Thursday, January 21
Moraga, Calif.
6:30 p.m. PT
Pepperdine University
at
Saint Mary's
Jayda Ruffus-Milner
Photo by: Martin A. Folb
Pepperdine Plays Three WCC Games This Week
1/19/2021 4:32:00 PM | Women's Basketball
MALIBU, Calif. – The Pepperdine women's basketball team has three games in five days this week, taking on Saint Mary's Thursday, Pacific Saturday and San Francisco Monday in search of its first West Coast Conference win.
GAME #8: Thursday (Jan. 21) at UCU Pavilion in Moraga, Calif.: Pepperdine (3-4, 0-3 WCC) vs. Saint Mary's (2-10, 0-6 WCC) at 6:30 p.m. PT.
GAME #9: Saturday (Jan. 23) at Alex G. Spanos Center in Stockton, Calif.: Pepperdine vs. Pacific (4-3, 2-2 WCC) at 2 p.m. PT.
GAME #10: Monday (Jan. 25) at War Memorial Gym in San Francisco, Calif.: Pepperdine vs. San Francisco (5-8, 1-6 WCC) at 2 p.m. PT.
COVERAGE: Links to the broadcasts as well as live stats are available on the women's basketball schedule page on PepperdineWaves.com. Fans can also follow @WavesHoops on Twitter for live, in-game updates.
LAST WEEK: The Waves fell to PCH Cup and WCC rival Loyola Marymount 53-50 in Los Angeles. Cydney Rivera led the Waves with a career-high 14 points.
SERIES VS. SAINT MARY'S: The Gaels have a 42-34 advantage all-time over the Waves. Pepperdine won two of three games last year, including an 87-72 victory in the WCC Tournament.
SERIES VS. PACIFIC: The Tigers have won 12 of the 20 matchups between the two teams. Pepperdine has won three of the last four, splitting last year's two games. The Waves won 59-54 in Malibu, and the Tigers won 64-63 in Stockton.
SERIES VS. SAN FRANCISCO: The Waves have a 41-40 overall advantage over the Dons, and have won the last four games between the two teams. Last year, Pepperdine defeated San Francisco 82-70 in Malibu and 70-64 in San Francisco.
2019-20 WEST COAST CONFERENCE: Last year, the Waves reached the WCC Tournament semifinal for the second straight year after defeating Saint Mary's 87-72 in the opening round and BYU 62-51 in the quarterfinals. The Tournament was eventually won by Portland, defeating San Diego (who beat Pepperdine 59-44 in the semifinal) 64-63.
WCC PRESEASON TEAM/RANKINGS: The Waves were picked to finish seventh in the 2020-21 season. The entire poll is as follows: 1. Gonzaga, 2. BYU, 3. Portland, 4. San Diego, 5. Saint Mary's, 6. Pacific, 7. Pepperdine, 8. Loyola Marymount, 9. Santa Clara, 10. San Francisco.
RETURNERS: Pepperdine returns three starters from last year's team. Bambrick was the second-leading scorer on last year's team, scoring 10.4 points per game and shooting 34.2% from three, good for second on the team.
Monique Andriuolo also returns to Malibu, coming off a breakout year as a junior. She averaged 9.7 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.29 blocks per game, all while leading the team in shooting percentage (44%).
Jayla Ruffus-Milner had a stellar freshman campaign last year, being named to the WCC's All-Freshman team after scoring 5.5 points per game and bringing down 4.8 rebounds per game. She also had 26 steals, third-best on the team.
THE SQUAD: The Waves bring back seven returners and add eight newcomers to the team. The returners include a redshirt senior (Tara Dusharm), two seniors (Andriuolo and Mia Satie) two juniors (Bambrick and Cheyenne Givens), and two redshirt sophomores (Jayda and Jayla Ruffus-Milner). Also returning to the team is redshirt senior Haley Duren, who played during the 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons, and rejoins the team after taking two years off from playing collegiate basketball. New to Malibu are transfers Eve Braslis (Utah Valley), Rebekah Obinma (Texas Christian) and Cydney Rivera (Collin College) and freshmen Kendyl Carson, Rosemary Odebunmi, Jane Nwaba and Isabel Montoya.
AT THE HELM: Kristen Dowling enters her second season as Pepperdine's head women's basketball coach. In her first year, she led the team to a 16-15 overall record, including an 8-10 WCC record. The team reached the semifinals of the WCC Tournament in Las Vegas before falling to San Diego. Prior to Pepperdine, Dowling was the leader of Claremont-Mudd-Scripps' program for seven years. She led the Athenas to six straight SCIAC regular-season championships as well four SCIAC Tournament championships and two NCAA Division III Tournaments. Along the way, the team had six straight 20-win seasons including five season with at least 23 wins.
COVID CANCELLATIONS: The Waves have had five games thus far postponed or cancelled due to COVID-19 regulations. First, CSUN cancelled its season, which pushed the Waves' season opener to Nov. 29 against UCLA. The game against UCLA was subsequently postponed after a day-of-game antigen test came back positive for Pepperdine. However, after another full round of testing, it was shown that it was actually a false positive, allowing the Waves to return to basketball activities. The Dec. 3 game against UCSB was also cancelled due to COVID-19 considerations on the Gauchos' end. Pepperdine was also scheduled to play Boise State on Dec. 19, but the Mountain West changed their schedule so the conference season would start that weekend, cancelling the Waves' game. Pepperdine's final non-conference game of the year against CSU Fullerton on Dec. 21 was cancelled due to positive tests from the Titans.
