Portland Pilots vs Pepperdine Waves Prediction, 1/14/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Portland Pilots vs Pepperdine Waves

Date: Wednesday, January 14, 2026

Location: Firestone Fieldhouse in Malibu, CA

TV: ESPN+

The Portland Pilots (9-10) are headed to Firestone Fieldhouse on Wednesday where they will try to beat the Pepperdine Waves (5-14).

The Portland Pilots faced off with Oregon State and notched a win by a score of 82-76 in their last game. Portland walked away from the game having earned a 42.6% FG percentage (23 of 54) and buried 6 of 22 3-point attempts. When they shot from the charity stripe, the Pilots made 30 of their 34 shots for a percentage of 88.2%. When discussing grabbing boards, they compiled a total of 29 with 9 of them being on the offensive end. They also dished out 14 assists for the contest in addition to forcing the other team into 9 turnovers and earning 4 steals. When discussing defense, Portland let their opponent shoot 46.8% from the floor on 22 out of 47 shooting. Oregon State dished out 17 dimes and had 2 steals for this contest. Furthermore, Oregon State snagged 25 rebounds (6 offensive, 19 defensive), but wasn't able to put a block in the stat sheet. Oregon State walked away from this one shooting 75.8% from the charity stripe by burying 25 of their 33 tries. They also made 7 of 19 tries from beyond the arc. In relation to fouls, the Pilots finished with 21 and Oregon State finished the game with 24 fouls.

Cameron Williams is a guy who was a major factor for this game. He ended up with 23 points on 8 out of 12 shooting. He was on the hardwood for 37 mins and snagged 7 boards. He went 66.7% from the field but wasn't able to get a dime.

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Portland steps onto the hardwood with a mark of 9-10 this year. They are turning it over 14.1 times per game and as a team they are committing 18.3 fouls per contest. As a unit, Portland is pulling down 34.9 boards per game and has racked up 341 dimes on the campaign, which ranks 6th in Division 1 in terms of passing the ball. The Pilots are hitting 30.8% on 3-pointers (120 of 389) and 73.4% from the free throw line. They have an average of 79.3 points per game (135th in college hoops) while connecting on 47.8% from the field.

When they are on defense, the Pilots have forced 12.8 turnovers every game while drawing 17.8 personal fouls. They relinquish 35.5% on shots from distance while they are 332nd in Division 1 in PPG allowed (81.1). The Pilots defensively are giving up an opponent FG percentage of 44.6% (518 of 1,162) and they surrender 33.9 boards per game as a group. They are currently ranked 362nd in college in allowing assists to the opposition with 336 conceded on the season.

The last time they took the court, the Pepperdine Waves took a loss by a score of 80-60 against San Francisco. The Waves earned 15 defensive boards and 11 offensive rebounds for a total of 26 in this matchup. They also coughed it up 6 times, while earning 8 steals for the game. San Francisco committed 22 fouls in the matchup which took the Waves to the free throw line for 29 attempts. They were able to make 21 of the free throw attempts for a clip of 72.4%. In the matter of shots from beyond the perimeter, Pepperdine converted 3 of their 21 tries (14.3%). Overall, the Waves shot 18 out of 59 from the field which had them at 30.5%. The Waves permitted San Francisco to bury 31 of their 66 attempts from the field which left them shooting 47.0% for this game. They finished 38.2% from distance by going 13 out of 34 and finished the game at 5 out of 10 at the free throw line (50.0%). Concerning how they rebounded, Pepperdine allowed San Francisco to snag 47 overall (15 offensive).

Styles Phipps was important for the Waves for this contest. He converted 4 out of 12 for this contest for a field goal rate of 33.3%, and accounted for 9 rebounds. He tallied 18 points in his 36 minutes on the hardwood and accumulated 3 assists in the game.

Pepperdine has a mark of 5-14 for the year. When it comes to offensive execution, the Waves are hitting on 42.2% from the floor, which is ranked 317th in college hoops. Pepperdine has totaled 1,324 pts on the season (69.7 per game) and they average 33.8 rebounds per game. They are assisting teammates 14.0 times per contest (207th in the nation) and they are turning it over 13.1 times per contest. The Waves are committing 14.6 fouls every game and they hit 76.6% from the charity stripe.

The Pepperdine defense allows 34.8% on 3-pointers (167 of 480) and their opponents are converting on 73.9% of their free throw attempts. They allow 14.8 dimes and 34.5 boards per contest, which ranks them 274th and 190th in D-1. The Waves defensively are ranked 253rd in college hoops in points allowed per contest with 76.2. They are able to force 11.7 TO's per game and have let teams shoot 46.0% from the field (298th in college).

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Portland

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