New era begins as Griff Aldrich builds Pepperdine men's basketball from the ground up

By McKenzie Jackson · Mon Jul 20 2026

With 12 newcomers, a rebuilt coaching staff, and a focus on character, chemistry, and championship culture, the Waves are laying the foundation for the future

The retooled Pepperdine Waves men’s basketball team spent three weeks last month doing everything from practicing ball-handling to perfecting the pick-and-roll.

The team spent time outside the gym together, too. The Waves traded their jerseys for cooking aprons and rolled up chicken, avocado, and other tasty eats into burritos. They also ventured south to Catalina Island for miniature golf and a boat tour.

New Pepperdine head coach Griff Aldrich said the team, which features 12 new players on a 14-person roster, built a lot of chemistry during their time together.

“Chemistry of a group is critical,” he said. “It’s hard to manage; it’s hard to quantify; it’s hard to facilitate at times. But we have a selfless group that is working hard to come together. They really enjoy being around each other.”

Aldrich added that the team had several strong practices.

“We are really trying to learn the values of the program on the court — what it means to practice hard, how to be disciplined, how to be tough,” he said. “There have been the typical growing pains, but I think the group thus far has been very coachable, hardworking, and it’s a group that enjoys being with each other.”

Aldrich, hired in late May to replace Ed Schilling, spent the weeks ahead of the Waves’ first gathering on June 8 putting together the team and its seven new coaches. He called that recruiting period a “mad dash” and compared it to his time as associate head coach at Virginia when they overhauled their roster before a successful 2025-26 campaign.

“It’s just running at a frenetic pace,” he said. “You’re trying to blend a new staff while recruiting brand new guys.”

Aldrich’s coaching staff includes associate head coach Dan Engelstad and assistants Ryan Oliver, Matt Palumbo, Noah Ralby, Chase Coleman, Graham Bousley, and Aleks Abrams.

Aldrich focused on forming his staff first, but admitted that process quickly intermingled with signing players.

“We were off and running recruiting-wise as well,” Aldrich said.

The batch of new Waves features players with international experience — 6-foot-10 Turkish forward Faruk Biberovic, 6-foot-3 New Zealand guard Dontae Russo-Nance, and 6-foot-6 Finnish wing Oliver Kanden — as well as veterans of college basketball: 6-foot-4 guard Evan Haywood (Butler), 6-foot-10 forward Anthony Robinson (Xavier), 6-foot-8 forward Petar Majstorovic (Long Beach State), 6-foot-1 guard Jahari Williamson (Kent State), 6-foot-3 guard Will McClendon (North Texas), 6-foot-9 forward Youri Fritz (Northwestern), and 6-foot-8 forward Ethan Meuser (Stonehill).

There are only two freshmen among the new Waves — 6-foot-5 guard Colin Chou and 6-foot-8 wing Alex Constanza, a top-50 prospect from Miami, Florida, who committed to Pepperdine two months after backing out of his commitment to Georgetown.

“The world that we live in in college athletics now is just crazy,” Aldrich explained. “Alex is a high school recruit. Often, high school kids are more overlooked because most coaches are looking to get older players. The opportunity at Pepperdine really fits a lot of what Alex was looking for. He is coming off of an injury, so this is a place he felt he could rehab, recover, and get back to the level he played at a little over a year ago.”

The coach said his pitch to Pepperdine’s new players and coaches was similar.

“One of the great things about being at Pepperdine is that it’s not a recruiting jiggle,” Aldrich noted. “It’s what we authentically believe. This is a wonderful place where the three pillars for us — faith, academics, and the pursuit of excellence — you can really chase the three of those at the same time. The guys we are recruiting want to be great basketball players at a high-level program and value-driven school that has a great academic reputation in a faith community.”

The only returning players from last year’s squad, which finished with a 9–23 record, are 6-foot-4 redshirt senior David Mager, who led the team in three-point percentage last season, and 6-foot-1 redshirt freshman guard Anto Balian.

“I’m really excited about the group of young men we have assembled,” Aldrich said. “We’ve been extremely fortunate to assemble a group of high-character guys. They have been a lot of fun to be around for three weeks.”

Aldrich envisions playing “advantage basketball” with high-IQ players.

“We want to play fast, but be a team that shares the ball, that passes it,” he said. “Pass, dribble, and shoot. We are looking for skilled guys who can shoot the basketball and understand our style of play, which is space the court and play out advantages.”

Aldrich admitted that it is too soon to predict how good Pepperdine will be next season, but he noted the quality of character the new players and coaches have.

“I think character has to be the foundation of this program,” he said. “Year one, I’m excited about who we have onboard.”

Aldrich is aware that the Waves have struggled in recent seasons, but Pepperdine was a standout program in the 1980s and 1990s. In fact, Jim Harrick, who coached Pepperdine to six postseason appearances in the 1980s, attended practice last month.

Aldrich said they aren’t going to be afraid to compete against top West Coast Conference teams like Gonzaga or Saint Mary’s.

“We can respect everybody, but fear no one,” he said. “We are going to be a championship-caliber program. We are going to be a basketball school that really competes night in and night out, but that really takes time.”

Aldrich said people are eager for the Waves to be successful on the basketball court.

“We want to be a team that is really tough, really disciplined, and that is really unselfish,” he said. “When you have those core attributes, you can lose some games, but people are really excited to cheer for you because you are out there competing, and when wins happen, you are really easy to get behind. Play together, play for one another, and play for Pepperdine University.”