LBSU sophomore forward Petar Majstorovic drives past Pepperdine redshirt sophomore guard Aaron Clark. The Beach defeated the Wave 81-78 on Thursday, Dec. 18 at the LBS Financial Credit Union Pyramid. Rehansa Kulatilleke | Long Beach Current

Coming off a heartbreaking overtime loss against San Jose State in its last outing, Long Beach State men’s basketball won a back-and-forth battle against Pepperdine University 81-78 on Thursday, Dec. 18, at the LBS Financial Credit Union Pyramid. 

The Beach battled through a tightly contested home matchup that featured 17 lead changes and 12 ties to improve to 3-9 on the season, as LBSU freshman guard Gavin Sykes and sophomore forward Petar Majstorovic led the team with 23 and 20 points, respectively. 

“[The team] stayed even-keeled, and they stuck together throughout the whole game,” LBSU head coach Chris Acker said. 

The first half started off with a strong start from the Waves, who went up 5-0 early as The Beach began the night 1-for-8 from the field. 

Through 11 minutes, Pepperdine shot at a 67% clip from the field, while scoring seven points off LBSU turnovers. 

LBSU graduate guard Shaquil Bender hit a three-pointer as a counter that tied the game at 25 apiece. Bender continued his hot half, tallying seven points before the break. 

On the other end, Pepperdine sophomore guard Styles Phipps racked up 13 points with six rebounds and three assists in a productive first half. 

LBSU grabbed its first lead of the game with 1:52 left in the first half after a Majstorovic jumpshot put The Beach up 36-35. 

Majstorovic tallied nine points in the half along with nine rebounds, as The Beach trailed 37-36 going into the half. 

LBSU shot 48.3% from the field in the half and went 3-for-5 from beyond the arc, and tallied 16 points from their bench. 

Pepperdine shot at a 64% clip, and out-rebounded LBSU 15-11. 

LBSU junior guard Cole Farrell got the crowd on their feet early in the second half with an emphatic dunk to tie the game at 40. 

A layup from Majstorovic gave The Beach a 49-47 lead with 14 minutes to play. 

LBSU’s defense forced Pepperdine into making mistakes, as they forced 15 turnovers on defense, where they grabbed their biggest lead of the game. 

The Beach defense forced nine turnovers from the Waves in the second half, as they went on to take their biggest lead of the night. 

Sykes led The Beach with a scorching 19-point second half, going 7-for-10 from the field and making both three-pointers he attempted. 

After being previously recruited by Pepperdine before deciding on coming to LBSU, the true freshman, who ranks second in the Big West at 19.2 points per game, felt Thursday’s matchup was personal. 

“No matter what, I just wanted to beat [Pepperdine] and to find out a way to come out on top,” Sykes said. 

LBSU freshman guard Gavin Sykes finishes through two Pepperdine defenders in The Beach’s 81-78 home victory on Thursday, Dec. 18 at the Pyramid. Sykes caught fire with a 19-point second half to lead The Beach. Rehansa Kulatilleke | Long Beach Current

LBSU held on as Phipps’ potential game-tying three hit off the side of the rim as LBSU escaped with the 81-78 victory. 

Phipps recorded 25 points, eight rebounds and seven assists in a losing effort for the Waves. 

LBSU shot 53.6% from the field and 60% from three-point range.

Pepperdine shot 58.5% from the field while shooting 36.4% from behind the arc. LBSU also had 27 points from their bench in the game.

“Credit to the guys for showing up tonight, we really stuck to our game plan and executed it,” Acker said. 

Looking to build off its momentum, LBSU will next face a major road test against No. 4 Iowa State on Sunday, Dec. 21.