Image by Kyle Cajero
College basketball’s advanced statistics compiler Ken Pomeroy ranked the Waves ninth among 10 West Coast Conference teams and No. 286 nationally.
Pomeroy’s statistics, which came out Sunday, are vastly different than the 2017-18 WCC Coaches Poll, which picked the Waves to finish seventh, ahead of Pacific (No. 253, per KenPom), Portland, (No. 305) and in-city rival LMU (No. 254).
Pepperdine’s projected ninth-place finish includes a 5-18 WCC record and a 9-20 record during the regular season. It’s worth noting that KenPom’s rankings don’t include conference tournaments and postseason appearances, which seems to be the lone difference between this year’s team and last year’s 9-21 finish.