The Pepperdine women’s basketball team’s season may have ended last week in a first-round 81-74 loss to Oklahoma State at the Women’s National Invitation Tournament but after a season filled with growth there is a lot to look forward to for next year said Head Coach Julie Rousseau.
The Waves traveled the farthest of any team in the tournament making the trek all of the way to Stillwater Okla but still managed to hang in the game to the very end. Junior guard Katie Menton’s career high 29 points were a big help in keeping the Waves in the game.
Rousseau attributed the Waves’ strong showing in the game to the cohesiveness of the group.
“Only a veteran team could have traveled that far and been ready to play against a much bigger physical team she said, We played with our competitiveness and cohesiveness at a level that a team needs to be champions.
Having made two post-seasons in a row the team is headed in the right direction Rousseau said.
Rousseau also saw many of the positives from the Waves’ final game as indicative of how the team had grown throughout the season.
“We matured a lot over the course of the season and can draw from some big wins against teams like Oregon State and Temple. Individual players have grown a lot this year and the team has as well Rousseau said. We also lost some games that we shouldn’t have but we know we can fix those problems she added.
The Waves will be returning four seniors next year, so that maturity and competitive mentality should carry over very well, Rousseau said.
Overall, Rousseau is pleased but not satisfied with the season. We have had some hard experiences that we will be able to draw on as motivation to make us better next year she said. I feel that we are on the verge of doing something great.”