Game Notes

MALIBU, Calif. -- The Pepperdine men's basketball team will make its first postseason appearance since 2002 as the Waves have earned a spot in the 16-team College Basketball Invitational (CBI) and a first-round road game at Seattle University on Wednesday.

The Waves are having their best season in more than a decade, having also attained their first winning record since 2005, their first league winning season, best WCC finish (fourth) and first WCC Tournament semifinal appearance since 2004 and their most overall wins since 2002.

At fourth place, Pepperdine finished better than predicted in the WCC preseason coaches' poll for the seventh straight year. The Waves were picked in a tie for seventh place. Pepperdine's win total under Marty Wilson has increased each year that he's been head coach (from 10 to 12 to 15 to 18 and counting).

A victory against Seattle would put the Waves into the CBI quarterfinals, where they'd face the winner of the Gardner-Webb at Colorado game next week.

GAME #32 -- Wednesday (March 18) at the Connolly Center in Seattle, Wash.: Pepperdine (18-13) vs. Seattle (16-15) at 7 p.m.

WAVECASTS -- A live audio broadcast of the Seattle game will be free to all users at PepperdineSports.com. Veteran play-by-play man Al Epstein will be behind the microphone (now in his 30th season, he has a streak going of 907 consecutive broadcasts).

SOCIAL MEDIA -- On Twitter, get the latest news on the men's basketball program at @PeppBasketball and follow our coaches at @MartyWilson4, @CoachMarkAmaral, @Coach_BMoore and @jimpelman. You can also like the Pepperdine Men's Basketball and/or Pepperdine Athletics pages on Facebook, and both PepperdineHoops and PepperdineWaves on Instagram.

MOBILE APP -- Pepperdine Athletics has launched a newly revised mobile app for iPad, iPhone and Android users. The app is free to download and features live video and statistics, news stories, rosters, schedules and more. Go to your app store and search for "Pepperdine Athletics."

HOOPS EXTRA -- Pepperdine is providing more insider content to its fans via the Hoops Extra basketball blog, which can be accessed at www.pepperdinesports.com/hoopsextra.

WCC HONORS -- Stacy Davis made the All-WCC first team for the second straight year (becoming the first Wave to collect back-to-back first team honors since Glen McGowan in 2004 and 2005). Jett Raines was All-WCC honorable mention and Shawn Olden made it three straight years with a Wave on the All-Freshman team.

POSTSEASON HISTORY -- Pepperdine is making its 27th postseason tournament appearance, but the first since 2002. It's also the Waves' first-ever berth in the CBI. The Waves have played in the NCAA Tournament 13 times (last in 2002), the NIT six times (last in 2001) and the NAIB (the precursor to the NAIA Championships) seven times (last in 1952).

The CBI is a 16-team tournament. This is the eighth year of its existence (WCC foe Santa Clara won the 2013 title). It is a single-elimination tournament, up until the best-of-three Championship Series between the final two teams (which will be televised by the CBS Sports Network). In 2015, the CBI will utilize a 30-second shot clock in order to assist the NCAA with its research on pace of play and scoring.

SEATTLE -- Pepperdine is 12-20 all-time against Seattle. Most of the meetings came between 1971-72 and 1979-80 when both schools were in the West Coast Conference. The Waves and Redhawks recently played a home-and-home series with Pepperdine winning 84-64 in Firestone Fieldhouse in January 2011, and Seattle posting an 81-70 victory at KeyArena in February 2012.

Among common opponents, the Waves went 3-0 (beating San Jose State, Cal State Northridge and Cal State Fullerton), while the Redhawks were 2-1 (wins against CSUN and San Jose State and a loss at Cal State Fullerton).

The Redhawks tied for fourth in the Western Athletic Conference's regular season but reached the championship game of the WAC Tournament before losing to New Mexico State. Pepperdine's top-ranked three-point defense will be tested by Seattle's top two scorers, Isiah Umipig (17.0 ppg, school-record 112 three-pointers made) and Jarell Flora (13.6 ppg, 72 three-pointers made).

Seattle plays most of its home games at KeyArena but with that venue unavailable this week, Wednesday's game will be at the on-campus Connolly Center. The Redhawks had just one home game there this season.

