Dec. 18, 2015 Gonzaga Notes (pdf) 
Pepperdine Notes (pdf)
GONZAGA BULLDOGS (8-4) AT PEPPERDINE WAVES (4-7)
GAME 13 | DEC. 21 | 7 P.M. | FIRESTONE FIELDHOUSE | MALIBU, CA
SERIES: Gonzaga leads the series 34-29 (13-16 in Malibu)
FIRST MEETING: Jan. 22, 1988: 60-59 in Malibu
LAST MEETING: Feb. 14, 2015: 78-56 in Malibu
LIVE RADIO: Toyota Gonzaga IMG - Fox Sports 790 KJRB (Play-by-Play: Steve Myklebust)
LIVE STATS: GoZags.com
ZAGS OPEN CONFERENCE SLATE IN MALIBU
- Gonzaga begins West Coast Conference play at Pepperdine Monday.
- The Bulldogs have won 11 of its last 12 conference season-opening games, with the lone loss coming at Saint Mary's in overtime, 79-78, on Dec. 28, 2013.
- GU started WCC action last season with a 78-62 victory over BYU at home on Dec. 27.
- The Zags are wrapping up a five-game road stretch that covers 7,725 miles.
GONZAGA STORYLINES
- The Bulldogs are eighth in the country with 59 total blocks. Their 4.9 blocks per game average tops the West Coast Conference and are 58th in the country.
- Shelby Cheslek needs three blocks to break Kayla Standish's program record of 176 in a career. - The senior is 14th in the nation with 26 blocks already this season, and her 2.17 per game ranks 48th in the country.
- Cheslek is second in the WCC and 16th in the country with 106 total rebounds.
- Gonzaga is holding opponents to 53.8 points per game, which leads the West Coast Conference and is 28th in the nation.
- Under Head Coach Lisa Fortier, Gonzaga is 27-0 when it scores at least 70 points and 8-12 when it does not. - Under Fortier, GU is 31-4 when it leads at half and is 33-2 when shooting a higher field goal percentage than its opponent.
- The Zags are holding opponents to 26.1 percent from behind-the-arc, which is first in the WCC and 38th in the country.
ABOUT THE WAVES
- Pepperdine fell in its last game at New Mexico, 60-52, on Dec. 12. Four of the Waves' losses were by 10 points or less.
- Erica Ogwumike (5-9, FR, G) is fifth in the West Coast Conference averaging 16.4 points per game.
- Ogwumike is adding 7.5 rebounds per outing, which is 10th in the WCC. She also leads Pepperdine with 20 total steals.
- Keitra Wallace is third in the conference shooting 81.4 percent from the free-throw line.
- The Waves are fourth in the WCC holding opponents to 30.1 percent from behind-the-perimeter.
- Pepperdine returned eight letterwinners from and brought in seven newcomers. It is the largest incoming class of head coach Ryan Weisenberg's tenure.
SERIES HISTORY
- Monday is the 64th all-time meeting between Gonzaga and Pepperdine. GU has a 33-29 edge.
- The Zags have won the last 13, dating back to a 72-62 Pepperdine win in Malibu in 2009.
- The Bulldogs have won six straight at Pepperdine, dating back to the loss in 2009.
IT'S LIKE DEJA VU ALL OVER AGAIN
- The Bulldogs are 8-4 after loading up their non-conference schedule with tough competition again.
- Gonzaga was 8-4 after 12 games last season.
- It then won 16 straight games, the fifth-longest win streak in program history.
- The Zags also won their 11th straight West Coast Conference regular season title with a 16-2 league record.
- GU ended its season with a run to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament and was ranked No. 19 in the AP poll.
DOUBLE-DOUBLE MACHINE
- Shelby Cheslek recorded her 13th career double-double at Colgate (11 points, 11 rebounds). - The senior has four double-doubles already this season after having four in 2014-15.
- She has scored double-digits and grabbed nine rebounds in two games this season.
- Her first career double-double was an 11-point and 11-rebound performance at LMU on Feb. 9, 2013.
- Teammate Kiara Kudron also has two double-doubles this season.
GETTING DEFENSIVE
- Gonzaga currently leads the West Coast Conference with a 53.8 scoring defense (28th in the nation), and blocks per game at 4.9 (58th in the nation).
- The Bulldogs are first in the WCC in three-point field goal percentage defense at 26.1 (38th in the country), and in the field goal percentage defense at 35.5 (56th in the country).
IT'S A BLOCK PARTY
- Last season's GU team broke the program record with 184 blocks.
- This season's team has 59 through the first 12 games, including 11 blocks in the win over West Virginia, which is fourth on the program's all-time single game list. It was also the most since the record was broken with 16 against Saint Mary's in 2010.
- Shelby Cheslek is on pace to contend with the single season program record of 77 set by Stephanie Hawk in 2006-07.
CHASING MILESTONES
- Cheslek is second in program history with 174 blocks, two away from tying the record.
- The senior moved into the West Coast Conference's all-time top-10 in 10th currently.
- She is also sixth in GU history with 757 rebounds.
