Pepperdine University’s men’s basketball team lost its West Coast Conference opener to No. 7 Gonzaga on Sunday night at Firestone Fieldhouse, with a final score of 96-56. The defeat moves Pepperdine to a record of 5-9 overall and 0-1 in conference play, while Gonzaga improves to 13-1 overall and 1-0 in the WCC.
Gonzaga maintained control throughout the game, leading 44-26 at halftime and extending their advantage in the second half. The Bulldogs shot over 50% from the field (36-for-67), while Pepperdine managed just under 34% (19-for-56).
Yonatan Levy led Pepperdine with 15 points, six rebounds, and three steals. It was his first time this season as the Waves’ top scorer. Javon Cooley contributed 13 points off the bench, making six of his eight shots.
Head coach Ed Schilling commented on the loss: “We were dominated tonight by Gonzaga. Their experience, strength, and size took us out of what we needed to do at both ends of the floor. The good news is that we now have a much clearer picture of how we need to compete and execute in order to be successful going forward in the WCC.”
Gonzaga opened with a quick 9-0 run before Aaron Clark scored Pepperdine’s first points with a mid-range jumper. Early three-point shooting from Danilo Dozic and Yonatan Levy helped keep Pepperdine close, narrowing Gonzaga’s lead to 11-8 at one point.
The Waves fell behind after being held scoreless for more than five minutes during an 18-0 Gonzaga run that made it 40-16. Cooley scored twice late in the first half as part of a brief rally, but Pepperdine still trailed by double digits at halftime.
In the second half, Braeden Smith hit two early three-pointers for Gonzaga before Levy responded for Pepperdine. However, another scoring surge by Gonzaga pushed their lead past thirty points midway through the half.
Levy scored ten of his fifteen points after halftime but could not help reduce the deficit as Gonzaga finished strong offensively.
Additional notes include:
– Yonatan Levy has now made a three-pointer in five consecutive games.
– Javon Cooley is averaging over fifteen points per game on nearly sixty-four percent shooting across Pepperdine’s last five contests.
– Styles Phipps added six points along with seven rebounds and three assists; he has recorded at least three assists every game this season.
– Stefan Cicic provided four points and six rebounds off the bench.
– Pepperdine went thirteen-for-twenty from the free throw line.
– Gonzaga won both rebounding (44–31) and bench scoring (48–21).
Pepperdine will next host Saint Mary’s on Tuesday night at Firestone Fieldhouse.
Pepperdine men’s basketball has participated in thirteen NCAA postseason tournaments and claimed twelve regular-season WCC titles as well as three tournament championships since its founding. The program won its most recent championship at the CBI Tournament in 2021 and has produced nineteen All-Americans along with nineteen NBA players over several decades.
