Pepperdine University's men's basketball team, with a 5-10 overall record and 0-2 in the West Coast Conference, heads out for its first road conference games of the season. The Waves will face undefeated Santa Clara on Friday before taking on Pacific on Saturday. Coming off a heavy loss to Saint Mary's, Pepperdine aims to leverage its strong free-throw shooting and key players' performances.
Pepperdine men's basketball enters the weekend with momentum challenges after a 72-45 defeat to Saint Mary's on Tuesday at Firestone Fieldhouse. The loss marked the Waves' season-low in scoring, with Pavle Stosic, Danilo Dozic, and Styles Phipps each contributing eight points. Yonatan Levy notched a season-high five assists alongside three rebounds and a steal, but the team struggled in the second half, outscored 38-20 and making just one of 13 three-point attempts.
Despite the setback, Pepperdine boasts strengths in free-throw accuracy, ranking 20th nationally at .773 and third in the WCC with 208 of 269 made this season. The Waves have shot over 70% from the line in nine of their last 11 games, including 17-of-20 against Vermont and 23-of-26 at Cal State Fullerton. Offensively, four players average at least 11 points per game: Aaron Clark and Javon Cooley at 13.3 each, Styles Phipps, and Danilo Dozic.
Styles Phipps stands out nationally as one of three players averaging over 11.5 points, six rebounds, five assists, and one steal per game. He ranks third in the WCC with 5.1 assists and is the only conference player with both points/rebounds and points/assists double-doubles this season. Javon Cooley has been efficient lately, shooting 31-for-54 (.574) from the field and 9-for-20 (.450) from three over six games, while leading the team in free-throw percentage at .923, fourth in the WCC. Aaron Clark matches Cooley's scoring average and provides balanced contributions with 3.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.5 steals per game.
Historically, Santa Clara holds an 86-65 series edge, winning seven of the last 10, including a 91-80 victory last season. However, Pepperdine prevailed 78-76 in the most recent WCC quarterfinals in March. Against Pacific, the series is closer at 42-38 for the Tigers, but the Waves have won the last five meetings.
Santa Clara (11-4, 2-0 WCC) enters unbeaten in conference play after road wins over Oregon State (102-64) and Portland (92-85), boasting the WCC's second-highest scoring offense at 81.5 points per game. Christian Hammond averages 16.5 points (fourth in WCC), and Elijah Mahi adds 15.5 (seventh). Pacific (9-6, 0-2 WCC) lost its openers to San Diego and LMU but shares common wins over Long Beach State and Cal State Fullerton. Elias Ralph leads with 16.8 points (third in WCC) and 6.8 rebounds (fifth).
