PEPPERDINE NOTEBOOK: WAVES HAVE LOT TO WORK ON.Byline: Vincent Bonsignore Staff Writer It's one thing to identify the problem, another thing entirely to fix it. So for the Pepperdine men's basketball team, knowing that poor rebounding and cold shooting have been trouble spots lately just brings the Waves one step closer to remedying the problem. Now they have to do something about it, and fast. Pepperdine (4-4) plays host to Georgia and former Waves coach Jim Harrick Jim Harrick (born July 25, 1938 in Charleston, West Virginia) is a former college basketball head coach who coached at Pepperdine University, UCLA, the University of Rhode Island and the University of Georgia. at 7 tonight at Firestone Fieldhouse Firestone Fieldhouse is a multipurpose arena located in Malibu, California, a suburb of Los Angeles. It was built in 1973 as the home of the Pepperdine University Waves basketball and volleyball teams, who still play at the Fieldhouse today. . The Bulldogs are off to an 8-1 start in Harrick's third year in Athens, Ga. So in this case, easier said than done for Pepperdine. The Waves fell hard at Oregon on Friday, 88-64, done in by another icy shooting performance and a terrible job on the boards, getting pounded 54-27 on the glass. Pepperdine shot 31.7 percent from the field (20 of 63) and were just 4 of 20 on 3-point shot attempts. It followed a similar performance against UCSB UCSB University of California at Santa Barbara UCSB University of Casual Sex and Beer on Dec. 8 when the Waves shot a dismal 27.9 percent (17 of 61) and just 7 of 31 in the second half, falling to the Gauchos 68-51. Pepperdine didn't rebound poorly at UCSB, but against Oregon it was terrible rebounding and bad shooting - a lethal combination - that led to the downfall. ``Rebounding has been a problem for us all year, and Oregon's a good rebounding team,'' Pepperdine coach Paul Westphal Not to be confused with Paul Westhead. Paul Westphal (born November 30 1950 in Torrance, California) is a retired American basketball player and coach in the NBA. A native of California, Westphal has had a storied career in the NBA, both as a player and as a head coach. said. Westphal is limited in what he can do to get things back on track. As for the shooting, it's simply a matter of shots that were falling two weeks ago not falling anymore. ``We were getting good shots, they just weren't going down,'' Waves guard Craig Lewis Craig Lewis (born December 30, 1976) is an Australian baseballer. In 2004, he was part of the Australian Olympic baseball team, who achieved a Silver Medal in the baseball tournament at the Athens Olympics. said. Pepperdine hopes a return to Malibu, where the Waves are 2-0, will help soothe soothe v. soothed, sooth·ing, soothes v.tr. 1. To calm or placate. 2. To ease or relieve (pain, for example). v.intr. To bring comfort, composure, or relief. the shooting woes. As for the rebounding, it's not as simple as hoping a return home will solve the problem. The Waves have constantly been outmanned up front, using 6-foot-6, 190-pound Jimmy Miggins at power forward when in reality he's a small forward. To his credit, Miggins has responded by averaging a team-high 16 points and nine rebounds, but it's only a matter of time before he starts to wear down. At center, 6-11 Cedric Suitt is the starter, and Miggins has relief from 6-8 Will Kimble and 6-9 Robert Turner For the American football offensive lineman, see Robert Turner (football) Robert Turner is an American professional poker player based in Downey, California. Turner is known for introducing Omaha hold 'em into poker-playing circles. , but both players are works in progress, so Westphal can't expect too much just yet. Westphal extended his bench and used Kimble and Turner more than usual against Oregon, but it didn't make a difference. ``We started a bigger lineup and they still annihilated us,'' Westphal said. ``Then their defense was good, but we missed a lot of shots.'' Pepperdine will get some relief upfront with the return of Glen McGowan, a 6-8, 220-pound banger who led the Waves in scoring and rebounding during a tour of Europe this summer, but got suspended for the first semester after fighting with a teammate. McGowan is expected back sometime after the start of the new year. --Foul mood: The Waves were not happy with a 15-4 foul differential in the first half against the Ducks, when Oregon was 15 of 19 from the line compared to 5 of 5 for the Waves. ``We weren't happy about the fouls in the first half,'' Westphal said. ``But to say anything about it now would come out and sound like whining after we came out and do absolutely nothing in the second half.'' PEPPERDINE vs. GEORGIA Tipoff: 7:30 p.m., at Firestone Fieldhouse. TV/Radio: Fox Sports Net 2, 830-AM. Pepperdine (4-4) update: The Waves are coming off two consecutive losses in which they shot terribly from the field, shooting just 26 percent last Saturday against Santa Barbara Santa Barbara (săn'tə bär`brə, –bərə), city (1990 pop. 85,571), seat of Santa Barbara co., S Calif., on the Pacific Ocean; inc. 1850. and 31 percent Friday against Oregon. They hope a return to Mailbu, where they are 2-0, will solve the shooting problems. Georgia (8-1) update: Former Pepperdine and UCLA UCLA University of California at Los Angeles UCLA University Center for Learning Assistance (Illinois State University) UCLA University of Carrollton, TX and Lower Addison, TX coach Jim Harrick returns to Malibu with a Bulldogs team that has exceeded expectations by winning eight off nine games. The Bulldogs are led by Chris Daniels  An editor has expressed concern that this article or section may be unencyclopedic and should be deleted. , who
had 21 points and 14 rebounds in a win over South Alabama South Alabama is a term used to describe various parts of southern Alabama. Its usage does not however reflect a strictly defined geographic region. The most general description of the area would be all Alabama counties south of the Black Belt. on Saturday.
- Vincent Bonsignore CAPTION(S): box Box: PEPPERDINE vs. GEORGIA (see text) |
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