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Waves Upset Gonzaga, 75-70

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<i> From Staff and Wire Reports</i>

Having lost three of its last four games and after averaging 48 points in two losses last weekend, the last thing the Pepperdine basketball team needed was for its leader, Jelani Gardner, to be benched Friday night against Gonzaga, the top team in the West Coast Conference.

But the Waves, playing the first six minutes without the No. 8 scorer in the WCC, survived his temporary absence and defeated the Bulldogs, 75-70, before 2,685 at Firestone Fieldhouse at Malibu, clinching second place. The Waves will be the second-seeded team in next week’s conference tournament at Santa Clara.

Kelvin Gibbs scored a career-high 23 points, grabbed 12 rebounds, and scored the clincher with 16 seconds left and one second on the shot clock.

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“The past couple of games, I didn’t play well,” said Gibbs, who had only seven points in losses at San Francisco and Santa Clara last weekend. “I wanted to play better and gain some momentum for the [WCC] tournament.”

Waves’ Coach Lorenzo Romar said Gardner, who had only 17 points and four assists last weekend, was benched to “shake things up.” It worked. Pepperdine led, 13-8, when Gardner entered.

Gardner, who had started every game since transferring from California two years ago, had 17 points and three three-point baskets.

“I just take it as it comes,” Gardner said of his benching. “I made it a mental challenge for me to succeed tonight regardless of the situation. I think I did well.”

As a result of its recent skid, Pepperdine, (18-10, 9-4) was no longer playing for first place, but to lock up second. That didn’t diminish the importance of a victory over the Bulldogs (21-6, 11-2).

“This is huge because if we want to get to the NCAA tournament by means of the WCC tournament, we probably have to go through these guys,” Romar said. “Our guys now know we have a chance to beat these guys, and we’ve gained some momentum.”

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The Waves built an eight-point lead with 14 minutes to play, but the Bulldogs went on a 12-0 run to take a 68-62 lead with 5:20 left. Pepperdine answered with 10 consecutive points to lead 72-68 with 2:04 left.

Ahead, 72-70, the Waves ran the game clock down to 20 seconds before Tezale Archie put up an air ball. Gibbs jumped and tipped it in to make it 74-70, and the Waves’ defense made it stand.

The Waves end the regular season tonight hosting Portland at 5. It will be senior night, and Gardner will start.

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