FULLERTON, Calif. – Pepperdine men's basketball (3-5) fell by a score of 83-69 at Cal State Fullerton (3-5) Saturday afternoon from Titan Gym in a non-conference matchup.

Javon Cooley and Luka Vudragovic led the Waves with 13 points each as four Waves scored in double figures in a balanced scoring output.

Styles Phipps posted 11 points, five rebounds and four assists while Danilo Dozic added 11 points and three boards. Aaron Clark logged five assists and seven rebounds for the Waves to go along with six points.

The Waves were strong once again from the free throw line, knocking down 23 of 26 looks while the Titans were 6-for-9 from the charity stripe. The Titans made up the difference from the field, going 34-for-71 while the Waves were 20-for-50.

"It was a tough afternoon for us," said head coach Ed Schilling following the game. "We allowed our missed shots to negatively impact our defensive effort and execution. We need to be better and turn it around for Tuesday's game at home."

Cooley got the scoring started for the Waves and the game, connecting on his first look from deep, as Vudragovic knocked down his first look from downtown which tied the game at eight.

The Waves pushed out to an 18-11 lead following a Phipps layup, as the Waves maintained their lead through the middle portion of the half. A three-ball from David Mager made it 23-19 in favor of Pepperdine, but the Titans responded with an 8-0 run to go ahead 27-23 with 6:13 before the break.

As the half winded down, the Titans continued to build up the narrow lead, going into the half with a 40-33 advantage. Fullerton had seven offensive rebounds in the opening 20 minutes, leading to nine second chance points which was the difference.

Cooley and Vudragovic led the Waves with seven points each in the opening half.

The second half opened with back-and-forth scoring before the Titans took the first double-digit lead of the game at 51-40 following a jumper from Josh Ward, who led all scorers with 19 points in the game.

The Waves cut it down to four with Phipps finding Clark in transition with a nifty behind-the-back pass, making it 53-49 with 12:21 to play.

The deciding run of the game would follow, as the Titans went on a 15-3 spurt over the next 2:50 of game time, hitting six of their next seven shots including three straight triples to go ahead 68-53 with nine minutes to play.

The Waves continued to stay within striking distance converting from the free throw line, knocking down 18 of 19 looks in the second half, which accounted for half of the Waves' scoring.

Pepperdine's shooting was not able to get it back into the game in the closing minutes, going 2-for-14 after the half from distance.

The Titans were able to see out the victory, securing the 83-69 victory at home.

GAME NOTES

• Javon Cooley posted 14 points while knocking down all eight free throw attempts.
• It marked the fourth game this season in which Cooley has been perfect from the free throw line with at least five attempts. 
• Styles Phipps posted 11 points with five rebounds and four assists.
• Phipps has scored in double figures with at least five rebounds and three assists on three occasions this season.
• Luka Vudragovic scored 13 points off the bench on 5-for-11 from the field.
• Aaron Clark finished with a team-high seven rebounds and five assists to go along with six points.
• Danilo Dozic added 11 points and three boards for the Waves.
• Dozic went 2-for-6 from beyond the arc, the lone Wave to connect on multiple triples.
• Pavle Stosic drew his second straight start and posted six points with five rebounds.
• Stosic accounted for three of Pepperdine's six offensive rebounds.
• Four different Waves recorded a blocked shot including Dozic, Phipps, Clark and Yonatan Levy.
• The Waves knocked down 23 of 26 attempts from the free throw line.
• Pepperdine now has exactly 20 made field goals in three straight contests.
• The Waves' six offensive rebounds matched a season-low.
• Pepperdine moves to 0-2 in true road games this season.
• Fullerton leads the all-time series, 14-12, following today's result.

The Waves will return home to host Abilene Christian this Tuesday at 6 p.m. from Firestone Fieldhouse on ESPN+.

ABOUT PEPPERDINE MEN'S BASKETBALL
Pepperdine men's basketball has made 13 NCAA postseason appearances while earning 12 WCC Regular-Season Championships and three WCC Tournament Championships in its history. This success has spanned multiple decades, with the Waves most recently winning the 2021 CBI Tournament. The program has also seen 19 All-Americans along with 19 NBA players, which included a streak of 34 consecutive seasons with at least one alum on an NBA roster from 1976-2011.

TICKETS
For more information on ticket packages and to purchase tickets for upcoming home events, visit here.

FOLLOW
To stay up-to-date on the latest Pepperdine men's basketball news, follow the Waves on social media @PepperdineMBB.