DAVIS -- Junior forward Stacy Davis has proven himself to be one of the best players on the West Coast. The two-time All-WCC first team selection is the only player in the conference ranked in the top seven in overall points (15.9, #7), rebounds (7.8, #4) and blocked shots (1.1, #4). The same was true in league play, where Davis was in the top five in all three categories: #4 in points (15.9), #5 in rebounds (7.3) and #4 in blocked shots (1.4). Facing more double-teams than ever, he's also producing a career-best 1.9 assists per game.

Davis averaged team highs of 15.1 points and 7.6 rebounds as a sophomore last season en route to All-WCC first team honors. He was also the WCC's Newcomer of the Year and All-WCC honorable mention as a 2012-13 freshman with 11.2 points and 7.3 rebounds.

Davis scored a season-high 26 points at Arizona State (12/13) in his first college game back in his home state, which is among the 10 times he's scored 20 or more points this season. He was named the WCC Player of the Week on Jan. 12 after averaging 20.5 points in road victories at BYU and San Diego.

Davis has a career-best eight double-doubles this season and now has 20 for his career, tying him for 10th most all-time at Pepperdine. Four of those double-doubles came in WCC play.

Davis has a career total of 1,299 points, 20th all-time at Pepperdine. He became Pepperdine's 38th 1,000-point scorer with a 21-point performance vs. Pacific (1/3). He is seven points away from reaching the 500-point plateau for the season (he would be Pepperdine's first player to score 500 since 2010), and he's 15 points away from 19th place on the all-time list. Davis remains on schedule to become the school's all-time leading scorer during his senior year. He's also on a pace to finish among the top four rebounders in school history.

Davis is already one of the most prolific free throw shooters ever at Pepperdine. His 371 career free throws made are fifth-most in Pepperdine history, and his career free throw percentage of 77.9% is sixth. He's made 154 free throws this season (seventh on Pepperdine's single-season top 10), which ranks 33rd nationally. This season's free throw percentage of 81.5% is on pace to be the sixth-best mark on the school's list. Davis made 95 free throws in WCC play, establishing a new Pepperdine conference-only record (although he did have the benefit of an 18-game season).

RAINES -- Junior forward Jett Raines started as a freshman, but saw his playing time diminish as a sophomore due to UCLA transfer Brendan Lane's one season as a Wave. This year, Raines has been one of the most improved players in the WCC and picked up All-WCC honorable mention notice. Raines is the only Wave to start every game this season and is averaging career highs of 10.9 points and 5.1 rebounds. He's scored 337 points this year, more than his total of 288 points as a freshman and sophomore. This season, Raines has posted his first career double-double (14 points, 10 rebounds against Cal Lutheran, 11/17), set a career high for scoring a couple of times (most recently 22 points vs. Gonzaga, 1/15) and grabbed a career-high 10 rebounds twice.

MAJOR -- Sophomore guard Jeremy Major started the first 52 games in his career, then came off the bench for a few games, and is now back in the starting lineup. If he can match his production from his first two seasons as a junior and senior, he'll finish his career as Pepperdine's all-time leader in assists and #2 in steals. This season, he's averaging 8.6 points, 3.6 assists, 3.4 rebounds and 1.5 steals. In league play only, Major finished second in the WCC in steals (1.7). He had a career-high 21 points in the season opener vs. Fresno State (11/14) and had a season-high nine assists vs. Gonzaga (1/15). He is the first Wave to have back-to-back seasons with 100+ assists since Alex Acker in 2004 and 2005. Major set a Pepperdine freshman record last year with 138 assists (which was also the most by any Wave since 1999-00) en route to WCC All-Freshman honors. He had 12 assists in a game against Green Bay last year, also setting a record for a Pepperdine true freshman.

