UCSB vs Pepperdine Game Preview, by gauchodan

Game 8
UCSB at Pepperdine
Saturday, December 10, 2022, 5:00 pm PST
Malibu, Calif.
 
Quick Bite
The Gauchos (5-2) are coming off of a solid 82-71 victory over Pacific at the Thunderdome.  Ajare Sanni broke out with 22 points, Ajay Mitchell added 19 and Miles Norris tallied 18 points. UCSB has been a different story in true road games, however, going 0-2.  The Gauchos are 5-0 in the Pacific Time Zone.  Something has to give this evening.

The Waves (5-3) went on an apparent COVID cause over Thanksgiving, moving a trip to Grand Canyon to mid-December and canceling a game with Cal Poly.  They returned last Saturday with a convincing 88-69 victory over Northern Arizona (bad score compare) before losing their first home game of the season to highly-regarded Nevada.  The Waves have also beaten UC Irvine but lost in overtime at Cal State Fullerton and were absolutely hammered at UCLA 100-53.

UCSB-Pepperdine History
According to UCSB, the series is tied 35-35 but 72 games (?) have been played.  According to Pepperdine, the Waves lead the series 38-37.  Joe Pasternack is 3-0 vs. Pepperdine since his arrival in Santa Barbara, with two of those wins coming in Malibu.

The Arena
Firestone Fieldhouse
Capacity: 3,104
Opened: 1973
Facility construction was initiated in conjunction with the University's move to Malibu in 1972, and the first home event was on November 30, 1973, when the Pepperdine men's basketball team lost a 52-50 decision to Pacific.  Firestone Fieldhouse was officially dedicated on September 20, 1975, by President Gerald R. Ford.  The modern, cozy facility is an excellent place to view basketball games and volleyball matches from both courtside bleachers and upstairs theatre seats.  The basketball court is named Robert “Duck” Dowell court, named after the winningest coach in Pepperdine men's basketball coach, and was dedicated on February 14, 2004.

Head Coach
Lorenzo Romar
overall: 450-358 (.557) 
Pepperdine: 101-118 (.461)
Romar is in the 5th season of his second stint at the 'Dine.  Pepperdine has just one winning season since Romar's return, a 15-12 season in 2020-21 that culminated in the CBI championship.  Romar spent 15 seasons at Washington, taking the Huskies to the NCAA Tournament six times between 2004 and 2011.  However, U-Dub famously was left out of the 2012 NCAA Tournament despite winning the Pac-12 regular-season title and Romar has not had a 20-win season since.  IMHO, Romar is a great recruiter and a poor head coach.

Pepperdine Roster
Maxwell Lewis #24 SO F, 6-7 195, Las Vegas, NV -- 18.0 Pts, 5.6 Reb, 2.6 Ast
Houston Mallette #0 SO G, 6-5 185, Alameda, CA -- 15.1 Pts, 5.4 Reb, 3.3 Ast
Mike Mitchell Jr. #1 SO G, 6-2 185, San Jose, CA -- 14.0 Pts, 2.4 Reb, 4.1 Ast
Jevon Porter #14 FR F, 6-11 220, Columbia, MO -- 9.5 Pts, 7.6 Reb, 0.9 Ast
Jan Zidek #31 SR F, 6-9 230, Prague, Czech Republic -- 7.9 Pts, 2.0 Reb, 0.9 Ast
Boubacar Coulibaly #12 SO F, 6-10 195, Bamako, Mali -- 6.9 Pts, 4.9 Reb, 0.7 Ast
Carson Basham #11 SO C, 6-10 240, Phoenix, AZ -- 5.7 Pts, 3.7 Reb, 1.6 Ast
Malik Moore #3 FR G, 6-5 185, Ventura, CA -- 4.0 Pts, 2.3 Reb, 2.3 Ast
Jalen Pitre #2 FR F, 6-8 220, Long Beach, CA -- 2.4 Pts, 2.2 Reb, 0.0 Ast
Majok Deng #22 JR G, 6-5 190, Tucson, AZ -- 0.4 Pts, 1.4 Reb, 0.0 Ast
Jay Yoon #5 SR G, 6-4 195, Arcadia, CA -- 0.4 Pts, 0.4 Reb, 0.0 Ast
Paul Jordan #10 FR F, 6-6 200, Sea Cliff, NY -- 0.0 Pts, 0.5 Reb, 0.0 Ast

