Box Score LOS ANGELES, California – The Pepperdine women's basketball team fell to #20 UCLA 78-69 on Wednesday night in the season opener.
Ally Stedman had a phenomenal debut, dropping 28 points.
BIG WAVES
- Freshman guard Ally Stedman (Phoenix, Ariz./Pinnacle HS) led the Waves with 28 points, of which 18 points came in the first two quarters.
- Senior guard Malia Bambrick (Santa Clarita, Calif./Bishop Alemany HS) had 17 points.
- Senior guard Cheyenne Givens (Gardena,Calif./Serra HS) had eight points.
GAME RECAP
The Waves scored first with a three-point shot from Stedman, but the Bruins tied the game with a three-point shot of their own. Pepperdine took the lead from another three-point jumper from Stedman and a fastbreak shot from Carson. UCLA had a three-point shot and a layup of their own to time the game again 8-8. It was back and forth for the Waves and Bruins, as Pepperdine would take the lead and UCLA would tie it back up. Jane Nwaba put the Waves up by three, 14-11, and the Bruins scored on a layup and a shot from in the paint to take the lead for the first time in the game, 15-14. Pepperdine went on an eight-point scoring run to close out the first quarter ahead 22-15.
In the second quarter, it was turn of events as the Bruins went on a 10-point scoring run before Bambrick banked a shot from long range to put the Waves back between one, 26-25. Pepperdine got the lead back from back-to-back three-pointers by Bambrick, 31-29. The Waves and Bruins went into the half tied 42-42.
After the half, the Bruins went right back at the Waves with a 13-point scoring run to go up 55-43. Pepperdine put itself back into a position of a six-point game, 60-54, heading into the final quarter. UCLA went on another run extending the lead by 10 points, 71-61, with under five to go in the game. Each team went on an eight-point run, with the Bruins taking the victory after a long fought battle, 78-69.
QUOTABLE
Pepperdine Coach Kristen Dowling said: "Our team played their hearts out! I know we were winning the rebounding battle in the first. They were the number one team in the country last year in terms of rebounding. I couldn't be more proud of how hard they played. That was a three-possession game to a team that's ranked 20th in the country.
"We're a young team, a very young team and now our challenge is to not take our foot off the gas and have the same mentality for Eastern Washington that we had against UCLA."
UP NEXT
The Waves host Eastern Washington for their home opener on Sunday, November 14. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. and the game will be live streamed on the WCC Network.
