Box Score SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Santa Clara women's basketball dominated in a 92-36 win over Pepperdine Thursday night from Leavey Center. The Broncos got hot in the first quarter and built a big lead that continued to grow as their defense suffocated the Waves all night.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Santa Clara (14-5, 2-2 WC) closed the first quarter on a 17-0 run and made it a 21-0 run with the first four of the second quarter. The stretch turned a one-point game into a 29-8 lead for the Broncos.
• Later in the second, Santa Clara went on a 12-0 run that stretched its lead to over 30 at 41-10. The Broncos went into the locker room with a 52-15 lead.
• The third quarter was much of the same, as a 12-0 run put Santa Clara up by 51 with the lead getting as high as 75-23 after the 10 minutes.
• The fourth quarter was more even with Pepperdine (5-12, 1-3 WCC) scoring 13, the first quarter that saw them crack double-figures.

 
NOTABLE NUMBERS:

• Santa Clara shot a blistering 65.5-percent from the field and were 11-of-24 from beyond the arc. The defense held Pepperdine to just 25.0-percent shooting and the Waves missed all 13 of their 3-point attempts.
• The Broncos turned 17 turnovers into 29 points. They also dominated down low with a 42-18 edge in points in the paint.
• Santa Clara had 23 assists on 36 made baskets.
• Olivia Pollerd set a career-high with 23 points, all in the first half, on 9-of-15 shooting and 5-of-8 from downtown. The five triples tied her career-high. Tess Heal scored 17 while going 6-of-7 from the floor with four rebounds. Emma Shaffer posted a double-double with 11 points on a perfect 5-of-5 shooting with 11 boards and Ashley Hiraki had 10 points as well.

 
OTHER NOTES:

• Santa Clara's 65.5-percent mark from the floor was the best in program history, topping a 64.3-percent mark at LMU on January 17, 1998.
• The 56-point win was the sixth largest in Leavey Center history and ninth in largest in program history.

 
POSTGAME COMMENTS:
 

Hear from head coach Bill Carr following tonight's huge win over Pepperdine.#StampedeTogether pic.twitter.com/7XSiXeJSJ0

— Santa Clara Women's Basketball (@Santaclarawbb) January 19, 2024

HIGHLIGHTS:

A lot of highlights from tonight!#StampedeTogether pic.twitter.com/X2wjw1JR3l

— Santa Clara Women's Basketball (@Santaclarawbb) January 19, 2024

 
NEXT UP

• The Broncos host San Francisco Saturday at 1 p.m.