This Time, Lopez Is Able to Play : WCC: He missed the game when San Francisco ended Pepperdine’s winning streak but is around for revenge.

Ever since the University of San Francisco ended its record 38-game West Coast Conference winning streak Jan. 30 in Malibu, the Pepperdine basketball team has been waiting to play the Dons again.

The Waves got their opportunity in the semifinals of the conference tournament Sunday night and made the most of the it.

Behind 64.4% shooting, Pepperdine handed San Francisco an 88-67 defeat before 4,168 at Memorial Gym.

Guard Damin Lopez said what had stuck in the minds of Pepperdine players even more than the January loss were the postgame antics of San Francisco players and fans.

Pepperdine officials said there was a scuffle involving fans, and San Francisco players pounded on the door of the Wave locker room and taunted them.

“They’re a great team and I can’t put them down,” Lopez said. “But we didn’t like what happened after that game. It’s something we never forgot about. I don’t mind if we get beat, but we can do without the trash talk.”

The Waves (22-6) wasted little time in taking control.

After San Francisco (19-12) took a 10-8 lead, Pepperdine ran off 13 points in a row. The Dons bounced right back with an 11-0 run, tying the score, 21-21, on a three-point basket by Wilson Stephens with 9:06 to play in the first half.

But the Waves, behind the outside shooting of Lopez, outscored San Francisco, 26-9, over the final eight minutes to take a 48-32 halftime lead.

Lopez, who didn’t play in Pepperdine’s first two games against the Dons because of a broken hand, had four three-point baskets and all of his 14 points in the first half.

“I think you saw in the first half what kind of a difference he can make,” San Francisco Coach Jim Brovelli said. “They got the ball out to him and he made some long-range, NBA-type shots.”

More than his team’s outstanding shooting performance, which included 80% from the field in the second half, Pepperdine Coach Tom Asbury was pleased with the scoring balance.

“The first thing that jumps out at me when I look at the statistics is we had five guys in double figures,” Asbury said. “That was really a key in my mind.”

The Waves were led by Derek Noether with 19 points, and Byron Jenson scored 16 and had a career-high 13 rebounds.

Santa Clara 53, Gonzaga 51--Reserve guard John Rillie’s desperation jump shot fell short at the buzzer as the third-seeded Broncos (17-11) advanced to the tournament final for the first time since 1989, meeting Pepperdine at 9 p.m.