Pepperdine Squeaks by in Exhibition

It wasn’t pretty, but for a team that struggled offensively on its way to a 6-21 record last season, Pepperdine’s final basketball exhibition Thursday night was a welcomed sight.

Senior guard Gerald Brown scored 21 points and keyed a second-half surge that carried the Waves to an 88-82 victory over a hot-shooting Hungarian Select team at Firestone Fieldhouse in Malibu.

Junior center omm’A Givens added 20 points on 10-for-12 shooting and had 10 rebounds for Pepperdine, which shot 61% but struggled to put away a Hungarian team that made 12 of 20 three-point shots. Eight of the three-pointers came in the first half, which ended with the Waves leading, 43-42.

“I didn’t like our defensive intensity,” said Pepperdine Coach Lorenzo Romar, whose team opens the season Tuesday night at UC Irvine. “The second half was better. The first half wasn’t a reflection of the kind of defense we can play.”

The Waves allowed only four three-point baskets in the second half and took the lead for good, 64-62, on two free throws by Brown with 11:41 to play. On the Waves’ next possession, Brown passed to Jelani Gardner for an ally-oop dunk that generated the biggest cheers of the night.