OLDEN -- The newcomer having the most impact for the Waves is freshman guard Shawn Olden, and he was rewarded with WCC All-Freshman honors. Both overall and in league play only, he is second among all WCC freshmen and third on the team in scoring (9.4 overall, 9.3 league). Olden was a late signee whose only Division I scholarship offer was from Pepperdine, despite the fact that he was Oklahoma's state player of the year and MVP of the state tournament as a senior. Olden has started 27 of his 29 games and some of his best performances have come on the biggest stages, including team bests of 17 points at Iowa (11/24) and 13 points against Richmond (12/20) at Madison Square Garden. He also did well in home wins over Santa Clara (2/19, 16 points), Pacific (1/3, 16 points) and Portland (1/17, 15 points).

MURRAY -- Sophomore guard/forward Lamond Murray Jr. took on a much bigger role for the Waves when league play began. He averaged 8.0 points and 3.5 rebounds in 20.1 minutes during the WCC season. Eight of the nine times he's scored in double-figures this season came in league play. He shot 50.9% from the field in league games only, ranking seventh in the WCC. During the non-conference season, Murray averaged just 5.1 points and 2.4 rebounds in 15.0 minutes. He's averaging 6.9 points overall.

RUSSELL -- In the first 58 games of his career, junior guard Atif Russell had only scored in double-figures once (10 points vs. Central Michigan as a freshman). In his first two starts of the season, he immediately led the Waves in scoring in wins vs. CSUN on 12/4 (career-high 19 points on 5-for-6 three-point shooting) and at Cal State Fullerton on 12/6 (18 points). He has scored in double-figures five times this season and is averaging 5.5 points.

UDENYI -- Sophomore guard Amadi Udenyi suffered a season-ending injury at Portland (2/12) when he ruptured an Achilles tendon late in the game. He was leading the squad in assists (4.4) while averaging 6.0 points. He had a career-high nine assists in the home win vs. BYU (2/5) and scored a career-high 16 points vs. Howard (12/17). Udenyi had 11 points in the wins at LMU (12/29) and Saint Mary's (1/31). He'll also be missed for his excellent perimeter defense.

JOHN -- Freshman forward A.J. John had earned a role as one of the team's first players off the bench (he's averaging 1.1 points and 2.3 rebounds in 23 games). However, he fell ill during the team's second trip to Northern California, and he was diagnosed with viral meningitis. He had a positive recovery after stays in the hospital and at home, and he returned to Pepperdine two weeks later. Although it was originally thought that he wouldn't play again this season, John was fully cleared by doctors right before the WCC Tournament and saw a few minutes in both games.

THREE-POINT DEFENSE -- Pepperdine ranks first nationally in three-point field-goal percentage defense. Opponents have made just 26.3% of their long-distance shots. From late December through the end of January, the Waves either ranked #1 or #2 in the nation, then dropped a bit before regaining the top spot a couple of weeks ago. Opponents have made more than six three-pointers in a game only four times. The school record for a season is 29.0%. The Waves ranked #1 in WCC play at 28.2% (the best defensive performance by any WCC team since 2009). The Waves held CSUN to an 0-for-11 mark, the first time an opponent went without a three-pointer since March 1999 (Colorado), and later limited LMU to an 0-for-6 night. That's also the last time the Waves accomplished that feat twice in one season.

MORE DEFENSE -- Pepperdine is giving up 61.6 points per game overall, on pace to be the program's best mark since 1961-62 ... The Waves have had six games holding opponents below 50 points, the most since 1950-51 ... In 17 of 18 WCC games, the Waves held their opponents at or below their season scoring average at the time of the game, highlighted by a 27-point difference in the first win at BYU (the Cougars were leading the nation at the time with a 88.3 ppg average) and a 24-point difference at Gonzaga (when the Bulldogs were seventh in the nation at 80.7 points per game).

FREE THROWS -- Since setting a school record with a 76.1% free throw percentage in 1985-86, the best the Waves have done is 72.4% in 2002-03. This season, the Waves are at 74.7% (ranking 20th in the nation).

WCC WINNING NOTES -- In league play, the Waves went 8-1 when scoring 60 or more points and 2-7 when scoring 59 or less ... Also in league play, Pepperdine went 9-3 when keeping the opponent to 63 points or fewer, 1-5 when they scored more.

