MALIBU, Calif. — Four Cougars scored in double digits for the fourth time this season as BYU women’s basketball topped Pepperdine 73-67 Thursday night at Firestone Fieldhouse.
“This was a good road league win for us tonight,” BYU head coach Jeff Judkins said. “Malia (Nawahine) played really well and I thought Paisley (Johnson) gave us a good lift off the bench. Brenna (Chase) also had a great game for us, especially in the first half.”
Cassie Broadhead Devashrayee led BYU (9-7, 4-1 West Coast Conference) in points with 22 in her seventh career game of 20-plus points. Devashrayee also dished out nine assists. Malia Nawahine earned her first double-double as a Cougar with 11 points and 13 rebounds, including three 3-pointers. Brenna Chase added 12 points, while Paisley Johnson scored 12 off the bench.
Chase scored BYU’s first eight points on 4 of 4 shooting from the field as the Cougars trailed Pepperdine (6-9, 2-3 WCC) 8-11 with 5:53 left in the first quarter. BYU then went on a 14-4 run to finish the period ahead, 22-17. Johnson nailed a 3-pointer at the 3:51 mark to even the score, 13-13. Nawahine added two 3-pointers of her own, while Shalae Salmon made a free throw and layup in the run.
Pepperdine came within two, 24-22, two minutes into the second quarter before a layup and perfect trip to the charity stripe from Devashrayee, along with two layups from Amanda Wayment, gave the Cougars a seven-point, 32-25 lead. BYU soon increased its advantage to double digits. Devashrayee’s seventh and eighth free throws of the half gave the Cougars a 12-point, 41-29 lead heading into halftime.
BYU led by as many as 14 in the third quarter, 51-37, with 6:31 on the clock after Nawahine hit her third 3-pointer of the night. Pepperdine worked its way back in the game to trail by 10, 51-41, with 5:14 left. Both teams suffered scoring droughts in the final three minutes of the period and battled at the free-throw line as the Waves made four-consecutive free throws to cut the Cougars’ lead to nine, 54-45, at the 2:19 mark.
A quicker pace set the tone for both teams in the fourth quarter. With 7:47 left, Devashrayee scored on a jumper to give BYU a nine-point lead, 59-50. The Cougars and Waves exchanged baskets as Pepperdine came within four, 62-58, with 6:47 on the clock.
The Waves kept it a two-possession game the rest of the way before BYU pulled away for good. Ahead by four with just over three minutes to play, Johnson scored in the paint, giving the Cougars a 66-60 advantage. Devashrayee made four free throws and hit a jumper to give the Cougars an eight-point, 72-64 lead before reaching a final score of 73-67.
BYU returns to Provo Saturday, hosting Santa Clara at 2 p.m. MST. The game will be televised live on BYUtv and simulcast on BYU Radio.
BYU at Pacific Postgame Notes
TEAM
BYU led by 12, 41-29, at the half and finished winning the game by six, 73-67. The team is now 9-7, 4-1 on the season and improved their record to 7-0 when leading at the half.
The Cougars pulled down 24 rebounds in the first 20 minutes of action, with the Waves grabbing 13. For the game, BYU finished with the advantage by two, pulling down 39 total rebounds to Pepperdine’s 37.
BYU dished out 10 assists to Pepperdine’s eight heading into the locker room. The Cougars finished the game with a total 18 assists while the Waves dished out 15.
Four Cougar players scored in double figures for the fourth time on the season in the league win: Devashrayee (22), Chase (12), Johnson (12) and Nawahine (11).
PLAYERS
At halftime, Cassie Broadhead Devashrayee picked up her 51st game scoring in double figures with 10 to lead all scorers. She finished the night with a game-high 22 total points, making it the seventh time she’s had 20-plus points in a game. Devashrayee had a team-best four assists at halftime and ended the game with a game-best nine assists. Additionally, she recorded two steals for a team best and played all 40 minutes. She also made 14 of 16 free throws.
Malia Nawahine led the way in rebounds in the first half with six rebounds. She also had six points. Nawahine picked up her first double-double as a Cougar with a game-high 13 rebounds along with 11 points.
Brenna Chase scored BYU’s first eight points and finished the game with 12 total points for the 12th time she’s recorded double-digit points this year. She also dished out three assists and grabbed one rebound.
Paisley Johnson came off the bench to score 12 points for her second time putting up double digits in points in her freshman season. She went 2 of 2 from 3-point range and was perfect from the field, going 5 of 5. Johnson also grabbed three rebounds.