Pepperdine’s Streak Reaches 9

Doug Christie and Geoff Lear had a hot night, and Pepperdine kept its hot streak intact.

Christie scored 24 points and Lear added 21 as the Waves defeated cold-shooting Gonzaga, 80-56, Saturday night for their ninth consecutive victory.

Pepperdine, which leads the West Coast Conference with a 9-1 record, is 15-8 overall. Gonzaga, which shot just 36.1% (22 of 61) fell to 12-11, 3-7.

Pepperdine took a 38-28 halftime lead, then blew the game open with a 29-12 run in the first 9:43 of the second half for a 67-40 advantage.

Christie made 10 of 14 shots and Lear was nine of 15. In victories over Portland and Gonzaga this weekend, Lear made 18 of 24 shots.

“I played poorly at home last weekend, so I really wanted to put together two solid games on the road trip,” Lear said. “I was able to get excellent position inside all night long and the guys got me the ball on the block.”

Pepperdine’s nine-game streak matches the second-best in school history. The Waves won 15 in a row in the 1981-82 season, and also won nine in 1985-86.

Lear also had 15 rebounds as Pepperdine outrebounded Gonzaga, 42-26.

“We played extremely well and caught Gonzaga on a night when they had trouble shooting,” Pepperdine Coach Tom Asbury said. “I thought the first 10 minutes of the second half was about as well as we have played all season.”