contest and leading by 30, Pepperdine looked like a lock to make its way into the NCAA record books by going 25-25 as a team from the stripe. But it was not to be as on the next to last free throw try, Shannon Johnson missed the first of two attempts as the Waves ended the contest 26-27.
Waves Youngest in WCC
The 2005-06 Pepperdine Waves are the youngest team in the West Coast Conference. With just one senior, Kelsey Ball, and two juniors, Lauren Wenski and Jasmane Clarendon, this year's team is 75 percent underclassmen. The Waves have four sophomores on the roster, including junior college transfer Nakeya Isabell, and five freshmen.
Waves Most Accurate in WCC Play
Through the first half of West Coast Conference play, Pepperdine is connecting on 42.1 percent of its field goals. The mark is the best team percentage in the WCC ahead of LMU's 41.5 and Saint Mary's 40.6. The Waves are also holding their opponents to a league--low 36.2 percent from the floor.
Road Unkind to Pepperdine
Pepperdine is just 1-10 away from Malibu this season, including dropping both road conference games last weekend to end a three-game win streak the team had strung together. During Rousseau's tenure, the Waves are just 6-17 on an opponent's home court.
70 points Equals Success
Last season, Pepperdine scored 70 or more points five times, with a season-high of 85 coming on January 13, 2005 against Portland. The Waves' record when breaking the 70-point barrier was 4-1, continuing a long-standing tradition of having success when scoring more than 70 points in a game. Since the 1990-91 season the Waves are 185-38 when scoring over 70 points including a phenomenal 34-4 over the past four seasons. In contrast, when Pepperdine fails to reach 70 points they are just 79-157 over the same 14-year span.
More on 70+
The Waves had won 16 consecutive games when breaking 70 points until dropping an 84-81 double-overtime decision to the University of San Francisco on February 3, 2005. After scoring 73 in a loss against Indiana State, Pepperdine had dropped consecutive games when breaking 70 points until an 84-61 thumping of San Diego. The previous streak dated back to November 29, 2003 when Pepperdine dropped a 95-77 decision to #19 Oklahoma at the Yellowbook Turkey Shootout in Malibu, Calif.
Pepperdine Best D1-AAA School
The Division I-AAA Athletics Directors Association presented Pepperdine the 2004-05 All-Sports Trophy as the top-rated NCAA Division I institution not competing in football. Part of the prestigious Sports Academy Directors' Cup program for all NCAA Division I schools, Pepperdine competed in 14 sports. In addition to a National Championship in men's volleyball, the Waves women's golf team finished 4th in the nation, men's tennis ended the year ranked 5th nationally, Waves baseball finished 17th in the national polls, women's soccer was rated 33rd in Division I and men's golf concluding the year 31st in the NCAA as golfer Michael Putnam won the Byron Nelson Award taking home the silver trophy at the NCAA Championships (July 7).
