Halftime Report
Saint Mary’s is on the road but looking no worse for wear. They are fully in control with a 51-28 lead over Pepperdine.
Saint Mary’s entered the contest having won 15 straight and they’re just one half away from another. Will they make it 16, or will Pepperdine step up and spoil it? We’ll know soon.
Who’s Playing
Saint Mary’s Gaels @ Pepperdine Waves
Current Records: Saint Mary’s 23-6, Pepperdine 12-18
How To Watch
What to Know
Pepperdine will be in front of their home fans on Thursday, but a look at the spread shows they might need that home-court advantage. They and the Saint Mary’s Gaels will face off in a West Coast battle at 11:00 p.m. ET at Firestone Fieldhouse.
It’s hard to win when you don’t work as a unit and post 12 fewer assists than your opponent, a fact Pepperdine found out the hard way on Saturday. They suffered a bruising 92-68 loss at the hands of the Dons. The loss unfortunately continues a disappointing trend for Pepperdine in their matchups with the Dons: they’ve now lost five in a row.
Pepperdine’s loss came about despite a quality game from Jevon Porter, who scored 23 points along with five rebounds. The team also got some help courtesy of Houston Mallette, who scored 15 points.
Meanwhile, Saint Mary’s came tearing into Saturday’s match with 14 straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 20.9 points) and they left with even more momentum. They steamrolled past the Toreros 88-62 at home. Saint Mary’s has made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won 12 contests by 20 points or more this season.
Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Saint Mary’s to victory, but perhaps none more so than Mitchell Saxen, who scored 20 points along with seven rebounds and two blocks. Another player making a difference was Alex Ducas, who shot 6-for-7 from beyond the arc and dropped a double-double on 18 points and 12 rebounds.
The Waves’ defeat dropped their record down to 12-18. As for the Gaels, they are on a roll lately: they’ve won 20 of their last 21 contests, which provided a nice bump to their 23-6 record this season.
Pepperdine took a serious blow against the Gaels when the teams last played two weeks ago, falling 103-59. Will Pepperdine have more luck at home instead of on the road?
Odds
Saint Mary’s is a big 15.5-point favorite against Pepperdine, according to the latest college basketball odds.
The oddsmakers were right in line with the betting community on this one, as the game opened as a 15.5-point spread, and stayed right there.
The over/under is 136.5 points.
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Series History
Saint Mary’s has won 8 out of their last 10 games against Pepperdine.
- Feb 15, 2024 – Saint Mary’s 103 vs. Pepperdine 59
- Jan 19, 2023 – Saint Mary’s 73 vs. Pepperdine 44
- Jan 29, 2022 – Saint Mary’s 81 vs. Pepperdine 57
- Jan 13, 2022 – Saint Mary’s 77 vs. Pepperdine 62
- Feb 22, 2021 – Saint Mary’s 66 vs. Pepperdine 61
- Feb 13, 2021 – Pepperdine 60 vs. Saint Mary’s 58
- Mar 08, 2020 – Saint Mary’s 89 vs. Pepperdine 82
- Jan 18, 2020 – Saint Mary’s 78 vs. Pepperdine 69
- Feb 16, 2019 – Saint Mary’s 72 vs. Pepperdine 65
- Jan 26, 2019 – Pepperdine 84 vs. Saint Mary’s 77
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