UCSB Roster
Ajay Mitchell #13 SO G, 6-4 180, Sainte Marie Namur (Belgium) -- 15.0 Pts, 2.7 Reb, 4.9 Ast
Miles Norris #5 SR F, 6-10 220, San Diego, CA -- 12.6 Pts, 7.1 Reb, 2.6 Ast
Andre Kelly #2 SR F, 6-8 255, Stockton, CA -- 11.3 Pts, 9.0 Reb, 1.4 Ast
Josh Pierre-Louis #1 SR G, 6-4 185, Plainfield, NJ -- 11.0 Pts, 3.8 Reb, 2.8 Ast
Cole Anderson #4 SO G, 6-4 185, Fresno, CA -- 8.3 Pts, 1.6 Reb, 0.4 Ast
Ajare Sanni #3 SR G, 6-3 170, Houston, TX -- 8.3 Pts, 2.2 Reb, 0.8 Ast
Calvin Wishart #10 SR G, 6-1 180, Delano, MN -- 5.4 Pts, 2.7 Reb, 3.4 Ast
Jakov Kukic #14 JR F, 6-10 230, Split, Croatia -- 1.5 Pts, 3.5 Reb, 0.0 Ast
Koat Keat Tong #00 FR F, 6-9 215, Bentiu, South Sudan -- 0.7 Pts, 1.7 Reb, 0.0 Ast
Matija Belic #32 FR G, 6-7 205, Belgrade, Serbia -- 0.5 Pts, 0.8 Reb, 0.3 Ast
Zach Harvey #11 SO G, 6-5 195, Topeka, KS -- 0.7 Pts, 0.3 Reb, 0.0 Ast
Ariel Bland #23 SO F, 6-7 215, Eden Prairie, MN -- 0.0 Pts, 1.5 Reb, 0.0 Ast
Gage Gomez #50 JR G, 6-3 190, Arroyo Grande, CA -- 0.0 Pts, 0.0 Reb, 0.0 Ast
Henry Hartwell #51 FR G, 6-5 180, Oceanside, CA -- 0.0 Pts, 0.0 Reb, 0.0 Ast
Evans Kipruto #12 JR F, 6-8 250, Nairobi, Kenya -- 0.0 Pts, 0.3 Reb, 0.0 Ast
Max Sheldon #53 SO G, 5-11 180, Santa Barbara, CA -- 0.0 Pts, 0.0 Reb, 0.0 Ast
 
Matchup
Pepperdine is 3rd-ranked nationally in 3-point FG% (43.3%), 9th in 3-pointers made per game (10.9), 7th in defensive rebounds per game (30.12), 31st in blocks per game (5.0), 46th in field goal percentage (48.6%) and 40th in scoring offense (80.5 ppg).  The Waves are 326th in offensive rebounds per game (7.75), 317th in turnover margin (-2.6) and 323rd in turnovers forced per game (10.88).  Mike Mitchell Jr. is 3rd nationally in 3-point percentage (55.1%), 14th in 3-pointers per game (3.38) and 42nd in total 3-pointers made (27).  Houston Mallette is 30th in assist/turnover ratio (3.25), 41st in 3-point percentage (44.2%) and 59th in 3-pointers per game (2.88).  Boubacar Coulibaly is 58th in the nation in blocks per game (1.71) and Maxwell Lewis is 27th in field goal percentage (62.4%).

UCSB is 31st in the nation in rebound margin (+7.7 per game), 51st in field goal percentage (48.4%) and 52nd in assists per game (16.0).  UCSB is 322nd in the nation in three point attempts per game (17.6).  Ajay Mitchell is 63rd in the nation in assists per game (4.9) and Andres Kelly is 81st in double doubles (2), 34th in defensive rebounds per game (6.71) and 41st in rebounds per game (9.0).

Prediction
This could be Romar's best team at Pepperdine.  Currently, the Waves are the highest-ranked non-conference opponent per the NET.  Pepperdine shoots the ball well from all over the court.  UCSB played much better defense vs. Pacific, and they will need even better defense to slow down the Waves.  UCSB will need to keep the pace down in order to escape Firestone with a win.   UCSB 69, Pepperdine 68

Official Site:  https://pepperdinewaves.com/sports/mens-basketball
Hey Guys!:  https://247sports.com/college/pepperdin ... cs-102450/
How to Watch:  https://wccsports.com/watch/?sid=493611
Live stats:  http://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=427461