PORTLAND, Oregon – The Pepperdine men's basketball team went on to the road and hammered Portland, 83-58, on Thursday night for its most lopsided win in West Coast Conference play since 2002.
Four Waves scored in double-figures as the squad shot 54.7% from the field and improved to 11-11 overall and 4-4 in the WCC. Pepperdine scored the first 10 points of the game and took a 46-20 halftime lead over the Pilots (7-16, 0-8).
BIG WAVES
- Junior forward Kameron Edwards (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif./Etiwanda HS) picked up his second double-double of the season with 14 points and 12 rebounds.
- Sophomore guard Colbey Ross (Aurora, Colo./Eaglecrest HS) narrowly missed a double-double with 14 points and nine assists, while adding three steals.
- Senior guard Eric Cooper Jr. (Ontario, Calif./St. Anthony HS/Nevada) sank four three-pointers and scored 13 points.
- Freshman forward Kessler Edwards (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif./Etiwanda HS) had 10 points and five rebounds.
KEY STATS
- In addition to the four Waves that scored in double-figures, eight players scored at least five points.
- The Waves held the Pilots to 30.5% shooting, a season low by an opponent.
- Pepperdine made more three-pointers (10 to seven) and enjoyed a 36-18 advantage in the paint.
- The Waves had a 39-29 advantage on the boards.
- Portland did not have a player score in double-figures.
PLAY BY PLAY
Four different Waves got on the board in the first three-plus minutes as the Waves jumped out to a 10-0 lead. At 13-6, a 14-0 run over four minutes jumped the lead to 27-6 with eight minutes left in the half. Pepperdine led by 28 before going into the break with a 46-20 advantage. The Waves shot 61.5% from the field in the first half.
The Waves didn't let up in the second half, going up by 30 at 55-25 with 14:50 left after a 6-0 run. Pepperdine's biggest lead was 34 at 68-34 with 9:40 left after a
Kessler Edwards three-pointer. It was 32 points at 79-47 with 3:40 left when the Waves began to clear the bench.
NOTABLES
- The last time Pepperdine won a WCC game by a larger margin was on February 23, 2002, at home against Santa Clara (96-58).
- The last time Pepperdine won a WCC road game by a larger margin was on February 15, 2001, at Portland (94-58).
- The Waves have now won two of their last three road games after losing the previous 22 straight.
- Pepperdine ended a five-game losing streak in the Chiles Center.
- In the last two meetings against Portland, the Waves have outscored the Pilots by a combined 88-37 in the first half (it was 42-17 at the break in Malibu last season).With 10 more tonight, Pepperdine has made 35 three-pointers over the last three games.
QUOTABLE
Pepperdine Coach
Lorenzo Romar said: "I thought our guys played a very good game but the opening minutes of the game, defensively we were in sync, we were moving together, and offensively we were ready to play. It's something that we talk about, that we go out and are ready to play and I think we really were ready."
UP NEXT
Pepperdine's road trip continues at Pacific on Saturday (Feb. 2) at 7 p.m. The game will be shown on TheW.tv and Al Epstein will also have the call on WaveCasts at PepperdineWaves.com.
