MALIBU, California – Houston Mallette scored a career-high 31 points and the Pepperdine men's basketball team put forth an exceptional effort, but BYU's outside shooting proved to be too much in a 91-85 home defeat on Saturday night.
 
The Cougars (19-8, 7-5) knocked down 15 three-pointers on 23 attempts, while BYU's Alex Barcello tied the Firestone Fieldhouse record by making nine of them. The Waves (7-20, 1-11) went 10-for-23 from distance.

Mallette's scoring outburst ranks #4 all-time on Pepperdine's single-game list for freshmen.
 
BIG WAVES

• Freshman guard Houston Mallette (Alameda, Calif./Pacifica Christian HS) had a near-flawless night, making nine of 11 shots, five of six three-pointers and eight of 10 free throws. The 31 points were the most by any Wave this season. He made his first eight shots of the night, and had 14 points in the first half and 17 in the second. It was his fourth game this season with five three-pointers, and it was his 21st consecutive game making a three-pointer.
• Junior forward Jan Zidek (Prague, Czech Republic) contributed 20 points on 9-for-16 shooting, along with four rebounds and three assists.
• Freshman guard Mike Mitchell Jr. (San Jose, Calif./Archbishop Mitty HS) had 13 points, seven assists and two steals and played all 40 minutes.

PLAY BY PLAY
 
The Waves got off to a terrific start, as all five starters scored in the first five minutes. Pepperdine made its first six shots and jumped out to a 16-8 lead. But Barcello hit five three-pointers in the first seven minutes, and his fifth one cut Pepperdine's lead to 18-17. Mallette had five points in a 9-2 run that saw the Waves extend the lead back to eight at 27-19 with 9 1/2 minutes remaining. But, a 12-0 BYU run gave the Cougars a 31-27 lead. Mallette got the Waves within two twice, but BYU closed out the half on a run and on Barcello's sixth three-pointer, which made it 48-38 at the break.
 
The Waves outscored the Cougars 47-43 after halftime, but couldn't ever regain the lead. Pepperdine began the second half on an 11-3 run to get within two at 51-49, but BYU took its largest lead of the night at 66-53 with 14 minutes left. The Waves came right back with two three-pointers by Mallette and cut the deficit to five at 66-61. Later, a three-point play by senior guard Darryl Polk Jr. (Long Beach, Calif./Long Beach Poly HS) made it a three-point game at 75-72 with 5:21 left. The teams would largely trade points the rest of the way, as Pepperdine would get no closer, but BYU's lead wouldn't get larger than seven. The Cougars went 5-for-6 from the line in the final 20 seconds to ice the win.
 
KEY STATS 

• The Waves made a season-high 58.9% of their shots, but BYU was at an opponent-season-high 64.0%.
• BYU's 15 three-pointers were also a season high by a Pepperdine opponent.
• The Waves were outrebounded 30-16 and were limited to two offensive boards.
• Pepperdine forced 18 turnovers and committed only nine.
• BYU's Barcello scored 33 points on 10-for-12 shooting, including 9-for-10 from distance. The Cougars had four players score in double-figures.

NOTABLE 

• Pepperdine started four freshmen for the second straight game. The freshmen scored 68% of tonight's points.
• Jade' Smith missed his second straight game due to injury. Maxwell Lewis left the game in the second half after falling awkwardly after making a basket and did not return.
• The Waves had two players score 20 points for the first time this season.

UP NEXT
 
Pepperdine hosts #2 Gonzaga on Wednesday (Feb. 16) at 8 p.m. The game will be televised nationally on ESPN2 and there will be an audio-only WaveCasts at PepperdineWaves.com. Ticket information and COVID-19 entry policies for Firestone Fieldhouse can be found here.