Waves Get Legs and Pull Away : Pepperdine: Team shakes slow start and uses a balanced attack to defeat Drexel, 69-56.

After playing in a tournament at Tennessee Chattanooga earlier in the week, Pepperdine returned home to face a Drexel team that has not played a home game since Dec. 14.

But it was the Waves who looked sluggish before eventually pulling away for a 69-56 victory over Drexel on Saturday at Firestone Fieldhouse in Malibu.

“It looked like we were the ones still on the road,” Pepperdine Coach Tom Asbury said. “I think we were still feeling the effects of that road trip in the first half. But they were well coached and they exploited everything we threw at them at first.”

Behind the outside shooting of forward Mike Wisler, who made four three-point baskets during the first half, Drexel (5-4) led by as many as 11 points before the Waves (7-3) cut the deficit to 31-30 at halftime on two free throws by forward Byron Jenson.

Pepperdine went ahead to stay, 34-33, on a layup by center Derek Noether with 17:30 to play and opened a 17-point margin late in the game.

“Collectively, I thought we did a pretty good job in the second half,” Asbury said. “They’re a pretty good team and I told (our players) at halftime to be more active and to get out and force more turnovers and we did that.”

Pepperdine benefited when Wisler committed his fourth foul with 11:46 remaining and did not return for more than seven minutes. He finished with game highs of 18 points and six three-pointers.

The Waves also limited Drexel’s leading scorer, sophomore guard Brian Holden, to three points and one of 10 shooting from the field.

Drexel, however, held Pepperdine’s scoring leader, Damin Lopez, to a season-low three points. But four other players scored in double figures, including Noether and forwards Dana Jones and Jenson with 16 points each, to spark the Waves to victory.