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 18 schools to have accomplished this feat – and nine overall. Of this elite group, Pepperdine has the smallest undergraduate enrollment and is the only school not affiliated with a major conference. The Waves have 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 #49 overall on U.S. News and World Report's list of America's best colleges.
GAME #8: Thursday (Jan. 21) at UCU Pavilion in Moraga, Calif.: Pepperdine (3-4, 0-3 WCC) vs. Saint Mary's (2-10, 0-6 WCC) at 6:30 p.m. PT.
GAME #9: Saturday (Jan. 23) at Alex G. Spanos Center in Stockton, Calif.: Pepperdine vs. Pacific (4-3, 2-2 WCC) at 2 p.m. PT.
GAME #10: Monday (Jan. 25) at War Memorial Gym in San Francisco, Calif.: Pepperdine vs. San Francisco (5-8, 1-6 WCC) at 2 p.m. PT.
COVERAGE: Links to the broadcasts as well as live stats are available on the women's basketball schedule page on PepperdineWaves.com. Fans can also follow @WavesHoops on Twitter for live, in-game updates.
LAST WEEK: The Waves fell to PCH Cup and WCC rival Loyola Marymount 53-50 in Los Angeles. Cydney Rivera led the Waves with a career-high 14 points.
SERIES VS. SAINT MARY'S: The Gaels have a 42-34 advantage all-time over the Waves. Pepperdine won two of three games last year, including an 87-72 victory in the WCC Tournament.
SERIES VS. PACIFIC: The Tigers have won 12 of the 20 matchups between the two teams. Pepperdine has won three of the last four, splitting last year's two games. The Waves won 59-54 in Malibu, and the Tigers won 64-63 in Stockton.
SERIES VS. SAN FRANCISCO: The Waves have a 41-40 overall advantage over the Dons, and have won the last four games between the two teams. Last year, Pepperdine defeated San Francisco 82-70 in Malibu and 70-64 in San Francisco.
2019-20 WEST COAST CONFERENCE: Last year, the Waves reached the WCC Tournament semifinal for the second straight year after defeating Saint Mary's 87-72 in the opening round and BYU 62-51 in the quarterfinals. The Tournament was eventually won by Portland, defeating San Diego (who beat Pepperdine 59-44 in the semifinal) 64-63.
WCC PRESEASON TEAM/RANKINGS: The Waves were picked to finish seventh in the 2020-21 season. The entire poll is as follows: 1. Gonzaga, 2. BYU, 3. Portland, 4. San Diego, 5. Saint Mary's, 6. Pacific, 7. Pepperdine, 8. Loyola Marymount, 9. Santa Clara, 10. San Francisco.
RETURNERS: Pepperdine returns three starters from last year's team. Bambrick was the second-leading scorer on last year's team, scoring 10.4 points per game and shooting 34.2% from three, good for second on the team.
Monique Andriuolo also returns to Malibu, coming off a breakout year as a junior. She averaged 9.7 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.29 blocks per game, all while leading the team in shooting percentage (44%).
Jayla Ruffus-Milner had a stellar freshman campaign last year, being named to the WCC's All-Freshman team after scoring 5.5 points per game and bringing down 4.8 rebounds per game. She also had 26 steals, third-best on the team.
THE SQUAD: The Waves bring back seven returners and add eight newcomers to the team. The returners include a redshirt senior (Tara Dusharm), two seniors (Andriuolo and Mia Satie) two juniors (Bambrick and Cheyenne Givens), and two redshirt sophomores (Jayda and Jayla Ruffus-Milner). Also returning to the team is redshirt senior Haley Duren, who played during the 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons, and rejoins the team after taking two years off from playing collegiate basketball. New to Malibu are transfers Eve Braslis (Utah Valley), Rebekah Obinma (Texas Christian) and Cydney Rivera (Collin College) and freshmen Kendyl Carson, Rosemary Odebunmi, Jane Nwaba and Isabel Montoya.
AT THE HELM: Kristen Dowling enters her second season as Pepperdine's head women's basketball coach. In her first year, she led the team to a 16-15 overall record, including an 8-10 WCC record. The team reached the semifinals of the WCC Tournament in Las Vegas before falling to San Diego. Prior to Pepperdine, Dowling was the leader of Claremont-Mudd-Scripps' program for seven years. She led the Athenas to six straight SCIAC regular-season championships as well four SCIAC Tournament championships and two NCAA Division III Tournaments. Along the way, the team had six straight 20-win seasons including five season with at least 23 wins.
COVID CANCELLATIONS: The Waves have had five games thus far postponed or cancelled due to COVID-19 regulations. First, CSUN cancelled its season, which pushed the Waves' season opener to Nov. 29 against UCLA. The game against UCLA was subsequently postponed after a day-of-game antigen test came back positive for Pepperdine. However, after another full round of testing, it was shown that it was actually a false positive, allowing the Waves to return to basketball activities. The Dec. 3 game against UCSB was also cancelled due to COVID-19 considerations on the Gauchos' end. Pepperdine was also scheduled to play Boise State on Dec. 19, but the Mountain West changed their schedule so the conference season would start that weekend, cancelling the Waves' game. Pepperdine's final non-conference game of the year against CSU Fullerton on Dec. 21 was cancelled due to positive tests from the Titans.
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 18 schools to have accomplished this feat – and nine overall. Of this elite group, Pepperdine has the smallest undergraduate enrollment and is the only school not affiliated with a major conference. The Waves have 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 #49 overall on U.S. News and World Report's list of America's best colleges.
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