Gonzaga battles Pepperdine in West Coast Conference opener

The Zags look to maintain their conference dominance against the Waves on Saturday

Some would say the hardest part of the season is over for the No. 10 Gonzaga Bulldogs, who head into conference play after battling through arguably the toughest nonconference slate in program history.

Though the Pepperdine Waves (7-7) don’t quite stack up to some of the other opponents the Zags (11-3) have faced this season, Saturday’s matinee matchup is an opportunity for Mark Few’s squad to kick off West Coast Conference action the right way.

To do that, they’ll have to slow down Maxwell Lewis, one of the most prolific scorers in the WCC right now. The 6-foot-7 sophomore has already generated plenty of NBA buzz as a prospect.

Lewis, who leads the Waves in three different statistical categories, averages 19.4 points per game on 53.3% shooting from the field, including 42.9% from deep. Like Drew Timme, he’s carried a heavy offensive load over the last handful of outings as he’s scored at least 20 points and attempted 13 shots in the last four games.

Despite the efforts of its star, Pepperdine’s season has been a roller coaster thus far. Following a 5-2 start, the script flipped on head coach Lorenzo Romar in the second half of the nonconference schedule, going 2-5 against stiffer competition.

The Waves lost two of their three contests over the holidays in the Hawaiian Airline Diamond Head Classic, falling to Hawaii and Iona.

While Lewis dictates a majority of the offense, it helps when fellow sophomore Houston Mallette is involved and in rhythm as well.

Averaging 15.9 points per game, the 6-foot-5 guard has taken a slight step back from his impressive freshman season in the wake of Lewis’ emergence within the offense. As a result, Mallette has had more opportunities to make plays for his teammates with 3.2 assists per game, second most on the team.

Heading into the season, Mallette was the lone Wave selected to the preseason All-WCC team.

Pepperdine’s primary playmaker though is Mike Mitchell Jr., who came to Malibu, California alongside Lewis and Mallette as a freshman. His 4.6 assists per game are the second-most in the conference.

Pepperdine’s trio of perimeter players paces the way for the best 3-point shooting team in the conference at 39% shooting from deep, led by Mitchell Jr.’s 47.4% mark.

Defensively, Pepperdine arguably boasts the two best shot blockers in the conference in its frontcourt to lead the WCC in blocks per game. Boubacar Coulibaly and Carson Basham combine to average 2.5 of the team’s 5.2 rejections per outing.

And yet, the 132nd-ranked defense, according to KenPom, has given up 73.6 points per game against relatively unimpressive teams thus far. It won’t be easy slowing down one of the best offenses in the country coming off a historic performance scoring and shooting the ball.

Gonzaga set a program record for margin of victory on Wednesday when it defeated Eastern Oregon by 78 points at home while shooting 70.4% from the field, the highest single-game mark in 26 years.

A replica performance isn’t expected against a conference rival, but Gonzaga has certainly handled its business during WCC openers, winning 26 straight including the most recent coming against Pepperdine last season. Rust or fatigue wasn’t a factor for the Zags in the 34-point rout, which was the 43rd straight win in the head-to-head series.

Safe to say both streaks will continue heading into the new year.

Pick: Gonzaga 86, Pepperdine 71