San Diego Toreros vs Pepperdine Waves Prediction, 1/28/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: San Diego Toreros vs Pepperdine Waves

Date: Wednesday, January 28, 2026

Location: Firestone Fieldhouse in Malibu, CA

TV: ESPN+

The Pepperdine Waves (6-16) host the San Diego Toreros (9-13) at Firestone Fieldhouse on Wednesday.

The San Diego Toreros took the court against Santa Clara and went home with a loss by a final score of 85-73 in their last game. San Diego wrapped up the contest having earned a 39.4% field goal percentage (28 of 71) and knocked down 3 out of their 23 shots from 3-point land. From the free throw line, the Toreros buried 14 of 19 attempts for a rate of 73.7%. When it comes to grabbing boards, they collected 33 with 15 of them being of the offensive sort. They also distributed 11 dimes for the game as well as forcing the other team into 20 turnovers and earning 12 steals. When it comes to defending, San Diego allowed the other team to go 63.5% from the floor on 33 of 52 shooting. Santa Clara recorded 21 dimes and had 8 steals for this contest. In addition, Santa Clara collected 36 boards (6 offensive, 30 defensive), but wasn't able to record a rejection. Santa Clara shot 52.9% when shooting free throws by knocking down 9 of 17 shots. They also buried 10 of 25 shots from beyond the arc. When discussing fouls, the Toreros finished with 15 and Santa Clara totaled 22 fouls.

Adrian McIntyre is one guy who was a contributor in this contest. He finished the contest at 80.0% from the field but wasn't able to get a dime. He saw the court for 19 mins played and also totaled 6 rebounds. He left the arena with 20 points on 8 of 10 shooting.

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San Diego will enter this contest with a win-loss record of 9-13 on the season. They turn it over 12.7 times per contest and as a team are committing 17.9 fouls per game. As a unit, San Diego is snagging 31.9 rebounds per contest and is sitting with 357 dimes so far this season, which has them ranked 32nd in the country in terms of passing the ball. The Toreros are shooting 34.6% on 3-pointers (199 of 575) and 76.4% from the charity stripe. They currently have an average of 76.1 points per contest (196th in the nation) while hitting 44.7% from the field.

On the defensive end of the court, the Toreros are forcing their opponents into 14.6 turnovers per contest and they draw 16.2 fouls. They currently rank 346th in college hoops in allowing assists with 341 surrendered this season. The Toreros defense is allowing a shooting percentage of 46.9% (605 of 1,291) and they surrender 36.7 boards per game as a group. They are giving up 31.4% from 3-point land and they rank 286th in college in PPG allowed (77.6).

The last time they took the hardwood, the Pepperdine Waves took a loss by a final score of 95-79 against Washington State. In relation to rebounding, Pepperdine allowed Washington State to get 29 in total (12 on the offensive side). They shot 43.2% from downtown by going 16 of 37 and ended up shooting 11 of 15 from the free throw line (73.3%). The Waves permitted Washington State to knock down 34 of 64 attempts from the floor which gave them a rate of 53.1% for this game. When all was said and done, the Waves walked away from this one shooting 30 out of 56 from the floor which gave them a percentage of 53.6%. Pertaining to shots from beyond the arc, Pepperdine made 6 out of 17 tries (35.3%). They were able to make 13 of the free throw tries for a rate of 86.7%. Washington State earned 15 fouls for the contest which took the Waves to the charity stripe for 15 tries. They also coughed it up 15 times, while earning 6 steals for this game. The Waves snagged 17 defensive boards and 2 offensive boards for a total of 19 in the game.

Styles Phipps pitched in for the Waves in this matchup. He earned 25 points in his 38 minutes on the hardwood and added 5 assists in this contest. He made 11 out of 17 for the game giving him a rate of 64.7%, and had 2 rebounds.

Pepperdine has a record of 6-16 so far this year. When it comes to executing on offense, the Waves are connecting on 42.6% from the floor, which ranks 308th in the nation. Pepperdine has scored 1,530 points this season (69.5 per contest) and they average 33.5 boards per contest. They are assisting teammates 13.5 times per game (228th in college) and they are turning it over 13.3 times per contest. The Waves are responsible for committing 14.7 personal fouls per contest while shooting 76.8% from the free throw line.

The Pepperdine defense allows 34.2% on 3-point attempts (195 of 570) and their opposition knocks down 73.5% of their free throw attempts. They surrender 14.9 dimes and 34.9 boards every game, which is ranked 292nd and 206th in college. The Waves defensively are ranked 267th in the nation in PPG surrendered with 76.8. They are forcing 11.5 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 46.0% from the field (295th in D-1).

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take San Diego

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