MALIBU, Calif. — Pepperdine men's basketball (5-14, 0-6 WCC) returns Wednesday evening to host Portland (9-10, 2-4 WCC) at 6 p.m. from Firestone Fieldhouse.

Fans will receive a free camo 'P' hat while supplies last as part of Veterans and Military Appreciation Night. All veterans and military personnel will receive free admission with a valid ID. Tickets for the game are available for purchase here.

Al Epstein and Joey Vergilis will have the call on ESPN+ with live stats available here.
 

LAST TIME OUT

• Pepperdine was defeated at home by a score of 80-60 against San Francisco this past  Saturday.
• Styles Phipps led the Waves with 18 points and nine rebounds.
• David Mager matched a career-high with 13 points in the effort.
• The Waves matched a season-low with just six turnovers in the contest.
• Phipps shot 10-for-12 from the free throw line with the team converting 21 of 29 attempts from the charity stripe.

GAME NOTES

• Pepperdine currently ranks 33rd in the country and third in the WCC in free throw percentage at .767.
• The Waves have shot over 70-percent from the line in 12 of the past 15 games.
• Pepperdine has made 20+ free throws in back-to-back efforts.
• The Waves are one of two teams in the West Coast Conference to have four players averaging 10.5 points per game or more (Aaron Clark, Javon Cooley, Styles Phipps, Danilo Dozic).
• Seven players have finished as the leading scorer in a game for Pepperdine this season, the most in the WCC, with only five teams in the country having more.
• The Waves are one of six teams in the WCC to average over 11 offensive rebounds per game.
• The Waves have secured double-digit offensive boards in 11 of 19 games this season.
• Styles Phipps is one of three players in the country averaging over 12 points, six rebounds, five assists per game (Joshua Jefferson, Iowa State & Quion Williams, Arkansas-Pine Bluff).
• Phipps is currently third in the WCC in assists per game at 5.0.
• Phipps is the only player in the WCC to have both a points/rebounds double-double and a points/assists double-double this season.
• Phipps has shot 22-for-25 from the free-throw line across the past two games, leading the Waves with 18 points in each contest.
• Phipps ranks 8th in the conference with 6.4 rebounds per game, as the Pepperdine point guard has also corralled 39 offensive rebounds through 18 games this campaign (2.1 per game).
• Javon Cooley comes in as the Waves leading scorer at 12.7 points per game while being second on the squad with 4.9 rebounds per game.
• Cooley and Phipps each rank within the top-25 of the conference in both scoring and rebounding.
• Cooley ranks fourth in the WCC and 42nd in the nation in free throw percentage (.892), and had a streak of 44 consecutive made free throws this season, snapped at Long Beach State.
• Aaron Clark is one of three Waves averaging over 12 points per game this season.
• Clark has posted 25 points or more in three games this season.
• Clark currently ranks sixth in the WCC with 1.6 steals per game on the season.
• Clark is one of four players in the WCC to be averaging at least 12 points per game, three rebounds per game and 1.5 steals per game.
• Danilo Dozic has posted a pair of 20-point efforts this season and leads the team in three-pointers made with 28.
• David Mager matched a career-best 13 points this past weekend against San Francisco.

SERIES HISTORY

• Pepperdine leads the all-time series, 69-44.
• The Waves defeated the Pilots by a score of 86-73 in the opening round of the 2025 WCC Tournament, after Portland claimed both regular season meetings this past season.
• The Waves boast a 37-15 all-time record at home in the series.
• Pepperdine has a 4-6 record across the past ten meetings.

SCOUTING THE PILOTS

• Portland was selected to finish 12th in the WCC Preseason Poll.
• The Pilots enter play off a 2-0 weekend in the conference, defeating both Pacific and Oregon State at home.
• Freshman Joel Foxwell has led the way for the Pilots, leading the WCC in assists per game at 7.2 while being tenth in the conference in scoring at 14.6 points per game.
• Portland boasts the fourth-highest scoring offense in the conference at 79.3 points per game while allowing the most points per game in the circuit at 81.1.

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
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