In a 12-point loss to second-seeded Oklahoma in the first round of the NCAA tournament Saturday in Denver, the 15th-seeded Pepperdine women’s basketball team got in foul trouble, shot 31 percent from the field and played without one of its leading scorers.
So is Gilroy native and Pepperdine starting freshman guard Jessica Ross feeling too badly about the 78-66 loss in the San Antonio Regional that ended her team’s season?
Not exactly.
“We were coming in with a losing record, we were seeded fourth in our (West Coast Conference) tournament,” said Ross who had two points, three rebounds and an assist against Oklahoma. “So to lose by 12 to a team that was all hyped up and supposedly one of the best teams in country, it kind of gave us confidence.”
Confidence because all but one player on the No. 15 Pepperdine squad – including the former Notre Dame star – will be returning for next season.
Reflecting on the game and the season Tuesday, Ross expressed how exciting it was to be a part of one of the country’s biggest sporting events in just her first year of college basketball.
“It’s pretty awesome. You have an open practice with fans watching and media. It was such a cool experience to actually be in it,” she said. “A ton of people and a ton of work goes into it.”
Some of the highlights? People waiting to hand Ross and her Pepperdine teammates their bags when they got off the bus before the game and a locker room at the Pepsi Center fully stocked with food.
Pepperdine, which finished the season at 14-17, wasn’t even expected to make the NCAA tournament. The Waves were the only team in the men’s or women’s brackets with a losing record. But the team surprised Santa Clara in the WCC tournament championship to clinch an automatic NCAA bid.
So rather than fear the big stage of the tournament, Ross said, the Pepperdine squad felt ready to take advantage of its opportunity.
“I don’t think we had nerves because we had nothing to lose,” Ross said. “Everyone was expecting for Oklahoma to kill us so personally, we didn’t feel any pressure. We were so excited to show what we had.”
The 30-4 Sooners held a 29-point lead at one point in the game. But Pepperdine showed its character by continuing to fight in the second half even after Oklahoma pulled its starters. The Waves trailed by 10 with a little over a minute left. Ross said the improved second half was the team responding to head coach Julie Rousseau’s halftime talk.
“She made a good point that only one team was in it (in the first half),” Ross said. “We weren’t giving the effort that was required. I know it got our team fired up.”
Poor shooting troubled Pepperdine all game and that trickled down to Ross, who is known for her accuracy from outside. The guard said the Sooner defense allowed her very few looks at the basket.
“(Our shooting) was pretty lousy. I know I had hard time with it,” said Ross, whose minutes were limited due to two early fouls. “They scouted me. I only took three shots.”
In the post, the Waves couldn’t compete as strongly with Oklahoma without leading rebounder Jasmane Clarendon (11.5 PPG) who didn’t play because of an injury in a game-time decision. The Waves could have used the 6-foot-1 junior’s help in containing Oklahoma’s 6-foot-4 freshman phenom Courtney Paris. The former Piedmont star had 27 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks in 21 minutes of play, and became the first player in NCAA history to record 700 points, 500 rebounds and 100 blocks in a single season.
“(Paris) has always been dominant and I didn’t expect anything less, really,” said Ross, who first played against Paris in AAU basketball in grade school. “She’s a great player and she’s really multi-faceted.”
Pepperdine sophomore guard Daphanie Kennedy also had a record day. She scored a career-high 31 points for the Waves.
For next season, Ross would like to become more of a scoring threat herself.
“I need to work on more of my offensive game,” Ross said. “This year, I was just trying to get on the court. I want to be a go-to player (next season).”
Oklahoma, which beat BYU in the second round Monday, faces Stanford in the Sweet Sixteen 11:30am Saturday.
