LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Senior center Jermaine Ballisager Webb drilled five three-pointers and scored a career high 22 points to lead Portland to a 77-68 win over Pepperdine Thursday in the first round of the Credit Union 1 West Coast Conference Championship at Orleans Arena.

Ballisager Webb added seven rebounds and two blocks to lead the Pilots (14-18). Freshman forward Dante Censori-Hercules helped out with eight points, nine rebounds, five assists and two steals and James O'Donnell added 16 points on 8-of-10 shooting.

Portland shared the ball well in Thursday's game, racking up 23 assists on 29 made field goals. Individually, Joel Foxwell dished out the most for the Pilots with eight assists.

Portland led start-to-finish and gained a 42-26 scoring margin in the paint.

How It Happened
After playing to a 2-2 tie, Portland went on a 9-0 run with 18:58 left in the first half, culminating in a three from Ballisager Webb, to take an 11-2 lead. The Pilots pushed the margin to 19-7 by scoring on their first six possessions including a trio of three-pointers. Pepperdine chipped away and pulled within one late in the period before Portland took a 44-38 lead into the break.

Pepperdine pulled within one possession twice early in the second half before Ballisager Webb took over. He scored five points and was a force on the glass and defensively to spur a 10-0 Pilot run pushing the margin to 56-44. A Waves three-pointer by Nikola Radovanovic made it 62-56 midway through the half, but that would be as close as Pepperdine would come down the stretch.

Game Notes
» The Pilots shot well from three point range, knocking down 7 of 17 long range attempts.
» The Pilots held the Waves to only 35.7 percent shooting from the field.
» Portland never trailed on the way to a 77-68 victory.
» The Pilots put on a passing clinic, recording an assist on 79 percent of made baskets.
» The Pilots were active in affecting shots on the defensive end, tallying five blocks as a team.
» Portland cleaned up on the offensive glass, collecting 12 offensive boards in the game.
» Jermaine Ballisager Webb led the Pilots with a game-high 22 points.
» Portland got a team-high nine rebounds from Dante Censori-Hercules.
» The Pilots shot 49.2 percent overall and limited Pepperdine to 35.7 percent.

Up Next 
Portland advances to face the No. 8 seed Washington State Cougars on Friday at 6 p.m. in the second round of the Credit Union I West Coast Conference Basketball Championship. The Cougars swept the Pilots during the regular season. The game will be aired on ESPN+ with live coverage links available at PortlandPilots.com.

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