WCC STATS (OVERALL) -- Pepperdine ranks first in three-point defense (26.3%), second in scoring defense (61.6), second in field goal percentage defense (41.1%), second in free throw percentage (74.7%) ... Stacy Davis is seventh in scoring (15.9), fourth in rebounding (7.8), fourth in blocked shots (1.1), eighth in free throw percentage (81.5%), eighth in minutes played (32.1) ... Jett Raines is 21st in scoring (10.9), ninth in field goal percentage (50.0%) ... Jeremy Major is third in steals (1.5), eighth in assist/turnover ratio (1.8), ninth in assists (3.6).

WCC STATS (LEAGUE GAMES ONLY) -- Pepperdine ranked first in three-point defense (28.2%), second in scoring defense (61.2), second in field goal percentage defense (41.9%), second in free throw percentage (75.1%), third in blocked shots (3.9) ... Stacy Davis was fourth in scoring (15.9), fourth in blocked shots (1.4), fifth in rebounding (7.3), ninth in field goal percentage (50.5%), 10th in free throw percentage (80.5%) ... Jett Raines was 21st in scoring (11.4) ... Jeremy Major was second in steals (1.7), fifth in assist/turnover ratio (2.3), seventh in assists (3.9) ... Lamond Murray Jr. was seventh in field goal percentage (50.9%).

THAT'S ODD -- The Waves are 3-4 this season when shooting 50% or better from the field, yet 10-2 when shooting in the 40s and 5-7 when shooting less than 40%.

COMEBACKS -- In five of the Waves' last six victories, Pepperdine overcame mid-to-large first-half deficits to win. The Waves trailed by as many as seven vs. San Diego (3/7), nine at Pacific (1/29), nine vs. LMU (2/28), 11 at Saint Mary's (1/31) and 16 vs. BYU (2/5, the program's biggest comeback since a 19-point deficit at Pacific on Dec. 1, 2010). The Waves took the lead after a 15-point deficit vs. San Francisco (2/21) but couldn't hang on to that one.

CLOSE CALLS -- Five times, opponents have missed free throws in the closing seconds to give the Waves a chance to tie or win. But, Pepperdine is 0-for-5 in these instances: Down two vs. Richmond (12/20), the Waves missed a jumper at the buzzer ... Down two vs. IUPUI (12/27), the Waves missed both a three-pointer and a follow shot after a long rebound at the buzzer ... Down three vs. Gonzaga (1/15), the Bulldogs purposefully fouled with 1.9 seconds left. The Waves made the first free throw and intentionally missed the second, but Gonzaga got the rebound ... Down three at Santa Clara (1/24), the Waves missed a three-pointer at the buzzer ... Down two vs. San Francisco (2/21), a half-court shot looked to be on line but narrowly missed.

HOME WINS -- The Waves went 10-5 in Firestone Fieldhouse, the first time with double-digit home victories since 2001-02.

ROAD WINS -- Pepperdine finished with a winning road record in league play (5-4) for the first time since 2004, and with its most wins since 2002 ... In the WCC, only Pepperdine, Gonzaga and LMU have won in Provo and Moraga in the same season ... At 7-6, the Waves have their most road wins since 2002 and could end up with their first overall winning road record since that year.

WCC NOTES -- The Waves won their league opener for the sixth time in seven years ... The Waves became just the fourth WCC team to win in Provo since BYU joined the league ... The Waves have won back-to-back games at San Diego for the first time since 2003 and 2004 ... The Waves won two games in one weekend road trip (BYU, USD) for the first time since 2002, and then did it again three weeks later (Pacific, SMC) ... The Waves' home game against #3 Gonzaga was the fifth time that a top-three-ranked team had played in Firestone Fieldhouse ... Pepperdine beat Portland for the fifth straight time at home ... The Waves were 5-4 at the midway point for the second straight year ... Pepperdine ended a 17-game losing streak to Saint Mary's ... After sweeping the regular-season series, the Waves have won three of the last four against BYU ... Among the other seven schools, Pepperdine is the first WCC team to amass a total of three victories in one season against Gonzaga, Saint Mary's and BYU ... Pepperdine swept the season series from rival Loyola Marymount for the third straight year.

