MALIBU, California – The Pepperdine women's basketball team dropped Saturday night's contest to UC Santa Barbara, 74-63, inside Firestone Fieldhouse. Three Waves were in double-digits with Jane Nwaba and Cheyenne Givens notching 11 apiece.
 
The Gauchos (2-1) outshot the Waves (1-2) 43.9% to 38.1%. The lead changed seven times through the game and was tied six times.
 
BIG WAVES

• Senior guard Cheyenne Givens (Gardena, Calif./Serra HS/Los Angeles Trade-Tech) had 11 points. She shot 2-for-2 from long range and 4-for-8 overall. Givens had three assists and had four steals.
• Sophomore forward Jane Nwaba (Carson, Calif./Palisades Charter HS) also had 11 points. She brought down seven rebounds and was 3-for-3 at the line.
• Redshirt junior forward Becky Obinma (Menifee, Calif./Rosary Academy/Texas Christian) had 10 points, brought down six rebounds and was 6-for-6 at the line. She had one block and one steal.
• Senior guard Malia Bambrick (Santa Clarita, Calif./Bishop Alemany HS) had nine points, four rebounds and one block.

GAME RECAP
 
The Waves scored the first points of the game thanks to sophomore forward Kendyl Carson (Juneau, Alaska/Juneau Douglas HS), but then it was a lot of back-and-forth between Pepperdine and UC Santa Barbara. The Gauchos took the lead 7-4, but the Waves were able to get back within one not too long after, 7-6. UCSB held the lead in the first quarter with the biggest margin of six, 18-12. Pepperdine went on a four-point scoring run to get within two, but UCSB ended the quarter with a jumper to hold the lead 20-16.
 
Pepperdine hit on from long range at the start of the second quarter to make it 20-19, but the back-and-forth continued with UCSB. The Gauchos were able to extend the lead to a four-point margin at 28-24. The shots became balanced before the Waves went on a five-point scoring run and took the lead for the first time at 30-31. UCSB got the lead back with a three-point bucket, before Pepperdine rounded out the second quarter with three points from Nwaba to head into the half with the lead, 34-33.
 
In the third quarter, the Waves extended their lead by three, 36-33, until the Gauchos went on a five-point scoring run to take the lead back. Pepperdine tied the game 38-38, before UCSB hit two from long range to put the Gauchos back on top. The Waves got within two at 49-47, until the Gauchos had a freebie and closed out the third quarter leading 50-47.
 
The Gauchos hit a two-point bucket to start the fourth quarter, but the Waves went on a six-point scoring run to take the lead back at 53-52. UCSB went on its own seven-point scoring run and grabbed the lead back 59-53. Pepperdine got within one at 59-58 after five straight Bambrick points, but UCSB scored the next four. The Gauchos held the lead the rest of the game and closed out the fourth quarter with an 11-point win, the largest margin of the game.
 
STATS

• Both teams brought down 38 rebounds.
• Pepperdine was 12-for-14 at the line.
• Pepperdine had more points in the paint than UCSB, 38-28.
• The Waves had eight steals in the game to the Gauchos six.

UP NEXT
 
The Waves will continue the homestand hosting UAB on Wednesday, Nov. 24, with tip-off set for 2 p.m. inside Firestone Fieldhouse. The game will be streamed live on the WCC Network.