Pepperdine Waves (7-8) at Gonzaga Bulldogs (9-4)
Spokane, Washington; Thursday, 9 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: No. 24 Gonzaga plays the Pepperdine Waves after Graham Ike scored 20 points in Gonzaga’s 84-74 loss to the San Diego State Aztecs.
The Bulldogs are 6-1 in home games. Gonzaga is third in the WCC in team defense, allowing 68.4 points while holding opponents to 39.1% shooting.
The Waves are 0-3 on the road. Pepperdine ranks fifth in the WCC giving up 70.2 points while holding opponents to 46.6% shooting.
Gonzaga averages 83.5 points, 13.3 more per game than the 70.2 Pepperdine allows. Pepperdine averages 72.1 points per game, 3.7 more than the 68.4 Gonzaga gives up.
The matchup Thursday is the first meeting of the season for the two teams in conference play.
TOP PERFORMERS: Ike is averaging 14.5 points and 8.1 rebounds for the Bulldogs. Anton Watson is averaging 14.6 points over the last 10 games for Gonzaga.
Houston Mallette averages 2.1 made 3-pointers per game for the Waves, scoring 16.5 points while shooting 39.2% from beyond the arc. Michael Ajayi is shooting 48.6% and averaging 17.3 points over the past 10 games for Pepperdine.
LAST 10 GAMES: Bulldogs: 7-3, averaging 81.4 points, 41.5 rebounds, 15.4 assists, 6.4 steals and 4.0 blocks per game while shooting 48.0% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 68.8 points per game.
Waves: 4-6, averaging 69.6 points, 34.7 rebounds, 14.9 assists, 5.1 steals and 3.6 blocks per game while shooting 44.5% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 72.2 points.
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
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