Lopes go for win No. 20 tonight vs. Seattle

The Grand Canyon men's basketball team looks to extend their winning streak to 13 games and improve to 7-0 in WAC play as they host Seattle U on Saturday, Jan. 30, 2016. The game will tip-off at 7 p.m. MT from Grand Canyon University Arena.

It will be the sixth all-time matchup between the two schools, with Grand Canyon holding a 5-0 advantage in the series. The last time they met, the Lopes got 28 points from senior Royce Woolridge and 16 points and 5 rebounds from Joshua Braunto pull away with an 83-70 victory in the 2014-15 season finale. The win secured a second-place finish in the Western Athletic Conference standings in the Lopes' second year of Division I play.

Grandy Glaze has provided a strong inside presence that the Lopes were desperate for a year ago. The graduate transfer from St. Louis is averaging 17.6 points and 7.7 rebounds this season. He leads the WAC with a .628 field goal percentage, wchich is the 14^th-best mark in the entire country. Glaze recorded his sixth double-double of the season as he put up 24 points and a season-high 13 rebounds as Grand Canyon held off CSU Bakersfield 70-64 on Thursday night. By extending their winning streak to 12 games, the Lopes became the first team in the country to reach 19 wins. The Lopes now have the most wins in NCAA Division I play, the longest active winning streak in the country and the second-best winning percentage in the country.

"Yeah, I tell them," head coach Dan Majerle said when asked if he shares the accolades with the team. "They work too hard not to enjoy it. I also tell them that they haven't done anything yet. You've got to tell them, they've got to enjoy it. It's got to be worth the work that they're putting in every day. I let them know of the milestones we set but those are just short-term goals. Our long-term goal is to get better every day and be the best team possible and be ready to go to the Tournament when it's our time. Yeah, I believe in telling them and telling them the truth and telling them I'm proud of them."

The Lopes have been able to step up their game since conference play began. Through Thursday's games, Braun is averaging 23.5 points in conference games, nearly five points better than anyone else in the WAC. Helping get Braun some open shots is DeWayne Russell, who has averaged 6.0 assists in WAC games, also the best in the conference. Russell's 5.8 assist per game average for the season ranks tied for the 28^th-best mark in the entire country. Braun is shooting .477 from behind the arc this season, the 11^th-best percentage in the country.

The Redhawks come to Phoenix on a two-game winning streak after using an 11-1 run late in the game to pull away and defeat Utah Valley, 73-62. Westendorf shot 7-of-13 from the field and 4-of-5 from the free throw line, tying his season-high with 20 points while adding six rebounds, five assists, and three steals. For the season, Westendorf leads Seattle with 12.1 points per game while William Powell is the leading the team with 6.0 rebounds per game. The Redhawks enter Saturday 9-11 overall and 3-3 in conference play.

Following Saturday's game with Seattle U, the Lopes will hit the road with conference games at New Mexico State and UT Rio Grande Valley.

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Players Mentioned

Joshua Braun

Grandy Glaze

DeWayne Russell

Grand Canyon University Athletics