The Pepperdine women's basketball team notched a 55-43 win over LMU Tuesday afternoon in Firestone Fieldhouse.
Freshman
Chloe Sotell (Samford Conn.) led the Waves (8-11, 3-7) with 22 points, marching Pepperdine to their first win over the Lions (8-11, 2-9) since Jan. 21, 2023.
"There were a lot of intangibles that went into that win tonight," Head coach
Katie Faulkner said. "Things like knowing the scout, having composure against pressure, and holding the line defensively all contributed. While those things might not get a lot of hype or have a line on the stat sheet, they made the difference tonight against a talented team. Another big step for our program."
BIG WAVES
Sotell made six threes, which puts her third in the record book for three-pointers made in a game in addition to a team-high four assists.
Senior
Ornela Muca (Athens, Greece) continued her hot streak from Saturday against the Zags, scoring 11 with three rebounds .
Senior
Ella Brubaker (University Place, Wash.) led the team defensively with four steals, knocking down six points and grabbing five rebounds.
KEY STATS
Pepperdine doubled LMU's points in the paint 20-10.
The Waves outscored the Lions in every quarter tonight, holding the opponent to just five points in the second quarter.
Securing 10 from beyond the arc, Pepperdine's .345 shooting percentage was over double LMU's .143 from distance.
RECAP
Offense started slow for the Waves, but stops on defense eventually translated to points on the other end of the court. Finding the first points nearly five minutes into the game, Sotell got Pepperdine on the board with a three. The next three baskets came from three different Waves as Sotell, Brubaker and senior
Malia Mastora (Alameda, Calif.) all secured baskets before the freshman's second three in the first quarter gave Pepperdine a 12-8 lead. At the end of the first, the Waves narrowly held onto the lead 12-11.
Almost four minutes into the second quarter, LMU made their first from distance on the night to tie things up at 14. From there, Pepperdine went on a 13 -0 run, highlighted by eight points from Muca. The Lions were only able to find two free throws to end the half as their offense was abruptly stopped by Pepperdine as they headed to the locker room with a 27-16 advantage.
The second half opened with four from distance for the Waves, two by Mastora, one by Muca, and yet another by Sotell. Trading threes for layups by the Lions, a timeout was called by LMU with a 13 point lead for Pepperdine halfway through the third. LMU was starting to chip away at the deficit before Sotell's fifth three of the night put them nearly right back where they started. With one quarter to go, the Waves led 41-29.
Scoring five in the first half of the fourth, the Connecticut native Sotell scored half of the Waves' ten in the opening minutes of the quarter to give Pepperdine their biggest lead of the night at 17. Brubaker contributed four of her own to keep the Lions at bay as the Waves secured a 55-43 victory over LMU.
Beating the Lions for the first time in two years, the 55-43 final is the largest win over the Lions since Feb. 15, 2019 as well as the least amount of points allowed in a conference game by Pepperdine since Feb. 20 2021 in a 62-42 win over Saint Mary's.
UP NEXT
The Waves head to Oregon for a two-game road trip. First up is a new face in conference play as Pepperdine takes on the Beavers of Oregon State Thursday. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. and the game can be streamed on ESPN+ (subscription required).