NON-CONFERENCE NOTES -- Six home games, trips to 2014 NCAA Tournament teams Iowa (11/24) and Arizona State (12/13) and the Gotham Classic in Madison Square Garden vs. Richmond (12/20) highlighted the non-conference schedule ... Fresno State, who the Waves beat in the season opener, made it to the final of the 2014 CBI Tournament ... Pepperdine won its first three games of the season by 15, 15 and 19 points. The last time the Waves won three consecutive games by 15 or more points was February 1994. The last time they did it to start a season was 1991-92 ... Pepperdine's 19-point win at San Jose State was the team's biggest on the road since December 2003 ... Pepperdine had a winning record at the start of league play for the fourth straight year.

ROSTER NUMBERS -- The Waves have zero seniors on the roster in 2014-15. Twelve of the 16 players are freshmen or sophomores. Pepperdine has four juniors, five sophomores, two redshirt freshmen and five true freshmen. Eight returning letterwinners (including three starters) accounted for 54.1% of last year's points and 58.7% of the rebounds. Of the 14 players that have seen action this year, seven are returning letterwinners and seven have seen the floor for the first time.

WCC POLL -- For the seventh straight year, Pepperdine finished better than predicted in the WCC coaches' preseason poll (coinciding with when Marty Wilson came back to the program). The Waves were picked to finish in a tie for seventh place. The poll went in the following order: Gonzaga, BYU, Saint Mary's, San Francisco, San Diego, Portland, Pepperdine and Santa Clara (tied), Loyola Marymount and Pacific.

HALL OF HONOR -- Dane Suttle, the all-time leading scorer in Pepperdine history, was the Waves' inductee into the WCC Hall of Honor in the midst of the WCC Championships. Suttle scored 1,701 points in his four seasons (1980-83). As a 1982-83 senior, he averaged 23.4 points (the third-best average in school single-season history and a figure that ranked him 14th nationally), and was named All-American honorable mention by the Associated Press while sharing the WCC's Player of the Year award.

2013-14 SEASON -- The Waves are coming off their best season in years. Last year's team won 15 games, the most since 2004-05. And after being picked to finish 10th in the WCC preseason coaches' poll, the Waves ended up in fifth place, good for their first top-half finish in the standings since 2004. Stacy Davis gave the Waves their first All-WCC first team selection since 2005, and Brendan Lane was Pepperdine's first WCC Defensive Player of the Year since 2002. (Lane, by the way, was part of the Sacramento Kings' NBA Summer League championship-winning team in 2014 and is currently playing in Japan with the Mitsubishi Diamond Dolphins.)

WILSON -- This is Marty Wilson's fourth year as head coach at Pepperdine and his 18th season in Malibu. He has compiled an impressive record here beginning as a student-athlete (1985-89), continuing as an assistant coach (1991-96, which included a brief stint as the interim head coach) and then returning as the associate head coach for three seasons (2009-11) under Tom Asbury. He was then elevated to the position of head coach following Asbury's retirement after the 2010-11 season. Wilson was also an assistant at San Diego, UC Santa Barbara and Utah inbetween stints at Pepperdine and has been a Division I coach for 24 seasons. He ended his playing career #5 all-time in assists at Pepperdine with 342 (he's still #9). The team went to the NCAA Tournament twice and the NIT twice in Wilson's four seasons on the court. As a Pepperdine assistant, the team took part in the NCAA Tournament three times and the NIT once.

WILSONISMS -- Some of these may be borrowed from other programs, but Marty Wilson has several expressions and acronyms he often uses that help define his coaching philosophy. Both Feet In: Players are expected to fully buy in to the program. When Wilson is speaking to the team at center court, everyone must have both feet in the jump circle ... OKGs: Wilson looks to recruit "our kind of guys," student-athletes who will represent Pepperdine well and succeed academically and athletically ... Show Me, Don't Tell Me: Actions speak louder than words ... GID: There isn't always a perfect way to accomplish something, so players just have to "get it done" ... DAT: The Waves use the words "discipline, accountability and trust" as part of a triangle and expect their student-athletes to embrace these ideals.

