The Official Blog of Pepperdine University Athletics

Help Get Dennis Johnson Into the Hall of Fame

A couple of NBA D-League teams are beginning a campaign to get former Pepperdine and NBA star Dennis Johnson elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame. The Austin Toros (of which Johnson was head coach at the time of his death in 2007) and the Maine Red Claws (an affiliate of the Boston Celtics) are teaming up to make this happen. Here's the NBA press release and here's the online petition that they've started.

Noah Lowry to Hold Workout Next Week

Stephen Goff of examiner.com is reporting this morning that Pepperdine's Noah Lowry will be holding hold a private workout for interested teams next Tuesday in Phoenix. Lowry last pitched in the big leagues in 2007 but has undergone several surgeries since then. Twelve MLB teams are expected to attend the session.

Read the entire article by clicking here.

Stephen Goff of examiner.com is reporting this morning that Pepperdine's Noah Lowry will be holding hold a private workout for interested teams next Tuesday in Phoenix. Lowry last pitched in the big leagues in 2007 but has undergone several surgeries since then. Twelve MLB teams are expected to attend the session.

Read the entire article by clicking here.

L.A. Times Visits Pepperdine Basketball Star William 'Bird' Averitt

Columnist Jerry Crowe of the L.A. Times recently caught up with Pepperdine's William "Bird" Averitt, who led the nation in scoring in 1972-73, averaging 33.9 points. Today, he resides with family in Kentucky and is still recovering from an automobile accident 15 years ago that left him partially disabled. Read the entire feature by clicking here.

ESPN's Andy Katz Notices Keion Bell

ESPN SportsCenter had Keion Bell's dunk over Gonzaga 7-footer Robert Sacre on its Plays of the Day last week, and now ESPN's Andy Katz gives Bell some notice in his "These Guys Can Play" section of the newest Weekly Watch column.

Lindsey Wright Is Ready to Win a Major

Former Pepperdine All-American Lindsey Wright is featured on the website iseekgolf.com as she gets ready to start her sixth year on the LPGA Tour.

Coverage of Coach's Rodriguez' Top Chef Win

Here's a few links to several stories on what doubled as college baseball media day in Southern California and the second coaches' cooking challenge at the ESPNZone in Anaheim. The Long Beach Press-Telegram had a story about the difficulty coaches have scheduling. The Los Angeles Times had a mention in its Fabulous Form Blog. The blogs College Baseball Today and College Baseball 360 also had coverage.

Links to KCAL Basketball Coverage

Unfortunately, I heard that Wednesday's KCAL Channel 9 sports show (and a planned preview of Pepperdine's game against Gonzaga) got bumped by a police chase. But here's a link to the interviews they conducted, and here's a link to their postgame clip, which includes one of Keion Bell's incredible baskets.

More Gonzaga Postgame Coverage

Following last night's exciting game at Gonzaga, here is the link to the game story in the Spokane Spokesman-Review (it mentions that Keion Bell's 37 points set an opponent record in the McCarthey Athletic Center). ESPN's College Basketball Blog also has some nice notes about Bell's performance.

Dain Blanton Profiled in the Daily News

Former Pepperdine volleyball standout and Olympic gold medalist Dain Blanton is a rising star in the world of sports broadcasting. Here's a profile of Blanton in today's Daily News as part of Tom Hoffarth's series on the best and worst sports announcers in L.A.

Asbury Will Be on ESPN 710 Radio on Thursday

Pepperdine men's basketball coach Tom Asbury is scheduled to be on ESPN 710-AM and the LA Sports Live Show with Mychal Thompson and Andrew Siciliano at around 1:25 p.m. on Thursday to discuss the Waves' 3-0 conference start and the big game at Gonzaga later that night.