Lopes ground Thunderbirds in second-straight win

Monday, December 18

Phoenix, Ariz.

2 P.M.

Grand Canyon

4-8

Southern Utah

1-9

Southern Utah

Grand Canyon

12/18/2017 4:18:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

Gajewski leads Lopes offense

By: Sarah Woodward

PHOENIX, Ariz. – The senior trio of Jessica Gajewski, Brie Mobley and Jordan Jackson tallied double-digits for the Grand Canyon women's basketball team, as the Lopes (4-8, 0-0 WAC) defeated Southern Utah (1-9, 0-0 Big Sky), 59-54, on Monday afternoon at the GCU Arena. The victory marks the second-straight for GCU and the second this season on home hardwood.

"I thought our defense held on through the first half and wavered a little in the second half, but it was a good start," head coach Nicole Powell said.

"We've got to get better at handling those late-game situations, but I'm pleased that we were able to knock down some shots and get the win out of it."

Gajewski led the Lopes in scoring for the third time this season, as the guard tallied a game-high 16 points. Mobley established a near double-double with 15 points and a game-best nine rebounds, while Jackson added 14 points.

Senior August Touchard led the Lopes in assists with five paired with four rebounds, while the pair of redshirt junior Katelyn Lee and freshman Myra Williams also had four boards apiece.

Grand Canyon tallied its second-best three-point shooting percentage, as the Lopes converted 43.8 percent (7-16) from the perimeter.

The Lopes jumped out to a 16-9 lead after the first, but Southern Utah came back to go on a 6-2 run to come within three, 18-15, in the middle of the second quarter.

GCU converted a quick 8-4 run to lead, 26-19, over Thunderbirds heading to the locker room. Jackson had a team-high 11 points (3-5 3FG) at the break, while Gajewski had eight points (2-3 3FG). Mobley tallied with five rebounds in the first, while Touchard had four assists through 20 minutes of play.

Southern Utah opened the third quarter with a 9-4 run to come within two points of the Lopes, 30-28, but the Lopes pushed back to extend the lead to seven, 37-30, thanks to a last-second three-pointer at the buzzer at the end of the third quarter.

Grand Canyon stretched the lead to as many as 14 points in the final quarter of action at the GCU Arena, but the Thunderbirds continued to fight back, bringing to the Lopes ahead by just two as the clock wound down.

Touchard was tested at the free-throw line and drained 3-4 from the charity stripe in the final 15 seconds of play to give Grand Canyon its second-straight victory. Touchard finished the day with nine points.

The Lopes return to the GCU Arena one last time in 2017 when they host Santa Clara on Thursday, Dec. 21. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m. and admission is free.