Completed Event: Men's Basketball at Wyoming on December 20, 2025 , Win , 82, to, 70
M Basketball
at Wyoming
W 82-70
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Rapid Recap: New Mexico State 70, GCU 59
1/11/2018 8:46:00 PM | Men's Basketball, Paul Coro
Grand Canyon's Western Athletic Conference goals will need an early reboot after the Lopes lost a second-half lead at home to end their eight-game Western Athletic Conference winning streak.
New Mexico State outscored GCU 32-9 at the close of the game for a 70-59 victory Thursday night at a sold-out GCU Arena, where the standing-room-only crowd of 7,521 set a Lopes basketball attendance record.
The Lopes took their first lead of the game on a follow score by senior power forward Keonta Vernon less than three minutes into the second half and stayed ahead for the next five minutes until a decisive cold spell did in GCU.
The Lopes (11-6) missed 10 consecutive shots as the Aggies (14-3) took the lead with nine unanswered points.
GCU remained within striking distance when freshman Alessandro Lever, who scored nine points, hit a jump shot to cut NMSU's lead to 58-55 with 6:24 to go. But the Lopes again went cold, failing to score unitl the final minute when the game was decided.
GCU only made seven turnovers but shot 34.4 percent from the field. NMSU committed 18 turnovers but shot 46.4 percent from the field and doubled GCU in rebounds, 50-25.
Lopes senior guard Joshua Braun led the team with 15 points while Vernon added 12 points and 12 rebounds. Senior guard Zach Lofton scored 29 for the Aggies with 10-for-10 free throw shooting.
The Lopes trailed 27-14 after almost 12 minutes of play with NMSU dominating the boards and senior guard Zach Lofton scoring 12 of the Aggies' points. Early in the game, NMSU was thriving with second-chance points and off-ball cuts for easy scores.
The Aggies entered the game with a plus-7.7 average rebounding margin to rank 10th nationally but outrebounded GCU 17-4 to start Thursday's game.
It was Braun's shooting that kept the Lopes in the game early and sparked the rally when he made his second 3-pointer with 8:03 remaining until halftime. That 3 started a Lopes 17-4 rally that pulled GCU within two points.
The Lopes' defense came up with tough stops down the stretch of the first half, including when junior forward Gerard Martin stripped Eli Chuha on a post trap to thrill GCU head coach Dan Majerle. He was even more pumped when junior forward Matt Jackson followed with a jumper that sent the game to a 37-37 halftime tie.
NMSU shot 57.1 percent from the field but committed 12 first-half turnovers that led to 14 of the Lopes' first-half points.
Return to gculopes.com later for Paul Coro's full recap with postgame reactions from head coach Dan Majerle and players.
New Mexico State outscored GCU 32-9 at the close of the game for a 70-59 victory Thursday night at a sold-out GCU Arena, where the standing-room-only crowd of 7,521 set a Lopes basketball attendance record.
The Lopes took their first lead of the game on a follow score by senior power forward Keonta Vernon less than three minutes into the second half and stayed ahead for the next five minutes until a decisive cold spell did in GCU.
The Lopes (11-6) missed 10 consecutive shots as the Aggies (14-3) took the lead with nine unanswered points.
GCU remained within striking distance when freshman Alessandro Lever, who scored nine points, hit a jump shot to cut NMSU's lead to 58-55 with 6:24 to go. But the Lopes again went cold, failing to score unitl the final minute when the game was decided.
GCU only made seven turnovers but shot 34.4 percent from the field. NMSU committed 18 turnovers but shot 46.4 percent from the field and doubled GCU in rebounds, 50-25.
Lopes senior guard Joshua Braun led the team with 15 points while Vernon added 12 points and 12 rebounds. Senior guard Zach Lofton scored 29 for the Aggies with 10-for-10 free throw shooting.
The Lopes trailed 27-14 after almost 12 minutes of play with NMSU dominating the boards and senior guard Zach Lofton scoring 12 of the Aggies' points. Early in the game, NMSU was thriving with second-chance points and off-ball cuts for easy scores.
The Aggies entered the game with a plus-7.7 average rebounding margin to rank 10th nationally but outrebounded GCU 17-4 to start Thursday's game.
It was Braun's shooting that kept the Lopes in the game early and sparked the rally when he made his second 3-pointer with 8:03 remaining until halftime. That 3 started a Lopes 17-4 rally that pulled GCU within two points.
The Lopes' defense came up with tough stops down the stretch of the first half, including when junior forward Gerard Martin stripped Eli Chuha on a post trap to thrill GCU head coach Dan Majerle. He was even more pumped when junior forward Matt Jackson followed with a jumper that sent the game to a 37-37 halftime tie.
NMSU shot 57.1 percent from the field but committed 12 first-half turnovers that led to 14 of the Lopes' first-half points.
Return to gculopes.com later for Paul Coro's full recap with postgame reactions from head coach Dan Majerle and players.
Players Mentioned
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