BYU snaps losing streak at Pepperdine with dramatic overtime win

Jeffrey D. Allred,

MALIBU, Calif, — For the first time in five years, BYU defeated Pepperdine at Firestone Fieldhouse Thursday night.

But it certainly wasn’t easy — the Cougars needed overtime to tame the Waves, who sit in last place in the West Coast Conference and have an RPI of 333.

It was BYU guard Elijah Bryant who seemed to will the Cougars to victory, scoring nine of their 11 points in the overtime period. Bryant finished with a game-high 25 points and added eight rebounds.

“The ball in Eli’s hands is always a good thing for us down the stretch,” said forward Dalton Nixon. “He’s the guy that we all trust to make the play, whether that’s to take it to the rim like he did tonight or to…