MALIBU, California – All five starters scored in double-figures and the Pepperdine men's basketball team defeated visiting Concordia, 91-68, on Wednesday evening.
The Waves (4-3) shot 73.9% from the field in the first half and 66.0% overall against the Eagles, an NCAA Division II team playing this game an exhibition.
BIG WAVES
- Senior guard Colbey Ross (Aurora, Colo./Eaglecrest HS) had a team-high 21 points along with eight assists.
- Junior forward Kessler Edwards (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif./Etiwanda HS) scored 19 points on 7-for-10 shooting, just missing a chance to extend his streak of 20-point games to four. He also had a team-high seven rebounds and two blocks.
- Sophomore guard Sedrick Altman (Rialto, Calif./Colony HS) finished a point shy of his career high with 13 points on 6-for-7 shooting. He also had three rebounds, three assists and two blocks. He had a team-best plus-minus of +20.
- Junior guard Jade' Smith (Oakland, Calif./St. Joseph Notre Dame HS) had 12 points on 5-for-7 shooting.
- Sophomore forward Jan Zidek (Prague, Czech Republic) scored in double-figures for the fifth time in his five games with 11 points.
KEY STATS
- The Waves finished with their best shooting percentage in a game since March 2018.
- Concordia was held to 42.4% shooting.
- Pepperdine outscored CUI 58-36 in the paint.
- Concordia was led by Dayshone Henry's 21 points.
PLAY BY PLAY
Concordia hung close for a while, and the Eagles' last lead was at 22-21. But Pepperdine went on a 17-5 run, six of the points coming from Altman, to go up 38-27. It was 42-36 at the break as the Waves went 17-for-23 from the field.
The Waves quickly pushed the lead back to double-digits near the start of the second half on back-to-back baskets by Edwards. It grew to 70-49 with eight minutes left after Zidek finished off a 7-0 run. Pepperdine's biggest lead of the night was the final margin.
NOTABLES
- Senior guard Michael Wexler (Plymouth, Minn./Benilde-St. Margaret's School) scored the first two points of his career late in the contest.
- Before the game, it was announced that the planned home game for next Wednesday (Dec. 23) against Tarleton has been canceled due to the Texans' ongoing pause with COVID-19 issues.
UP NEXT
Pepperdine hosts UC Santa Barbara on Saturday (Dec. 19) at 3 p.m. The game will be streamed online via WaveCasts on the WCC Network with Al Epstein on the call.