HUNTSVILLE, Texas (Interstat) — Sam Houston defeated visiting Pepperdine 85-77 on Wednesday at Johnson Coliseum in a men’s NCAA Division I basketball game, using a late free-throw surge to finish off the Waves before an announced attendance of 1,100. The Bearkats improved to 2-1, while Pepperdine fell to 2-2.

Pepperdine opened with the game’s first four points on Petar Majstorovic’s jumper and Evan Haywood’s layup. Pepperdine’s early burst came in the opening minutes. Sam Houston answered as Justin Begg made a jumper and Aidan McDowell and Yoda Oke combined for five quick points. The lead changed hands several times in the first half. Jacobe Coleman’s 3-pointer and Oke’s 3-pointer helped the Bearkats, while Jahari Williamson and Anto Balian kept Pepperdine close with drives and free throws. Zion Pipkin made a 3-pointer late in the first half, and McDowell added another 3-pointer near the end of the period to help Sam Houston take a lead into halftime.

Sam Houston took a 6-4 lead on Oke’s jumper with 14:30 left in the first half. Oke later made a 3-pointer for a 14-10 Sam Houston advantage, and Coleman’s jumper made it 16-12. Pepperdine answered with Robinson’s dunk and free throws. Haywood’s 3-pointer tied the game at 25, and Balian’s layup gave Pepperdine a 27-25 lead. Oke tied it again with a layup, and Pipkin’s 3-pointer helped Sam Houston take a 35-32 advantage.

Sam Houston then extended its lead early in the second half, as McDowell made a layup and two free throws and Begg added a layup and free throws, building a 51-36 advantage. Pepperdine fought back behind Williamson and Haywood, cutting the deficit to 61-58 on Haywood’s 3-pointer with 6:33 remaining.

Pepperdine cut into the lead with 3-pointers from Williamson at 15:09 and 13:35, and Oliver Kanden made another 3-pointer with 12:32 remaining to make it 53-45. Alex Constanza’s layup and Haywood’s consecutive 3-pointers helped the Waves close to 61-58. Sam Houston answered with Coleman’s layup and later free throws from Oke and Coleman to keep the lead.

The Waves could not complete the comeback. Pepperdine kept pressing until the final seconds. Jacobe Coleman answered with a layup, and after Pepperdine pulled within two again, Sam Houston got a jumper from Pipkin and three free throws from Oke. Coleman later converted a string of free throws, and Begg closed the scoring with two free throws with 15.5 seconds left. Sam Houston finished 34 of 38 from the free-throw line, while Pepperdine was 15 of 27.

Pepperdine scored 77 points from 71 possessions, an offensive rating of 108.7. Sam Houston scored 85 points from 74 possessions, an offensive rating of 114.8. Pepperdine shot 26 of 57 from the floor, 10 of 25 from three-point range and 15 of 27 from the free-throw line. Sam Houston shot 23 of 58 from the floor, 5 of 20 from three-point range and 34 of 38 from the free-throw line. Pepperdine had eight offensive rebounds to Sam Houston’s 11. The Waves had seven assists to the Bearkats’ six, and Sam Houston held a 4-3 edge in blocks. Both teams committed nine turnovers. Pepperdine was called for 24 fouls, and Sam Houston was called for 19.

Enel St. Bernard of Sam Houston had 31 minutes, seven points, 10 rebounds, two assists and two blocks. The 6-foot-6, 215-pound forward from Harford Village, Grenada, previously played at Panola College and Indiana State. Jahari Williamson of Pepperdine had 34 minutes, 21 points, two rebounds and four assists. The 6-1, 165-pound guard previously played at Royal Crown Academy.

Jacobe Coleman of Sam Houston had 27 minutes, 20 points and four rebounds. The 6-3 guard previously played at Dynamic Prep. Evan Haywood of Pepperdine had 35 minutes, 18 points, four rebounds and one assist. The 6-4, 200-pound guard previously played at Brebeuf Jesuit.

Yoda Oke of Sam Houston had 25 minutes, 14 points and eight rebounds. The 6-7, 195-pound guard previously played at Sonora High School, Fullerton College and Air Force. Aidan McDowell of Sam Houston had 31 minutes, 20 points and two rebounds. The 6-4 guard previously played at Crete High School, Fort Hays State and Western Colorado.

Riccardo Greppi of Sam Houston had 19 minutes, four points, six rebounds, two assists and two blocks. The 6-10 forward previously played at Verona and Wisconsin. Anthony Robinson of Pepperdine had 18 minutes, nine points, nine rebounds and two blocks. The 6-10, 238-pound forward previously played at Christ School in North Carolina.

Justin Begg of Sam Houston had 25 minutes, 13 points, five rebounds and two assists. The 6-0, 185-pound guard previously played at Episcopal. Anto Balian of Pepperdine had 20 minutes, seven points, three rebounds and two assists. The 6-2, 200-pound guard previously played at Pilibos.

Pepperdine had opened the season by beating Bethesda 116-43 and La Sierra 106-66 at home before a one-point loss at Cornell. Sam Houston had beaten Howard Payne 102-59 and lost at Alabama. Pepperdine next plays at Oregon before home games against UC Santa Barbara, UNC Greensboro and Cal State Bakersfield. Sam Houston visits Illinois before road games at Wyoming and Boise State. The Bearkats’ next three games are on the road. Pepperdine will then continue its nonconference schedule. Sam Houston also has several nonconference road games ahead.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Sam Houston 78, Pepperdine 76. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Sam Houston with a 91.9 percent probability to win. Pepperdine had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of -2.5. The total score of 162 went under the over/under line of 159.5.