Pepperdine University
Pacific
Waves Move Into First-Place Tie With Win Over Pacific
1/12/2017 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
MALIBU, Calif. - The Pepperdine women's basketball team picked up its fifth win in its last seven games, beating Pacific 59-58 at home to move into a crowded tie atop the West Coast Conference standings.
The Waves got 21 points and 10 rebounds from Yasmine Robinson-Bacote, and held off a tough Pacific squad down the stretch of a back-and-forth game. Pepperdine is now 5-11 overall and 3-2 in WCC play, while Pacific falls to 7-9, 3-2 WCC. There are seven teams tied at 3-2 in the conference standings.
The lead changed four times in a thrilling fourth quarter, with the Waves going up by one with just over two minutes to play on a Robinson-Bacote (Hillside, N.J./Hillside HS) jumper. Allie Green (Sacramento, Calif./Sacramento HS) added a jumper with 1:32 to go to make it a 59-56 lead with 1:32 to play.
After Pacific answered with a basket on the next possession, it was a defensive struggle for the final 1:15 of play, with neither team scoring a point. The Tigers missed a layup with nine seconds left and didn't hit the rim, turning the ball over on a shot-clock violation. Pacific would tie up an inbounds play by the Waves and get the ball back with 1.1 seconds to go, but were unable to get a shot off before the buzzer.
Green finished the game with 10 points and Megan House (Oceanside, Calif./J Serra Catholic HS) posted 14 points and eight rebounds to give Pepperdine three players in double figures. Green also led all players with five assists in the game. The Waves shot 45.3% for the game and held Pacific to 33.8% shooting.
The Tigers got 14 points from Desire Finnie and 10 points from Emily Simons. Pacific scored 23 points off turnovers, but Pepperdine had a slight edge with 28 points in the paint. The Waves also won the rebounding battle 39-35.
After trailing at the break, Pepperdine opened the second half on a 10-2 run, grabbing a 39-36 lead with just over six minutes left in the third quarter. The Waves would hold on to take a 47-45 lead into the fourth quarter, shooting 61.5% in the third.
The teams traded the lead three times in the first half, with Pacific taking a 34-29 advantage into the break. Pepperdine went up by four late in the first quarter and closed the period with a 17-16 advantage. The Tigers opened the second quarter on a 16-4 run, getting back-to-back-to-back threes to grab a 32-21 lead midway through the period. The Waves would finish the half on an 8-2 run of their own.
Robinson-Bacote went 5-for-6 from the floor in the first half to post nine points and Pepperdine shot 40.7% from the floor. Tylah King hit 3-of-4 threes for Pacific to also put up nine points in the first half.
Robinson-Bacote's double-double was her team-leading seventh of the season. She is fourth in the conference in scoring and third in rebounding.
The Waves hit the road on Saturday for a 2 p.m. game at Santa Clara. The Broncos are also in the midst of that seven-way tie. That game can be seen on TheW.tv.
