MALIBU, Calif. (Interstat) — The Pepperdine Waves used a dominant second quarter and a relentless interior attack to pull away from the Washington State Cougars for a 78-62 victory in a nonconference women’s basketball game Saturday at Firestone Fieldhouse.

The Waves, improving to 15-9, outscored the Cougars 23-15 in the second period to build a 42-26 halftime lead and never looked back, avenging a three-point loss to Washington State in late December. The Cougars, who had won two of their last three, fell to 5-21.

Pepperdine’s control was established in the paint, where it outscored Washington State 48-30, and through capitalizing on mistakes, scoring 33 points off 23 Cougar turnovers. The Waves also shot efficiently, hitting 50.8% from the field and 12 of 13 from the free-throw line. Washington State, meanwhile, was hampered by its giveaways and managed just a 42.6% shooting clip.

The most important stretch of the game came late in the second quarter. Leading 31-23, Pepperdine unleashed a decisive 11-3 run over the final 3:36 of the half. The surge was fueled by its defense and the playmaking of guard Taija Sta. Maria. It began with a Sta. Maria assist on a Lina Falk three-pointer, followed by a steal and layup from Falk. After a Washington State basket, Elli Guiney drilled another three-pointer for the Waves, and Shorna Preston capped the half with an offensive rebound and putback at the buzzer, sending Pepperdine into the locker room with a commanding 16-point advantage. The Cougars could not cut the deficit to single digits in the second half.

Pepperdine was led by a double-double from forward Shorna Preston of Christchurch, New Zealand, who posted 13 points and 11 rebounds in 24 minutes. Falk, a guard from Wolfsburg, Germany, led all scorers with 19 points. Sta. Maria, from Toronto, orchestrated the offense with 14 points and a game-high six assists.

For Washington State, forward Charlotte Abraham of Cambrai, France, led the way with 15 points. Forward Malia Ruud from Pasco, Washington, added 12 points and five rebounds. Guard Mackenzie Chatfield of Auckland, New Zealand, contributed nine points and eight assists but also committed seven of her team’s 23 turnovers.

The game, organized by the West Coast Conference, drew an attendance of 370. According to Interstat’s ELO system, Pepperdine entered with a 56.40 percent probability to win.

Pepperdine next travels to face Loyola Marymount on Thursday. Washington State returns home to host Portland on Thursday.