Pepperdine Coasts to Victory

Biding time and gathering momentum, Pepperdine defeated hapless St. Mary’s, 82-53, Friday night at Malibu to keep alive the possibility of gaining a share of the West Coast Conference regular-season championship.

The title wouldn’t have much practical value, though.

A Wave victory over San Francisco tonight coupled with a Gonzaga loss at San Diego would leave Pepperdine and Gonzaga tied. But the Bulldogs have clinched the top seeding in next week’s conference tournament because they beat Pepperdine twice.

Pepperdine, 19-7 overall and 11-2 in the WCC, must win the tournament to be assured of an NCAA berth. Last season the Waves gained an at-large entry, but another loss to Gonzaga would probably deny them a bid.

The Waves put away St. Mary’s (2-25, 0-3) early, using a full-court press to take a 31-11 lead. The Gaels, losers of 18 in a row, crept within 39-34 a minute into the second half but Pepperdine scored 31 of the next 35 points.

The Waves shot a season-high 59%, held St. Mary’s to 32.5% and forced 22 turnovers.

Pepperdine guard Brandon Armstrong, the WCC’s leading scorer, was benched for the first four minutes because he was 10 minutes late to the game. He had only six points in the first half but scored 10 early in the second half and finished with 18 on eight-of-11 shooting.