PEPPERDINE vs. NEVADA
Date: Tuesday, December 6, 2022
Site: Firestone Fieldhouse, Malibu, Calif.
Time: 8:00 p.m.
TV: WCC Network/Bally Sports West
Series: Pepperdine leads 24-14
Last Meeting: Nevada 79, Pepperdine 66 (in Reno, 2021-22)
 

PEPPERDINE WAVES	NEVADA WOLFPACK
2022-23 Record: 5-2     WCC Record: 0-0     Home Record: 5-0 Head Coach: Lorenzo Romar Website: PepperdineWaves.com Twitter: @PeppBasketball	2022-23 Record: 7-2     Mountain West Record: 0-0     Away Record: 1-1 Head Coach: Steve Alford Website: nevadawolfpack.com Twitter: @NevadaHoops

 
PROMOS – BRING A TOY TO DONATE, GET FREE GENERAL ADMISSION! Pepperdine's Waves Leadership Council will be hosting a pregame tailgate outside of Firestone Fieldhouse, complete with a cornhole tournament and free Chick-Fil-A.
 
Sharky's tacos will also be provided inside the gym for students in celebration of Taco Tuesday.
 
WATCH — Pepperdine will stream the contest via the WCC Network at WCCsports.com for anyone outside of the Reno broadcast area (for those within, the game will be broadcast on Bally Sports West/Nevada Sports Net). Veteran play-by-play man Al Epstein will have the call on WaveCasts. 

TICKETS — Home game tickets are available online and must be purchased before arriving onto campus. To purchase tickets and/or read the spectator guidelines, visit: https://gowav.es/WavesTix. Due to campus construction, nearby parking may be limited and guests are advised to arrive early.
 
SURF REPORT
• The Pepperdine men's basketball team has tipped off the 2022-23 season at 5-2 so far - the best start to a season since 2015-16.
• Sophomores Houston Mallette, Maxwell Lewis, and Mike Mitchell Jr. make up almost 60 percent (57.4%) of the Waves scoring output, as the trio scores the brunt of the team's three-pointers at 78 percent. 
• Mallette, who was named to the preseason All-WCC team, has made a three-pointer in 33 consecutive games,taking sole possession of the record set by Terrance Johnson in 2004. He currently averages 15.1 points and 5.6 rebounds per contest.
• Lewis currently leads the Waves in scoring, contributing 18 points per contest as well as shooting a clean 50% from beyond the arc. Defensively, the sophomore has tallied seven blocks and seven steals through each of his seven starts this season. 
• Mitchell Jr. averages 13.4 points and leads the team in steals, having nabbed nine over the first six games. The sophomore leads the Waves in three-point percentage, shooting 54.8% from that range. 
• Nationally, the Waves are ranked fifth in defensive rebounds per game (30.7), sixth in three-point percentage (42.2), eighth in effective field goal percentage (.588), 14th in field goal percentage (50.1) and 17th in three pointers per game (10.4).
• Amongst fellow WCC schools, Boubacar Coulibaly and Carson Basham lead in field goal percentage with 69.2% and 66.7% respectively. Coulibaly (1.8) and Basham (1.3) lead the league in blocks per game as well. Lewis currently sits third in the WCC in scoring, as Mitchell is second in three point percentage (54.8%).
• Lorenzo Romar is in his 26th season as a college head coach. It's his fifth season this time around at Pepperdine, and his eighth overall with the Waves. Romar will be inducted into the SoCal Basketball Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2022.

SERIES VS. NEVADA
The Waves hold a 24-14 advantage all-time over the Wolf Pack, where the last Pepperdine win came in the 2010-11 season to a 76-75 Waves advantage. The two teams' last meeting, however, ended at a 79-66 final in favor of Nevada. Mitchell Jr. and Mallette led the team in scoring during that outing, going for 12 and 10 points respectively.

SCOUTING THE WOLF PACK
Nevada currently stands 7-2 with the most recent outing ending in a loss for the Wolf Pack just down Pacific Coast Highway at LMU (64-52). Senior guard Jerod Lucas led Nevada at 18 points, followed by forward Nick Davidson at 11. Freshman forward Darrion Williams led in rebounds with seven. 

Go-to guard Lucas leads the Wolf Pack in scoring average at 17.2 points per contest, followed by Kenan Blackshear and Will Baker at 11.9 each. Williams holds the rebounding title, recording 7.6 per game. 

RECORDS WATCH — Houston Mallette now holds sole ownership of consecutive games with a three at 33, breaking the previous record from 2004. The sophomore also holds the Pepperdine record for most threes in a freshman season with 71 total during the 2021-22 season.

GOOD STARTS — Pepperdine has five wins after six games for the first time since 2016-17. The Waves are 5-0 at home for the first time since 2015-16 (they won their first nine home games that season).

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 20 schools to have accomplished this feat — and 10 overall. Of this elite group, Pepperdine has the smallest undergraduate enrollment, is the only school without football and is the only university that has not been affiliated with a "major" conference. The Waves have won a total of 26 team or individual national championships in their history. Pepperdine has also earned the Division I-AAA All-Sports Trophy, an award based on postseason success that's given to the top non-football school, four times (most recently in 2021-22). Located in scenic Malibu, California, 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 #55 overall on U.S. News and World Report's list of America's best colleges.