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Pepperdine University Athletics

Meaali'i Amosa
Jeff Golden
Meaali'i Amosa

Women's Basketball by Athletic Communications

Women's Basketball Set for Three WCC Games This Week

MALIBU, California – The Pepperdine women's basketball team are back in Malibu for four home games in seven days including PCH Cup rival Loyola Marymount, Gonzaga, Portland and Saint Mary's.

GAME #13: Tuesday (Jan. 25) at Firestone Fieldhouse in Malibu, Calif.: Pepperdine (4-8, 0-3) vs. Loyola Marymount (5-10, 0-5) at 7 p.m.

GAME #14: Thursday (Jan. 27) at Firestone Fieldhouse in Malibu, Calif.: Pepperdine (4-8, 0-3) vs. Gonzaga (14-4, 5-0) at 7 p.m.

GAME #15: Saturday (Jan. 29) at Firestone Fieldhouse in Malibu, Calif.: Pepperdine (4-8, 0-3) vs. Portland (12-4, 2-2) at 2 p.m.

COVERAGE: All three games will be broadcast live on the WCC Network with Darren Preston on the call. Links to the broadcast 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. 

TICKETS: Patrons must have an e-ticket prior to arriving on campus. Pepperdine students, staff and faculty just need their Pepperdine ID card for entry. Tickets can be found at pepperdinewaves.com/tickets. 

LAST GAME: Last Saturday, the Waves fell to Pacific 65-58 in Stockton. Becky Obinma led Pepperdine with a career-high 15 points by shooting 6-for-13. Obinma also had two blocked shots and brought down eight rebounds. Cheyenne Givens and Jayla Ruffus-Milner each had 11 points. 

SERIES VS. LMU: The Waves hold the overall series lead 57-31 and Pepperdine has won four out of the last eight meetings dating back to the 2018-19 season. 

PCH CUP: An annual all-sport competition between two local rivals that are separated by just 19.1 miles of scenic coastline, the PCH Cup is in its 13th season of existence. Pepperdine has won 10 of the 12 years that this competition has been held. 

SERIES VS. GONZAGA: The Bulldogs have won 46 of the 76 matchups between the two schools. Pepperdine's last win against Gonzaga was in the 2016-17 season and the Waves won by a 10 point margin inside Firestone Fieldhouse. 

SERIES VS. PORTLAND: Pepperdine has the overall series lead 38-34 with Portland. The Pilots have won five out of the last six meetings, including a 101-94 overtime winner inside Chiles Center. 

HONORS: Ally Stedman marked the season's first West Coast Conference weekly honors for the Pepperdine women's basketball team when she was named WCC Freshman of the Week (11/15). She scored 36 points in two games against #20 UCLA and Eastern Washington, of which 28 points were against the Bruins. 

THIS YEAR: The Waves continue to be led by freshman Ally Stedman who averages 11.5 points per game, which ranks her 15th in scoring on the WCC leaderboard. 

Malia Bambrick is the second-leading scorer on the team at 9.6 points per game. She is also in sole possession of fifth on the Pepperdine all-time three-point record list with 147 made. Bambrick was named All-WCC honorable mention last season. 

Eve Braslis is averaging 9.0 points per game. She has brought down 5.1 rebounds per game, which puts her 19th on the WCC leaderboard. 

Becky Obinma is averaging 9.2 points per game and leads the Waves in rebounds at 7.1 per game and is fifth in the WCC. She has blocked 14 shots this season, which ranks her third in the WCC. 

Jayla Ruffus-Milner is leading the team in shooting percentage at 51.2% shooting 22-for-43. She is averaging 5.5 rebounds per game, which is good for 18th in the WCC. 

Kendyl Carson leads the Waves in assists at 4.3 per game, marking her name third in the WCC. 

Cheyenne Givens ranks second on the team in assists with 3.2 per game, which also puts her at 15th on the WCC leaderboard. 

