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Women's Basketball Hosts Time Out 4 HIV/AIDS Tournament  

Women's Basketball Hosts Time Out 4 HIV/AIDS Tournament

The Pepperdine women's basketball team will host the second annual Time Out 4 HIV/AIDS Tournament on Friday, Nov. 23, and Saturday, Nov. 24. In the spirit of the Thanksgiving holiday, the theme is appropriately, "Count your blessings and help thy neighbor." The first game will take place on Friday, Nov. 23, at 1 p.m. with Ol' Miss vs. Wisconsin. At 3:30 p.m., Pepperdine takes on Texas-Arlington.

The Time Out 4 HIV/AIDS Tournament has traditionally focused on promoting HIV/AIDS awareness. However, this year in conjunction with the Time Out 4 HIV/AIDS theme, the team has chosen to use the tournament to raise funds for Malibu Presbyterian Church, whose building was completely destroyed in the Malibu Fires on Sunday, Oct. 21.

"Losing their place of worship has been devastating to not only many of our community members, but much of the student population as well," said Pepperdine head coach Julie Rousseau. "I think it's important that as a University and a community, we reach out to our less fortunate neighbors during this time of thanks and do what we can to bring joy back into their lives."

Rousseau and the Waves women's basketball team have a long standing tradition of giving back to their community and others in need. On Thanksgiving Day, after a two-hour morning practice, the team will travel to Los Angeles to help feed the homeless. In addition to their tournament, the team participated in a walk to raise funds and awareness for the Lymphoma/Leukemia Society in early October.

As in the past, at each time out during the Waves games, a celebrity or team member will read a fact pertaining to HIV/AIDS. At the opposing team's games, audience members will be invited to share a reason why they are thankful this holiday season.

"HIV/AIDS is a disease that affects all of us. It has been described as a pandemic touching various places, not only in India and the continent of Africa, but it has literally traveled to every corner of the world. Each time I hear a new story about someone's life affected by this disease and each time I learn a new fact about this pandemic, God reinforces in me the need to do something, to play my part," said Rousseau.