MALIBU - The Pepperdine men's basketball team will invite the San Francisco Dons to Malibu this week, set for a Thursday 8 p.m. matchup to air on ESPNU.
 
GAME #25: Pepperdine 9-15 (2-7 WCC) vs USF 18-6 (7-2 WCC) | Thursday, Feb. 8 | Malibu | 8 p.m. | ESPNU
 
COVERAGE – Thursday's contest will air nationally on ESPNU which can be found on cable networks as well as heading to ESPN.com/Watch. Fans may also listen live on the audio-only WaveCast as Pepperdine Hall of Famer Al Epstein continues his streak of 1,184-straight men's basketball broadcasts in his 39th season on the call.
 
LAST TIME OUT - In a battle largely decided by long-range accuracy, the Waves were downed 93-89 by Portland's three-point barrage last Saturday evening. Pepperdine recorded two players with 20+ points and junior Michael Ajayi accrued his 12th double-double of the season to enter the Pepperdine single-season leaderboard tied for ninth.
 
AJAYI ON THE DOUBLE - Michael Ajayi recorded his 12th double-double on Saturday which entered the junior into the Pepperdine single-season double-double leaderboard tied for ninth with Marcos Leite (1974-75), Ray Ellis (1977-78), Orlando Phillips (1981-82) and Geoff Lear (1989-90). Ajayi would need one more double-double to tie Leite (1975-76), Phillips (1982-83) and Levy Middlebrooks (1986-87) at sixth, while two more would put him tied for third with Dana Jones (1993-94) and Stacy Davis (2015-16).
 
PORTER POWER – Sophomore Jevon Porter comes off of a stellar debut season where he started all 31 games for the Waves. Porter shocked the league in double-doubles as well, becoming the only freshman to accrue one and ending the season with eight total. Now since his return from injury, the sophomore has averaged 14.8 points and 5.9 boards per contest.
 
MALLETTE MADNESS - The Waves' leader on and off the court, Houston Mallette sits second on the Pepperdine season box score in scoring, pouring in 15.8 points per game. The junior is also third in the WCC in the same category behind teammate Michael Ajayi and is second in three-pointers per game with 2.4. Mallette has totaled 1,220 points in his three years in Malibu.
 
WAVES VS WCC - Michael Ajayi currently ranks in the top five of four different categories in the conference: First in scoring (17.4 PPG), second in rebounding (9.4 RPG) and fourth in field goal percentage (.468) and fourth in minutes (34 MPG). Houston Mallette also ranks in the top 10 for the following WCC categories: Third in scoring (15.8 PPG) and second in threes per game (2.4) as well as fourth in free-throw percentage (.800) and seventh in field goal percentage (.420). As a team, the Waves shoot 35.4% from beyond the arc which is good for third in the conference and pull down an average of 10.6 offensive boards for fourth in the league.
 
ON THE DONS - Currently slated as a top-three team in the WCC, San Francisco comes to Malibu on a three-game win streak after falling to both Saint Mary's and Gonzaga. The Dons took care of business against Portland, San Diego and Pacific, winning by an average margin of 11.3 points. Junior Jonathan Mogbo has been raking in honors from the conference, earning Player of the Week four times this season while sitting fifth in the WCC for scoring 15.3 points per contest. He leads the league in rebounds per game, controlling an average of 10.7 and sits just one spot ahead of Michael Ajayi for WCC double-doubles with 13 total.
Last season, the Waves went 0-2 against the Dons but made things interesting in their most recent matchup as Pepperdine led by seven going into the half. USF would go on to win, however, outrebounding the Waves 34-29 and adjusting their defensive strategy for an 88-80 final in the Dons' favor.