Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
PROVO â It wasnât a pretty afternoon in Malibu for the 25th-ranked BYU womenâs basketball team.
Yasmine Robinson-Bacote had 17 points and 11 rebounds as Pepperdine beat BYU, 79-65 for just the third time in program history Saturday at Firestone Fieldhouse in Malibu, California.
Barbara Sitanggan supplied 16 points, six rebounds and five assists for the Waves (13-8, 7-4 West Coast Conference).
Shalae Salmon led BYU with 13 points, and Paisley Johnson added 11 points for the Cougars (17-5, 9-2 WCC), who earned their first Associated Press Top 25 ranking since 2012 following an 11-game win streak.
That streak is a full week gone, replaced by a two-game losing skid.
Babulu Ugwu supplied 10 points and two steals, and Shaylee Gonzales supplied six points, seven rebounds, three assists and two steals for BYU.
The Cougars entered the game 18-2 all-time against the Waves, including an 83-58 win last month in Provo.
But the Waves looked to prove themselves from the opening tip.
Pepperdine ended the first half on a 7-0 run to take a 39-29 lead at the break. The Waves were led by 10 points from Rose Pflug.
BYUâs high-octane guard trio of Brenna Chase, Johnson and Gonzales combined to make just 3 of their first 11 shots from the field. The Cougars shot just 25 percent from the field, including 0-of-4 from 3-point range, en route to the halftime deficit.
Chase finished with 7 points and five rebounds, but also missed time in the second half after injuring an ankle on defense.
Gonzales dropped in a three to cut the deficit to 48-41 with two minutes left in the third quarter, but Pepperdine responded with a 5-0 run to push the lead back to double digits going into the fourth quarter.
The Waves stretched the lead as high as 19 on Deezha Battleâs 3-pointer with 4:07 remaining, and cruised to the finish, handing BYU back-to-back losses for the first time in the 2018-19 season after falling for the first time in conference play Thursday night at LMU.
BYU returns home Thursday to host Saint Mary's. Tipoff is scheduled for 11 a.m. MST.
