No. 14 'Lopes Down Dominican, 71-29, in Largest Victory of the Season

Wednesday, January 11

GCU Arena

4:30 p.m.

Grand Canyon

11-1, 3-1

Dominican

1-13, 0-4

Dominican (CA)

Grand Canyon

Jallisa Butler had 14 points and 10 rebounds on Jan. 11 vs. Dominican.

No. 14 'Lopes Down Dominican, 71-29, in Largest Victory of the Season

1/11/2012 5:55:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

The No. 14 Grand Canyon University women’s basketball team defeated Dominican, 71-29, tonight at Grand Canyon University Arena in Phoenix to extend their winning streak to seven consecutive games. The Antelopes improved to 3-1 in the PacWest Conference and 11-1 overall. The Penguins fell to 1-13 overall and 0-4 in conference play.

Entering tonight’s game, the ‘Lopes led all NCAA Division II schools with a 30.9 defensive field goal percentage, while their 48.5 points-allowed-per-game ranked second. With a margin of 57-32, GCU outrebounded their opponent for the 11^th time, as they are averaging a 13.5 rebound margin against their opponents, and improved to 10-1 in those contests.

“The girls are doing a great job on defense,” said head coach Trent May. “You have to really communicate on defense and put pressure on your opponent. The girls are sharing those responsibilities together and it has been effective.”

GCU held their opposition to a season-low 29 points, their fewest allowed since an 85-20 win vs. Southwestern on Jan. 21, 2006. Their 42-point advantage was their largest since a 69-point victory over Chaminade on Jan. 27, 2010 (105-36). The ‘Lopes forced 24 turnovers and had 15 steals as they held the Penguins to a 22.8 fielding percentage.

GCU had 29 points off the bench and outdueled Dominican in points in the paint (30-10) and points off turnovers (23-9).

Jallisa Butler and Maylinn Smith led the offensive charge with 14 points each, while Angelina Dennison and Jenna Pearson chipped in with eight points. Butler grabbed 10 rebounds to lead the charge and post her fourth double-double of the season, while Chigozie Ekweozor had eight rebounds and Joslynn Frazier added 7 boards.

“We have really focused on making rebounding a priority and it is something we talked about a lot heading into the season,” added May. “The girls have done a really good job of responding to that. They are good students of the game, great listeners and are very coachable. We really want to control the boards each game and the girls understand how important that is. They do a great job executing what we emphasize in practice.”

The ‘Lopes, who have not trailed at the half in any of their 12 games this season, held the Penguins to a season-low-tying 13 points in the first half. Including their game at Dominican on Jan. 3, GCU has allowed just 26 first-half points against the Penguins. GCU’s 43 points in the first half are the second-most they have scored in the first period, trailing only the 45 points scored on Dec. 9, 2010 against Cal State Stanislaus in San Francisco, Calif. Their 30-point advantage at the half is the largest of the season, surpassing the 27-point advantage they took into the locker room in the Cal State Stanislaus game.

GCU opened the first half with a 14-0 run over the first seven minutes before allowing a jumper to Sarah Nelson. Butler scored six points during the streak, while Stevie Kamp added four and Smith and Pearson had two apiece.

The ‘Lopes shot 51.5 percent (17-for-33) from the field in the first half, led by Butler’s season-high-tying 13 points on 6-for-8 shooting. Butler also had 13 points on Dec. 19, 2011 when the ‘Lopes hosted Simon Fraser. Pearson added eight points after going 2-for-3 from behind the arc.

“The girls are doing a good job of sharing the ball and I really like a team that is unselfish,” said May. “They don’t care who gets the credit. When are able to get the ball down low and to our inside players, that also helps get players open on the perimeter because the defense has to shuffle around.”

The ‘Lopes carried their momentum into the second half, outscoring the Penguins 28-16 en route to securing their largest win of the season. GCU shot 75.0 percent (9-for-12) from the free throw line during the second half. Smith scored nine of her points in the second period, while Frazier had each of her seven points during the half.

GCU will next be in action when they travel to St. George, Utah to take on Dixie State at Burns Arena on Jan. 16. Tip-off is slated for 5:00 p.m. Arizona time.

GCU 71, DOM 29