Completed Event: Men's Basketball versus Northwestern State on November 21, 2025 , Win , 85, to, 72
M Basketball
vs Northwestern State
W 85-72
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Insider: Midnight Madness fires up
10/2/2017 5:30:00 PM | Men's Basketball, Paul Coro, Lopes Insider Blog
Pirate-themed event to pack GCU Arena with students
Ahoy, basketball season.
Before the Grand Canyon teams try to make shark bait of Western Athletic Conference foes, campus scallywags and privateers are invited to board the ship of a team striving for a 'ship.
Midnight Madness is a rite of passage for college basketball programs across the nation but its stature at GCU has risen as rapidly as the men's team. As late Friday becomes early Saturday, this year's pirate-themed event figures to enthuse students again.
The Havocs plan to sleep overnight, as early as Wednesday, for the first time to secure their seats for the student-only, 90-minute event. There will be an intrasquad scrimmage for the first time but the basketball will be accompanied by plenty of other entertainment, including music, a light show, flames and whatever is in store for basketball head coaches Dan Majerle and Nicole Powell.
"I'm going to be surprised," said Majerle, who has repelled from the rafters, entered the court on a chopper and exposed a purple-painted chest in past years. "I just know I have an outfit that I have to put on. It'll be something good. They do a great job of it. They'll have 7,400 students there screaming and it's a big party so I can't wait. I know our guys are excited about it."
How much goes into planning a GCU Midnight Madness? Director of In-Game Entertainment Taylor Griffin started working on next year's Midnight Madness last month.
This year's purple preseason party will feature more props and pyrotechnics than ever. A 20-foot Jolly Roger will port outside the arena but students who line up early will not be marooned across campus. The snaking corridor from GCU Arena to North Rim Apartments will be lined with lights, speakers, barrels, crates, parrots, skulls and other booty.
"Being able to immerse people in a show before they get to Midnight Madness has been my goal," said Griffin, who drew inspiration from the Disneyland experience of distractions. "I always thought that if they start camping out, I know we'll have created something that they enjoy."
The pirate theme bites off the Pirates of the Caribbean line, "Take what you can, give nothing back," and Majerle's desire to be the conference's toughest team.
Griffin took over organizing the event in 2014, when Majerle wore a white leisure suit and chunky-heeled shoes for a "Midnight Madness Fever" theme. Thunder, the mascot, turned into a Jedi in 2015 for the Episode III theme before Majerle entered on a chopper last year for "Apocalopes."
For Lopes guard Casey Benson's first three years at Oregon, football season overwhelmed the start of basketball season. He already considered GCU's home-court environment superior to anything he saw in Pac-12 basketball. Then, his first two months on campus were filled with anticipation for when GCU Arena doors open Friday at 11:15 p.m.
"Everybody can't wait," Benson said. "That's a kick-start for our fans. I'm looking forward to that. It couldn't come any quicker.
"The fan support here is amazing. What they do and how unique it is and the support they bring and the energy they bring is second to none."
And while thousands more might talk about it, only those students inside GCU Arena until almost 1 a.m. Saturday truly will know the experience.
The intro video will not be seen anywhere else. The event T-shirts will not be available anywhere else. The show is a one-time viewing experience.
"Our Midnight Madness is much more of a party while there is some basketball going on," Griffin said. "I love doing this. It's something mysterious for the students to get behind. There is magic in being able to experience this only once a year. It's a blast to put together. Stressful, but fun."
Follow Paul Coro on Twitter: @paulcoro.
Before the Grand Canyon teams try to make shark bait of Western Athletic Conference foes, campus scallywags and privateers are invited to board the ship of a team striving for a 'ship.
Midnight Madness is a rite of passage for college basketball programs across the nation but its stature at GCU has risen as rapidly as the men's team. As late Friday becomes early Saturday, this year's pirate-themed event figures to enthuse students again.
The Havocs plan to sleep overnight, as early as Wednesday, for the first time to secure their seats for the student-only, 90-minute event. There will be an intrasquad scrimmage for the first time but the basketball will be accompanied by plenty of other entertainment, including music, a light show, flames and whatever is in store for basketball head coaches Dan Majerle and Nicole Powell.
"I'm going to be surprised," said Majerle, who has repelled from the rafters, entered the court on a chopper and exposed a purple-painted chest in past years. "I just know I have an outfit that I have to put on. It'll be something good. They do a great job of it. They'll have 7,400 students there screaming and it's a big party so I can't wait. I know our guys are excited about it."
How much goes into planning a GCU Midnight Madness? Director of In-Game Entertainment Taylor Griffin started working on next year's Midnight Madness last month.
This year's purple preseason party will feature more props and pyrotechnics than ever. A 20-foot Jolly Roger will port outside the arena but students who line up early will not be marooned across campus. The snaking corridor from GCU Arena to North Rim Apartments will be lined with lights, speakers, barrels, crates, parrots, skulls and other booty.
"Being able to immerse people in a show before they get to Midnight Madness has been my goal," said Griffin, who drew inspiration from the Disneyland experience of distractions. "I always thought that if they start camping out, I know we'll have created something that they enjoy."
The pirate theme bites off the Pirates of the Caribbean line, "Take what you can, give nothing back," and Majerle's desire to be the conference's toughest team.
Griffin took over organizing the event in 2014, when Majerle wore a white leisure suit and chunky-heeled shoes for a "Midnight Madness Fever" theme. Thunder, the mascot, turned into a Jedi in 2015 for the Episode III theme before Majerle entered on a chopper last year for "Apocalopes."
For Lopes guard Casey Benson's first three years at Oregon, football season overwhelmed the start of basketball season. He already considered GCU's home-court environment superior to anything he saw in Pac-12 basketball. Then, his first two months on campus were filled with anticipation for when GCU Arena doors open Friday at 11:15 p.m.
"Everybody can't wait," Benson said. "That's a kick-start for our fans. I'm looking forward to that. It couldn't come any quicker.
"The fan support here is amazing. What they do and how unique it is and the support they bring and the energy they bring is second to none."
And while thousands more might talk about it, only those students inside GCU Arena until almost 1 a.m. Saturday truly will know the experience.
The intro video will not be seen anywhere else. The event T-shirts will not be available anywhere else. The show is a one-time viewing experience.
"Our Midnight Madness is much more of a party while there is some basketball going on," Griffin said. "I love doing this. It's something mysterious for the students to get behind. There is magic in being able to experience this only once a year. It's a blast to put together. Stressful, but fun."
Follow Paul Coro on Twitter: @paulcoro.
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