Surfs Up

The Pepperdine Men's basketball team just completed an 83-65 victory over the perennial NCAA tourney team Pacific last night. The win is significant because it brings the Waves to 5-6 thus far this season, just three wins shy of their total from all of last year. Pepperdine is clearly a team on the rise after some pretty fallow years. New coach Vance Walberg, a success on the JUCO circuit and responsible for showing Memphis coach Jim Calapari the system he now uses, has a distinctive way to run his team that requires certain players. Simply put, the player he inherited last year were not the right fit. This year, though, the stellar recruits Walberg landed are living up to the hype. Granted they are freshman and inexperience has dealt numerous blows to the team, but with the expected maturity, this team should be fun to watch. That includes the recruits coming in next year which by all accounts seem great in and of themselves.
So as the schedule increases in difficulty, including a big game at Memphis, look for the team to make some news and play some competitive ball.