Washington State Cougars vs Pepperdine Waves Prediction, 2/28/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Washington State Cougars vs Pepperdine Waves

Date: Saturday, February 28, 2026

Location: Firestone Fieldhouse in Malibu, CA

TV: ESPN+

The Washington State Cougars (12-18) are en route to Firestone Fieldhouse on Saturday where they will play the Pepperdine Waves (8-22).

The Washington State Cougars took the court against Loyola Marymount and took a loss by a final of 67-66 in their last game. Washington State finished the game with a 46.4% field goal percentage (26 out of 56) and knocked down 9 out of their 20 shots from downtown. From the charity stripe, the Cougars converted 5 of 6 attempts for a percentage of 83.3%. With respect to getting rebounds, they earned 34 with 7 of them being of the offensive variety. They also dished out 17 assists in the matchup as well as forcing 6 turnovers and getting 4 steals. Pertaining to the defense, Washington State allowed the other team to go 36.9% from the field on 24 out of 65 shooting. Loyola Marymount totaled 16 assists and had 9 steals in the matchup. On top of that, Loyola Marymount pulled down 29 rebounds (10 offensive, 19 defensive), but wrapped up the game with no rejections. Loyola Marymount walked away from this one shooting 82.4% from the charity stripe by making 14 of 17 attempts. They also made 5 of their 19 shots from beyond the perimeter. When it comes to fouls, the Cougars ended up finishing with 13 while Loyola Marymount racked up 10 fouls.

Ace Glass lll is one player who was a contributor in this game. He finished the contest at 56.3% from the floor and also totaled 2 dimes. He saw the court for 36 mins and pulled down 2 boards. He notched 20 points on 9 of 16 shooting.

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Washington State steps onto the hardwood with a win-loss record of 12-18 so far this year. They are turning it over 13.2 times per contest and as a team they are committing 17.7 fouls on a nightly basis. As a unit, Washington State is snagging 34.2 rebounds per contest and has accounted for 406 dimes so far this year, which has them ranked 164th in the nation in terms of passing the ball. The Cougars are hitting 37.5% on shots from beyond the arc (284 of 758) and 73.9% from the charity stripe. They currently have an average of 76.3 pts per game (170th in the nation) while going 47.3% from the field.

Defensively, the Cougars are forcing 10.0 turnovers per game while drawing 17.1 personal fouls. They currently rank 238th in college hoops in allowing assists to their opponents with 401 surrendered for the season. The Cougars defensively are giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 46.3% (824 of 1,780) and they relinquish 31.7 boards per contest as a squad. They are surrendering 35.6% on shots from distance and they rank 277th in college in PPG allowed (77.3).

The last time they took the court, the Pepperdine Waves took a loss by a score of 87-80 when they played Seattle. The Waves recorded 22 defensive boards and 15 offensive rebounds totaling 37 in this game. They turned the ball over 16 times, while recording 4 steals in this matchup. Seattle committed 15 personal fouls in this contest which got the Waves to the free throw line for a total of 8 attempts. They were able to make 7 of the free throw tries for a clip of 87.5%. When discussing shots from beyond the perimeter, Pepperdine buried 11 of their 26 tries (42.3%). At the conclusion of this game, the Waves walked away from this one shooting 31 out of 66 from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 47.0%. The Waves allowed Seattle to knock down 32 of their 62 tries from the floor which had them sitting at 51.6% for the contest. They shot 31.6% from beyond the arc by hitting 6 of 19 and finished the game at 17 of 24 at the free throw line (70.8%). In regard to rebounding, Pepperdine permitted Seattle to pull down 26 overall (8 on the offensive side).

David Mager ended up having an impact for the Waves in this contest. He totaled 25 points in his 29 minutes on the hardwood and accumulated 1 assist in the game. He converted 10 of 18 for the matchup giving him a field goal percentage of 55.6%, and had 2 rebounds.

Pepperdine has a mark of 8-22 on the season. The Waves commit 15.4 personal fouls per game and they hit 75.1% from the charity stripe. Their rate of dishing out assists is at 13.9 times per game (181st in D-1) and they turn it over 12.9 times per game. Pepperdine has tallied 2,156 pts so far this year (71.9 per game) and they pull in 33.3 boards per contest. As an offensive unit, the Waves are connecting on 42.8% from the field, which is ranked 308th in college.

The Pepperdine defense gives up 36.0% on shots from 3-point land (271 of 753) and opponents are knocking down 72.6% of their foul shots. They relinquish 15.8 assists and 35.7 total boards per game, which has them ranked 324th and 261st in college. The Waves defensively are ranked 323rd in D-1 in PPG surrendered with 79.7. They have forced 11.4 turnovers per game and have let teams shoot 47.2% from the field (329th in Division 1).

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Washington State

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