A WAVE OF NEW WAVES TO SIGN.

Byline: Brian Dohn Daily News Staff Writer

Mercer Island (Wash.) High coach Ed Pepple said it was a coup for Pepperdine. Pepple's star pupil, 6-foot-3 guard Josh Fisher, selected the Waves over the University of Washington.

The West Coast Conference over the Pac-10.

``He'll put pressure on whomever's ahead of him for playing time,'' Pepple said. ``Josh was leaning toward Washington and (Pepperdine coach) Lorenzo (Romar) knew that but said he was willing to wait.''

So Wednesday, the first day a high school senior can sign a national letter of intent to attend a university on a basketball scholarshp, Fisher will do just that.

He's one of four high school seniors expected to sign with the Waves, joining big man Tyler Brown of Bellarmine Prep in Tacoma and center Greg Ethington of Gilbert High in Phoenix. Junior College transfer point guard Kevin Bradley is expected to sign as well.

Romar can't comment on high school seniors until he receives the national letter of intent.

``I think (Fisher) is a perfect fit for Pepperdine,'' Pepple said. ``The small school will be good for him. He's very good with the ball. I don't think he's going to be primarily a point, but he can handle the ball.

``He's a fierce competitor, dedicated kind of guy. He's an excellent citizen and he lives in the gym.''

Fisher averaged 13 points per game for a 26-4 Mercer Island team as a junior.

Meanwhile, Romar has been after Bradley since the coach arrived in Malibu three years ago.

Romar recruited Bradley out of Crenshaw High, but the 6-foot, 175-pounder never made it to Pepperdine because his SAT score wasn't up to NCAA standards.

So Bradley went to Shoreline Community College in - where else, Washington - last season before transferring to Irvine Valley in the fall. Even though he's a point guard, the complaint about Bradley is he doesn't shoot enough.

``I try to make everyone on my team look good,'' Bradley said. ``I love passing the ball. I can be open and have a shot and I'd pass the ball. I'd rather have everyone else score than score myself.''

Even so, Bradley averaged 20 points and nine assists last season at Shoreline, but he missed Los Angeles and wanted to come home.

``At this point, he's a very good open-court player,'' Irvine Valley coach Jerry Hernandez said. ``Once he learns how to run sets and play better defense, he'll be all right.''

In action: Pepperdine, which went 17-10 last season, hosts the Taiwanese National Team in an exhibition at 3 p.m. on Tuesday. The Waves open the season Saturday at home against UC-Santa Barbara at 5 p.m.