MALIBU, Calif. – A bad day shooting the ball led to a 80-63 defeat at Pepperdine for Santa Clara women's basketball. The Waves (17-11, 8-8 WCC) got off to a quick start and the Broncos (21-8, 11-5 WCC) couldn't get shots to fall all day to mount much of a comeback.

HOW IT HAPPENED: 

• An 11-0 run for Pepperdine early in the first quarter saw Santa Clara fall behind 18-5 at the 5:20 mark. The Broncos responded with with an 8-0 run to get back within five, but the Waves would stretch the advantage back to 28-17 by the end of the period.
• Pepperdine got on top by as many as 15 in the second quarter thanks to an early 6-0 run. After a 3-pointer put the Waves' lead back to 14, Santa Clara rattled off eight in a row, featuring a pair of 3-pointers from Ava Schmidt, and trailed by six before going cold the over the final two minutes. Pepperdine would add one more triple before the half and the Broncos trailed 45-36 at the break.
• The Waves outscored Santa Clara 16-6 over the final six minutes of the third quarter to get out in front by a game-high 19. They would lead 68-49 heading to the final period.
• Santa Clara cut into the lead a bit with a 6-0 run in the fourth but would get no closer than 13.

NOTABLE:

• Santa Clara shot 29.0-percent (20-for-69) from the field and 10-for-38 from beyond the arc. The Broncos shot under 30-percent in each quarter except the second when they were at 33.3-percent.
• Schmidt led the way with 17 points and knocked down a career-high-tying five 3-pointers. Maia Jones was the only other Bronco in double figures with 11 but she was just 2-of-16 from the field and 1-of-10 from deep. Ashley Hawkins scored nine with five assists and Kylee Fox also added nine points.
• Pepperdine shot it at 45.7-percent (32-for-70) and went 10-for-31 from downtown.
• Elli Guiney led all scorers with 20 points and added seven rebounds. Lina Falk had a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds and Taija Sta. Maria had a double-double with 10 points and 10 assists. Shorna Preston just missed a double-double with 11 boards and nine points.
• Jones is now nine points short of 1,000 for her career.
• Hawkins is now third on the program's single-season assist list with 178.

NEXT UP

• The Broncos host Pacific Thursday at 6 p.m.