COLLEGE BASKETBALL / WEST COAST CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT : Pepperdine Fades Away in First Round, 62-52

Pepperdine, which had never lost in the first round of the West Coast Conference tournament, was confident it could continue the trend this year despite enduring its worst season since 1977-78.

And with 6 1/2 minutes to play Saturday at Toso Pavilion, the seventh-seeded Waves were tied with second-seeded Portland.

But Pepperdine, as it had at crucial times all season, faltered in the late going and lost, 62-52, ending the season with its eighth loss in nine games and a record of 8-19, its first losing season in eight years.

“We didn’t really execute like we had been recently,” said Pepperdine Coach Tony Fuller, whose team entered the tournament on a high after upsetting Santa Clara in its regular-season finale. “You’ve got to give Portland credit for that. They played good pressure defense.”

Pepperdine pulled even with the Pilots (20-7) at 46-46 when Joey Ramirez made a three-point shot with 6:47 to play, but the Waves, who made only 35.7% of their shots, didn’t get another basket until only 24 seconds remained.

“I felt the momentum was going our way,” said guard Gerald Brown, who led Pepperdine with 18 points despite making only four of 14 shots. “But I didn’t think the game was ours. I knew they weren’t going to just lay down and let us take over. I knew it was going to be a fight from there out.”

Curt Ranta, a 6-foot-10 all-conference center, did the most to knock out the Waves, scoring 14 of his 21 points after halftime.

The Pilots gained their first 20-victory season in 39 years.

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St. Mary’s 72, San Francisco 41--Sixth man Chris Johnson scored 18 points to help the third-seeded Gaels (18-9) roll over the sixth-seeded Dons (10-19) for their 12th victory in 13 games.

“Right now, you’ve got to look at them as the best team in the tournament, the way they’re playing,” USF Coach Jim Brovelli said of the Gaels.

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Gonzaga 74, San Diego 57--John Rillie made eight of 12 three-point shots and had 32 points, five rebounds and five assists to lead the fourth-seeded Bulldogs (19-8) over the fifth-seeded Toreros (10-16).

Gonzaga, which has won eight of its last nine games, made 54% of its shots, 61.5% in outscoring San Diego during the second half, 40-21.