Pepperdine Can’t Find a Victory in San Diego

Sam Adamo scored a career-high 19 points, including three crucial baskets down the stretch, to lead San Diego to a 73-62 victory over Pepperdine on Thursday night at San Diego.

The victory prevented Pepperdine from claiming a share of the West Coast Conference regular-season title.

The Waves, 21-7 overall and 11-2 in the West Coast Conference, have a half-game lead over idle Gonzaga, which plays tonight at Santa Clara, with one game remaining.

Adamo gave San Diego (18-8, 9-4) a huge lift after the Waves cut the lead to 54-51 at the 7:09 mark.

The reserve guard scored on three consecutive possessions, culminating in a backdoor lay-up off a pass from Cameron Rigby, to give the Toreros a 61-51 lead with 5:11 left.

Adamo made seven of 12 shots from the field, including three three-point attempts. San Diego’s Tom Lippold led all scorers, tying his career high with 21 points.

Pepperdine is seeking its first regular-season WCC championship since 1993 when it won the third of three straight titles. The Waves, winners in 13 of 14 games coming in, had their win streak end at five games.

Brandon Armstrong led Pepperdine with 16 points and Tommie Prince added 15.