MALIBU, Calif. (Interstat) — Junjie Wang scored a game-high 27 points, including five 3-pointers, and San Francisco used a dominant first half to cruise past Pepperdine 80-60 in a West Coast Conference men’s basketball game Saturday at Firestone Fieldhouse.

The Dons (12-7, 3-1 WCC) never trailed, opening the game on a 14-2 run and holding the Waves to just 21 points in the first half. San Francisco led by as many as 26 points in the second half before settling for the 20-point victory, which snapped a two-game conference road losing streak.

Wang, a 6-foot-9 junior from Xuzhou, China, was the catalyst, hitting 10 of 17 shots from the floor in 33 minutes. His performance marked a significant resurgence after being held to six points in just 22 minutes during San Francisco’s double-overtime loss at Loyola Marymount two nights prior.

The most critical stretch of the game came early, as Pepperdine’s offensive struggles proved insurmountable. The Waves (5-14, 0-4) missed 12 of their first 13 field goal attempts and finished the first half shooting just 21.9% from the floor. They were a frigid 3 for 21 from 3-point range for the game.

San Francisco’s defense set the tone, but its offensive efficiency was the story. Despite committing 12 turnovers to Pepperdine’s six, the Dons scored 80 points on 68 possessions, an offensive rating of 118.1, by shooting 47% from the field and capitalizing on 15 offensive rebounds for 18 second-chance points.

Tyrone Riley added 19 points for San Francisco, while David Fuchs contributed 14 points and three assists. Vukasin Masic facilitated the offense with a game-high six assists.

Pepperdine, which has lost eight of its last nine games, was led by Styles Phipps with 18 points. David Mager came off the bench to score 13, and Danilo Dozic added 11. The Waves relied heavily on free throws, making 21 of 29 attempts, but their inability to score from the field – 18 for 59 overall – kept them from mounting a serious challenge.

The Dons built their commanding halftime lead of 32-21 with a balanced attack, but Wang took over after the break. He scored 18 of his points in the second half, including a personal 8-0 run early in the period that featured two 3-pointers and a dunk, pushing the lead to 48-25 and effectively sealing the outcome.

A crowd of 645 watched as San Francisco improved its record in true road games to 3-4 this season. Pepperdine fell to 4-5 at home.

The victory keeps San Francisco in the upper tier of the WCC standings ahead of a key home matchup against Saint Mary’s on Tuesday. Pepperdine will look for its first conference win when it hosts Portland on Wednesday.

The game unfolded largely as expected according to predictive metrics, with San Francisco entering as a heavy favorite with an 88.9% win probability. The Dons’ performance, particularly from beyond the arc where they hit 13 3-pointers, validated that projection and provided a decisive rebound from their last outing.