THE SQUAD: The Waves bring back 11 returners and add three newcomers to the team. The returners include two seniors (Bambrick and Givens), five redshirt juniors (Cydney Rivera, Jayda Ruffus-Milner, Jayla Ruffus-Milner, Becky Obinma and Eve Braslis), three sophomores (Isabel Montoya, Jane Nwaba and Kendyl Carson) and redshirt freshman Rosemary Odebunmi. New to Malibu are freshmen Meaali'i Amosa, Helena Friend and Ally Stedman

LAST YEAR: In her third year, Kristen Dowling led the Waves to a 5-18 overall record, including a 2-16 WCC record. Pepperdine fell in the opening round of the West Coast Conference Tournament 85-73 to Loyola Marymount. 

AT THE HELM: Kristen Dowling enters her third season as Pepperdine's head women's basketball coach. During her first two seasons with the Waves, she has a record of 21-33. Her first year at the helm, she led the team to a 16-15 overall record, including an 8-10 WCC record. The team reached the semifinals of the 2020 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 four NCAA Division III Tournaments. Along the way, the team had six straight 20-win seasons including five seasons with at least 23 wins. 

POSTPONEMENTS: The Waves have had five games thus far postponed due to COVID-19 regulations. Pepperdine was supposed to open up West Coast Conference play on Dec. 30 hosting Pacific, but due to COVID-19 considerations on the Tigers' end, the game has been moved to Feb. 15. The Waves also were intended to play host to Saint Mary's on Jan. 1, but due to COVID-19 considerations with the Waves, the game has been moved to Jan 31. Additionally, Pepperdine was supposed to travel to play San Diego on Jan. 6, but due to COVID-19 regulations, the game has been postponed. The Waves intended to host Loyola Marymount on Jan. 8, but the game has been postponed to Tuesday, Jan. 18 and also postponed again to Tuesday, Jan. 25. Pepperdine was scheduled to host BYU on Thursday Jan. 20, but due to COVID-19 considerations with the Waves, the game has been postponed. 

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 10 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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Players Mentioned

Malia Bambrick

#1 Malia Bambrick

G
5' 10"
Junior
2V
Cheyenne Givens

#4 Cheyenne Givens

G
5' 7"
Junior
1V
Jayda Ruffus-Milner

#3 Jayda Ruffus-Milner

G
5' 10"
Redshirt Sophomore
1V
Jayla Ruffus-Milner

#14 Jayla Ruffus-Milner

G
5' 10"
Redshirt Sophomore
1V
Becky Obinma

#15 Becky Obinma

F
6' 2"
Redshirt Sophomore
TR
Kendyl Carson

#22 Kendyl Carson

F
6' 0"
Freshman
HS
Isabel Montoya

#5 Isabel Montoya

G
5' 5"
Freshman
HS
Rosemary Odebunmi

#2 Rosemary Odebunmi

F
6' 0"
Freshman
HS
Jane Nwaba

#10 Jane Nwaba

F
5' 10"
Freshman
HS
Cydney Rivera

#0 Cydney Rivera

G
5' 8"
Junior
TR

Players Mentioned

Malia Bambrick

#1 Malia Bambrick

5' 10"
Junior
2V
G
Cheyenne Givens

#4 Cheyenne Givens

5' 7"
Junior
1V
G
Jayda Ruffus-Milner

#3 Jayda Ruffus-Milner

5' 10"
Redshirt Sophomore
1V
G
Jayla Ruffus-Milner

#14 Jayla Ruffus-Milner

5' 10"
Redshirt Sophomore
1V
G
Becky Obinma

#15 Becky Obinma

6' 2"
Redshirt Sophomore
TR
F
Kendyl Carson

#22 Kendyl Carson

6' 0"
Freshman
HS
F
Isabel Montoya

#5 Isabel Montoya

5' 5"
Freshman
HS
G
Rosemary Odebunmi

#2 Rosemary Odebunmi

6' 0"
Freshman
HS
F
Jane Nwaba

#10 Jane Nwaba

5' 10"
Freshman
HS
F
Cydney Rivera

#0 Cydney Rivera

5' 8"
Junior
TR
G