DAVID NAKAGAMI
Sports Assistant
Homecoming festivities added excitement and fanfare to the campus and the weekend’s sporting events. In particular, the men’s basketball team fed on the exceptional fan turnout and support, muzzling the Lions of Loyola Marymount by a score of 95-88 Saturday night.
The Waves began the game slowly, allowing LMU to break away with a 14-4 start. Pepperdine battled the score to within four points on back-to-back three-pointers by sophomore guard Tomas Pranciliauskas and rookie forward Blake Wallace. Junior reserve Shane Griffin anchored the Waves’ rebounding effort, securing three boards off of the offensive glass in a span of a minute and a half. The contest went back and forth as the clock counted down to halftime. Trying to narrow the Lions’ advantage before the break, seniors Gregg Barlow and Chase Griffin hit jumpers to put the Waves within two, the half-game tally at 37-35 in favor of LMU.
Chase led all scorers at halftime with 13 points on 5-7 shooting from the field, including making two of his three shots from behind the three-point line. The Lions were propelled by former Waves center Derick Grubb, who posted eight points and eight boards in 17 minutes on the floor.
Pepperdine came out for the second half of play refreshed. Five unanswered Waves baskets turned a two-point halftime deficit into a 10-point lead, less than three minutes into the second half. The lead swelled to 12 just two minutes later. Refusing to go down without a fight, the Lions clawed back to within three points at the 11:23 mark. However, the Waves held tightly onto the lead and pushed LMU into submission. A layup by forward Willie Galick with five minutes remaining pushed the Waves’ advantage to 17 points, all but taking the air out of the crosstown rivals. Eight consecutive free throws by Chase sealed the Pepperdine triumph, 95-88.
Chase finished with a career-high 32 points, shooting a near-perfect 9-13 from the field and 12-13 from the free-throw line. In addition, he tied for the team lead in rebounds with four, dished out three assists and snatched three steals. For his outstanding effort, Chase was named the West Coast Conference Co-Player of the Week on Tuesday, the first Wave to merit the distinction this season.
The award caught the guard by surprise, as players garnered with the title usually earn it over two games. Instead, Chase won it with a bold statement in the LMU game.
“It’s an awesome honor,” Chase said. “But it’s really nice to get the win.”
Head Coach Vance Walberg had nothing but good things to say about one of his team’s leaders.
“He’s worked really hard all year,” said Walberg. “It’s great to see him finally get rewarded.”
In spite of Chase’s award-winning performance, he wasn’t the only inspirational Griffin on the team.
“Shane came in and had a great game for us,” Walberg said of the sparingly-used junior guard. “His effort with a stress fracture was really appreciated by his teammates. He was the star of the night.”
Shane recorded four rebounds, three offensive, two points and an assist in nine minutes of play. A walk-on known for his strong rebounding and team-first attitude, Shane’s productive time on the floor gave Pepperdine a spark off the bench in the first half.
The win edged the Waves closer to respectability, with a 3-9 WCC record and a 7-21 record overall. Although still last in the conference, Pepperdine is within one game of Portland and LMU and within two games of San Diego, with two regular season games left on the schedule.
Walberg and the Waves remain convinced that they are not a force to be overlooked.
“We still hope to win our last two games,” said the rookie head coach. “We need to have a good game and make sure the other team has a bad one.”
Chase stressed one reason to take remaining two regular season games seriously.
“They’re getting us ready for the postseason,” said the Sammamish, Washington native. “The postseason is where we have to shine.”
Another reason for Pepperdine’s unwavering resolve to finish out the season strong is a major contributor to the Waves’ success throughout the season, especially against LMU this past weekend: Riptide, and the orange and blue faithful.
“They did a heck of a job for us Saturday,” Walberg said. “It was a really big plus for us. Give them a lot of credit for that win.”
“It was a huge boost,” agreed Chase. “When you come out of the locker room, and you see a packed house, it’s what college basketball is all about.”
Both Walberg and Chase can’t emphasize enough the important role Pepperdine fans play in their final games of the season.
“I encourage everyone to come out to our games,” Chase said. “It ups the level of our play.”
The first-year head coach echoed the sentiments of his fourth-year guard.
“If they could come out again this weekend, it would be awesome,” Walberg said.
In the last two games on the regular season schedule, the Waves host St. Mary’s on Saturday and the division-leading Broncos of Santa Clara on Monday for the season finale. Tip-off for both games is scheduled for 7 p.m. in Firestone Fieldhouse.
02-22-2007
