When opponents rained down three-point shots against the Pepperdine women’s basketball team last season it was almost like they were tossing a rock from Zuma Beach into the Pacific.
Waves head coach DeLisha Milton-Jones said the “sagging-type” of man-to-man defense Pepperdine played allowed torrents of long-distance attempts from opposing teams.
“If you look at the amount of points we gave up from the three-point line last year, it was crazy,” said Milton-Jones, a Waves assistant coach during the 2016-17 season.
The opposition nailed 7.9 three-pointers per game for a total of 237 in 30 contests against Pepperdine last season and averaged 32 percent on the long shot. To take the three away from foes, Milton-Jones, a first-year head coach, said Pepperdine is putting more pressure on opposing teams when the ball is around the three-point arc.
Through five games, Pepperdine’s challengers have hit about one less triple a game compared to a season ago.
“We have been really playing a tenacious type of defense and committing ourselves to running teams off the three-point line,” Milton-Jones said. “We can kind of control where we want people to shoot the ball and give ourselves a chance to win. If we can make it a two-point scoring game, we have a good chance of winning.”
Milton-Jones, a WNBA champion and Olympic gold medalist, said playing tough defense is the bedrock of her coaching philosophy and something from which Pepperdine’s identity can grow.
“A lot of people don’t like to play defense, but when you are with four other players going at it on defense, that makes playing fun,” she said. “It allows us to rebound the ball and get out and run. That is a style of play this team likes.”
Pepperdine, sporting a 3-2 record heading into a Thursday night game at UC Irvine, has wins over Long Beach State, Nevada and Idaho State. The Waves defeats came from UC Davis and Seattle. Pepperdine has held opposing teams to just under 40 percent shooting on defense, while on offense the Waves are shooting almost 42 percent from the field.
Milton-Jones said Pepperdine’s heavy emphasis on defense benefits the team’s free-wheeling offense that’s heavy on player and ball movement.
“We don’t really need an offense when we play defense, rebound and run. Just go play the game the way it is supposed to be played—fast, with fluidity to it,” she said.
Junior Yasmin Robinson-Bacote is leading Pepperdine in scoring, averaging 23.8 points each contest. The forward’s hot hand smoked defenders for a career high in points in Pepperdine’s 80-74 defeat of Idaho State on Nov. 21.
Second in scoring is senior forward Peyton Langston at 11.8 points per game. Three other Waves average between eight and six points for Pepperdine, scoring about 73.2 points per contest—three more than opponents.
The Waves opening-season win over Long Beach State on Nov. 10 featured sophomore guard Sydney Bordonaro splashing six of eight threes, while five Waves scored in double digits in the win over Nevada. Robinson-Bacote led three of her teammates in scoring more than 10 points against Idaho State.
Milton-Jones said points are being produced for Pepperdine because the team plays just as aggressively on offense as they do on defense.
Robinson-Bacote scored 34 points in the victory over Idaho State. The Waves’ top rebounder, she also grabbed 16 rebounds, a career high.
Also in the contest, freshman guard Monique Andriuolo scored 13 points, grabbed five boards and blocked three shots for Pepperdine. Junior guard Paige Fecske had 11 points, five rebounds and five assists and freshman Rose Pflug scored 10 points and added three rebounds and three assists.
Robinson-Bacote, Fecske, Pflug and Langston all scored in double figures to defeat the Nevada Wolfpack, 77-72, on Nov. 15.
Bordonaro’s barrage of threes helped her score 21 points and propel Pepperdine to an 83-71 victory over Long Beach State. Robinson-Bacote led the way with 24 points, while Langston scored the game’s first four points and finished with 14.
UC Davis beat Pepperdine, 69-64, on Nov. 12. Robinson-Bacote scored 17, Langston 12 and Andriuolo and Pflug scored 10 points each.
Pepperdine lost to Seattle, 65-62, on Nov. 19. Robinson-Bacote had 25 points and 14 rebounds. Langston registered 12 points, three steals and three assists.
Milton-Jones said learning to pay attention to details and improving communication has also been key to Pepperdine’s success this young season. The coach said the team spent the entire offseason fortifying their relationships with one another.
“That allowed me, as well as the girls, to have a more in-depth, personal viewpoint of this team, my philosophy and what it is we are trying to achieve,” Milton-Jones said. “Because we went about things that way, now I’m able to do things first-year coaches wouldn’t be able to. I can push their buttons. I can get on them and be stern in the most hardcore moments. That’s something I’m grateful for.”
The retired pro athlete said she is proud of how Pepperdine has played. Milton-Jones said the team has already received positive feedback from fans. She knows the Malibu community would enjoy watching them play.
“Come and check us out,” she said. “We have a good product out there.”