MALIBU, Calif. – The Pepperdine women's basketball team will hit the road for the final road West Coast Conference game, matching up with PCH Cup rival Loyola Marymount.
 
GAME #26: Saturday (Feb. 18) at Gersten Pavilion in Los Angeles, Calif.: Pepperdine (8-17, 3-12) at Loyola Marymount (6-20, 3-12) at 3 PM.
 
COVERAGE: Links to live stats and broadcasts will be available on the women's basketball schedule page on PepperdineWaves.com. Fans can also follow @WavesHoops on Twitter for live, in-game updates.
 
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 14th season of existence. Pepperdine has won 11 of the 13 years that this competition has been held.
 
SERIES VS. LMU: The Waves hold the overall series lead 60-32, which also includes this season's 68-48 win on Jan. 21 inside Firestone Fieldhouse.
 
LAST WEEK: On Thursday, Feb. 9 the Waves picked up its first-ever win in the Marriott Center in Provo, Utah after defeating BYU 64-63 in a thrilling overtime game. Pepperdine had an early lead in the first over the Cougars, but trailed for a little after halftime. In the fourth, BYU started with a six-point run to increase their lead 43-36, and then scored another five to get the advantage to double-digits, 48-38. The Waves cut the lead to six after scoring six straight points and with three minutes left in regulation, Pepperdine had its longest scoring run of nine-points to tie the game at 57-all and force the overtime period. A big layup that turned into a three-point play by Meaali'i Amosa, as she drained a layup and was fouled to advance the Waves to a 60-57 lead. The Waves and Cougars exchanged baskets before BYU attempted to make the buzzer shot, but it hit the rim and the Waves picked up the rebound to collect the victory. Ally Stedman led the squad with 21 points. She brought down five rebounds, had three assists, blocked two shots and picked up three steals. Theresa Grace Mbanefo collected 14 points and six rebounds. Jane Nwaba brought down a career-high and team-high 11 rebounds. The Waves then traveled back to Southern California and matched up with San Diego on Saturday, Feb. 11, but fell 75-63 in Jenny Craig Pavilion. Stedman led the Waves with 14 points. Becky Obinma put up 13 points and dished out a career-high four assists. Marly Walls also collected 13 points and had six rebounds. Mbanefo notched 12 points against the Toreros and brought down a team-high nine rebounds.
 
THIS YEAR: Pepperdine leads the WCC in rebounds averaging 40.0 per game and is ranked second in blocks per game with 3.5.
 
The Waves continue to be led by sophomore Ally Stedman who averages 15.6 points per game, ranking her seventh in scoring on the WCC leaderboard. Stedman also ranks second in the WCC in steals per game (1.8).

Theresa Grace Mbanefo is the second-leading scorer on the squad averaging 12.1 points per game, which is good for 14th in the WCC. Mbanefo ranks fifth in the WCC in shooting percentage at 49.1%. She also ranks 10th in rebounds per game (5.8) and 11th in blocks per game (0.7).
 
Marly Walls leads Pepperdine and ranks fourth in the WCC in assists at (4.2). She's also 10th in steals (1.5), 15th in points (11.6) and 17th in rebounds (5.3).
 
Becky Obinma leads the Waves in rebounds with 6.3 and ranks sixth on the WCC leaderboard. She also ranks 12th in the conference for blocks with 18. Obinma averages 6.0 points per game.
 
Jane Nwaba is one of the top rebounders for the squad, averaging 5.8 per game which ranks 11th on the WCC leaderboard. Nwaba averages 8.6 points per game.
 
KK Brodie leads Pepperdine in blocks with 21, which ranks tied for eighth in the WCC. She averages 0.8 blocks per game, ranking her eighth in the conference.
 
THE SQUAD: The Waves bring back eight returners and add six newcomers to the team. The returners include a redshirt senior (Obinma), two juniors (Carson and Jane Nwaba), a redshirt junior (Isabel Montoya), three sophomores (Amosa, Helena Friend and Stedman) and redshirt sophomore (Rosemary Odebumni). New to Malibu are graduate student transfers Theresa Grace Mbanefo and Marly Walls, and four true freshmen in KK Brodie, Drea Brumfield, Hailey Hoff and Hailey Johnson.
 
LAST YEAR: In her fourth year, Dowling led the Waves to a 8-17 overall record, including a 4-11 WCC record. The Waves fell in the opening round of the West Coast Conference Tournament 65-54 to Loyola Marymount.
 
AT THE HELM: Kristen Dowling is in her fourth season as Pepperdine's head women's basketball coach. During her first three seasons with the Waves, she had a record of 29-50. 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, thåe team had six straight 20-win seasons including five seasons with at least 23 wins.
 
WCC PRESEASON TEAM/RANKINGS: The Waves were picked to finish 10th in the 2022-23 season. The entire poll is as follows: 1. Gonzaga, 2. Portland, 3. BYU, 4. San Francisco, 5. Saint Mary's, 6. San Diego, 7. Loyola Marymount, 8. Santa Clara, 9. Pacific, 10. Pepperdine.
 
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 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, three 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.