‘Lopes Lose Squeaker to San Francisco State

Saturday, October 31

Anaheim, CA

Grand Canyon

San Francisco State

10/31/2009 6:34:23 PM | Men's Basketball

They waited for the call that never came.

That’s how the game ended for the Grand Canyon University men’s basketball team as it lost, 60-58, to San Francisco State University in second-day action in the Disney Tip-Off Classic today in Anaheim, Calif.

Antelopes sophomore guard Nick Witherill (Phoenix, AZ/Highland) took a jump shot from the left side as the game clock was about to expire. It was an air ball, but Witherill appeared to have been fouled while shooting. GCU head coach Russ Pennell and the ‘Lopes bench looked to the referees, expecting the call to be made, but instead the officials ran off the court and the teams shook hands before heading to their locker rooms.

It was another learning lesson for the young GCU team, and the main thing the players will take away from this game is that they have to take advantage of opportunities when they occur.

The score was tied six times and the lead changed four times in the game, and the ‘Lopes had plenty of chances to win. They couldn’t make shots when they needed them most, however, and as a result they’ll enter their game tomorrow at 6:30 p.m. (7:30 p.m. Arizona time) against Kentucky Wesleyan College, which walloped Western Washington in the first game today, still seeking their first win of the very young season.

Western Washington defeated GCU, 94-70, last night.

Most of the ‘Lopes damage in this game came from behind the three-point line, as they made eight treys, five of them in the first half. Senior guard T.J. Benson (pictured, Tempe, AZ/Weber State University) made five of 12 three-pointers, shot 6-of-13 from the field and led the team in scoring with 17 points. He made his first start of the season after scoring 11 points against the Vikings last night.

GCU made just 16 two-point field goals against the Gators, however, compared to 23 for San Francisco State. The ‘Lopes shot just 39 percent (16-of-41) from the field.

GCU went to the free-throw line 22 times, 13 more than San Francisco State, and made 18. The ‘Lopes also outrebounded the Gators, 35-31, and outscored them in the second half, 28-22.

Turnovers were an issue for GCU. It had 21, leading to 20 points for San Francisco State. The Gators had 14 turnovers of their own.

The player who did the most damage for San Francisco State last night in its 78-53 win over Kentucky Wesleyan, guard Nefi Perdomo (16 points, five rebounds and four assists), was not much of a factor in today’s game. Instead, it was two other guards, Phoenix O’Rourke and Marquel Hoskins, who led the Gators in scoring with 14 and 12 points, respectively. O'Rourke hit a go-ahead three-pointer with 1:38 remaining that gave San Francisco State a 59-56 lead and grabbed a key defensive rebound -- one of his career-high seven -- with 31 seconds left that helped preserve the win.

The ‘Lopes’ second leading scorer was sophomore forward Justin Wesolowski (Mesa, AZ/University of Northern Colorado), who had 16 points on 5-of-8 shooting from the field. He also had a game-high nine rebounds. Forward Gaby Ngoundjo (Cameroon/University of North Carolina-Charlotte), who had 10 points last night, made just one field goal and finished with nine points today. Forward Rony Tchatchoua (Cameroon/University of New Hampshire), who also scored 10 points last night, had two points in only 14 minutes of action today. And Witherill, who made four of nine field goals and also scored 10 points last night, shot just 1-of-9 from the field (1-of-6 on three-pointers) today.

The 'Lopes' biggest miss was the last one, and Witherill might have been fouled as he was attempting it. But GCU had lots of other opportunities and couldn’t take advantage of them. That will change for this team that has a new head coach, new assistant coaches and a completely new roster from last season. It’s a team that had just two weeks from the day practice started, Oct. 15, until it played its first game last night. That’s not much time for any team to prepare for a season, let alone one that has never played a game together before.

Everyone is new on this team. Even the seniors are rookies.

The ‘Lopes have another opportunity to win tomorrow.

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