FULLERTON, Calif. – Pepperdine women's basketball (1-0) saw four different Waves in double digits in the 84-70 win on the road against CSU Fullerton (0-1) Tuesday night.
 
"Road wins are earned in the margins," head coach Katie Faulkner said. "You have to weather momentum swings and trust the next possession. I thought tonight we did a good job staying connected. I'm proud of the effort tonight."
 
Scoring the first four points of the game, the Waves took the lead early and never looked back. Meghan Fiso and Elli Guiney scored the first baskets of the season as they would both go on to score career-highs by the end of the night.
 
Up 19-10 at the end of the first, Pepperdine started to find a rhythm, going on a 14-0 scoring run in the middle of the second quarter to take the largest lead of the night, up 33-14.
 
Holding a 47-31 advantage at the half, the Titans mustered the best comeback effort of the night in the third quarter. As the two squads exchanged 28-point quarters, the Waves weathered the storm as Taija Sta. Maria and Seleh Harmon put up six a piece to keep Pepperdine in front.
 
With just a six point advantage with one quarter remaining, Ivory Finley broke out for nine points in the final 10 minutes to give the Waves separation from the Titans. Shooting 75 percent from the field as a squad in the closing minutes would keep Pepperdine in front with a double-digit lead as the clock expired.
 
Beating CSU Fullerton 84-70, this is the second year in a row the Waves have opened a year with a win over the Titans, winning by a much narrower margin of two last year in Malibu.
 
GAME NOTES
 

• Pepperdine has not scored 84 points since Nov. 27 of last year, scoring exactly 84 against CSUN
• Finley led the team in points with 17, falling just two short of a career-high.
• Meghan Fiso scored a career-high 13 points.
• Elli Guiney scored a career-high 14 points, shooting .333 from distance.
• In her first collegiate game, Seleh Harmon dropped 15 points, all coming from beyond the arc.
• As a team, the Waves made 29-47, good for a .617 shooting percentage.
• From three, Pepperdine made 12, shooting .480.
• The Waves out-rebounded the Titans 40-35.
• Shorna Preston led the team in rebounds with eight, making both shots attempted tonight.
• Taija Sta. Maria dished out the most assists with seven.
• Guiney, Finley, and Harmon all logged a team-high two steals.
• Pepperdine logged five blocks while CSU Fullerton did not secure any.
• Both teams shot .667 from the charity stripe.
• 41 of the night's points came off the bench with 43 coming from the starting five.
• With an entirely new squad, all 12 players saw the floor tonight and logged minutes for the first time in a Pepperdine jersey.
• Harmon, Quinn VanSickle, Zoe Shanahan, and Ilinca Belegante all made their collegiate debut tonight.

 
Up next, Pepperdine welcomes Westmont College to Malibu for the home opener Saturday afternoon. Tipoff is slated for 2 p.m. in Firestone fieldhouse. The game will be streamed on ESPN+ (subscription required) and stats can be found at www.pepperdinewaves.com
 
 
ABOUT PEPPERDINE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Pepperdine women's basketball has made four NCAA postseason appearances in its history, having won the WCC regular-season four times and the WCC Tournament on three occasions. With six All-American selections in program history, the Waves have also seen success in the WNIT Tournament which included a run to the Sweet Sixteen in 2019.
 
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