ASSISTANTS -- All of Pepperdine's full-time staff is back this season. Associate head coach Mark Amaral and assistant coach Bryant Moore are both in their fourth seasons. Amaral and Marty Wilson were assistants together at UC Santa Barbara for four years. Moore worked with the Cleveland Cavaliers for five seasons in a variety of roles, including player development coordinator, during the LeBron James era. John Impelman, who was the director of operations for two seasons, was promoted to assistant coach before last season. Impelman is the great-grandson of UCLA coaching legend John Wooden. Jon Pastorek, previously a graduate manager, is in his second season as the director of operations.

ACADEMICS -- Marty Wilson takes his team's academics very seriously, and the results have been very good. All 10 seniors that have played under Wilson have graduated. Malte Kramer was Pepperdine's co-Valedictorian and became the program's first-ever Capital One/CoSIDA Academic All-American in 2013-14. Since Wilson's return to the program in 2008-09, players have earned 11 spots on the NABC Honors Court, 11 WCC All-Academic nods and 22 WCC Commissioner's Honor Roll appearances.

RECRUITING -- Pepperdine landed one recruit during the fall signing period. Kameron Edwards of Etiwanda (Calif.) High School will join the Waves in 2015-16. The 6-foot-6 forward averaged 13.6 points and a team-best 7.2 rebounds on one of the state's top teams as a junior. He was named to the All-CIF Southern Section Open Division second team.

UNIVERSITY EVENTS CENTER -- A key piece in the Campus Life Project, which will benefit the entire university, is a new, state-of-the-art, 5,000-seat University Events Center. The proposed venue will someday replace Firestone Fieldhouse as the Waves' home. The project has been approved by the County of Los Angeles and the California Coastal Commission, so the biggest step remaining before the arena can be built is fundraising.

PEPPERDINE BASKETBALL -- This is the 77th season of Pepperdine men's basketball, and the 42nd season that the Waves have called Firestone Fieldhouse home. The Waves began the campaign with an all-time record of 1,167-1,008 (.537). Pepperdine has been to the NCAA Tournament 13 times (last in 2002) and has won 12 West Coast Conference regular-season titles (last in 2002) and three WCC Tournament crowns (last in 1994). William "Bird" Averitt led the nation in scoring in 1972-73 with 33.9 points per game.

WAVES IN THE PROS -- Pepperdine once had a streak of 34 consecutive seasons with at least one Pepperdine alum on an NBA roster, which began in 1976-77 after the ABA/NBA merger and ended in 2010-11. Seventeen former Pepperdine players have seen action in the NBA, a list that includes notables such as Dennis Johnson (a 2010 Naismith Hall of Fame inductee, the 1979 NBA Finals MVP and a three-time NBA champion) and Doug Christie (a 15-year NBA veteran who was a mainstay on the All-Defensive Team). Two Waves -- Yakhouba Diawara (2012/France) and Marcos Leite (1972, 1980, 1984/Brazil) -- competed at the Olympics. Mychel Thompson is the most recent Wave to play in the NBA, appearing in five games for the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2011-12. He is currently in the NBA's D-League with the Santa Cruz Warriors.

2013/2015/2018 NCAA WEST REGIONALS -- Pepperdine University was the host institution for the 2013 West Regional of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament and will do so again in 2015 and 2018. The Waves partnered with AEG/Staples Center and the Los Angeles Sports & Entertainment Commission to bring NCAA postseason basketball to the City of Angels for the first time since 1994.

ABOUT PEPPERDINE UNIVERSITY -- Pepperdine boasts a one-of-a-kind athletic department with unprecedented success for a school of its size. The Waves have won NCAA Division I championships in five different men's sports -- one of just 17 schools to have accomplished this feat -- and nine overall. Of this elite group, Pepperdine has the smallest undergraduate enrollment, is the only school without football and is the only university that has not been affiliated with a "major" conference. The Waves have won a total of 23 team or individual national championships in their history. Pepperdine has also earned the Division I-AAA All-Sports Trophy, an award based on postseason success that's given to the top non-football school, three times (most recently in 2011-12). Located in scenic Malibu, Calif., the university overlooks the Pacific Ocean and its campus and athletic facilities are regularly voted among the nation's most beautiful. Pepperdine, which is affiliated with the Church of Christ, ranks #54 overall on U.S. News and World Report's list of America's best colleges.