Tested team returns to GCU Arena

Saturday, Dec. 22 \| 7 p.m. (Phoenix time) \| Phoenix, Ariz.

	GRAND CANYON LOPES (6-5)	VS	MISSISSIPPI VALLEY STATE DELTA DEVILS (2-11)

WATCH: YurView Arizona \| LISTEN: 1580 The Fanatic, 99.3FM & 95.9 FM \| STATS: View \| FOLLOW: @GCU_MBB

Grand Canyon's toughest non-conference schedule ever has tested the Lopes through travails and triumphs over the past month.

The Lopes should return to GCU Arena as a better team for it. That could spell trouble Saturday night for visiting Mississippi Valley State because GCU already has won 11 consecutive regular-season home games.

The Lopes' first home game in three weeks follows a 73-62 Wednesday victory at Northern Iowa.

"I thought our toughness down the stretch was good," head coach Dan Majerle said of GCU outscoring Northern Iowa 24-11 over the final 6:39.

"It's hard losing. Nobody likes losing. But for us, we've got to get better. I thought we get worse against Texas (in Saturday's loss). They (the Longhorns) played great but I thought we lost our composure. We lost just how disciplined we were. I thought we just let it go and then we bounced back against Northern Iowa."

This is the fourth consecutive season that Mississippi Valley State (2-11) has visited GCU in December. The Lopes have won the games by an average of 25.7 points, which is consistent with Mississippi Valley State carrying the third-worst scoring margin (minus-21.1) in the nation this season. The Delta Devils are 0-10 on the road after losing Sunday at Hawaii and have a team field goal percentage of 36.7, which ranks fourth worst in the nation.

Senior forward Dante Scott leads Mississippi Valley State with 13.3 points per game but senior guard Jordan Evans may be more dangerous as a 38.6 percent 3-point shooting with 12.5 points per game.

Guard of the boards

If Mississippi Valley State continues to miss frequently, there is a good chance that GCU freshman guard Tim Finke often will be there waiting for the caroms.

Finke, despite being 6-foot-6 perimeter player, has proven to be the Lopes' best rebounder this season. He is averaging a team-best 8.2 rebounds per 40 minutes of play and grabs 18.4 percent of the defensive rebounds available when he is in the game.

This rebounding penchant began a year ago in Champaign, Ill., where his father, Jeff, challenged him rebound more early in his senior season. He took his rebounding average from three to nine by the end of the season.

"Sometimes, guys comes in and they think differently of what they can do because of what they did in high school," Majerle said. "I think Tim's going to be a really good player but Tim's job right now is just to be hard-nosed, crash the boards, play great defense, hit open shots. For him, it's just his relentlessness. Since he stepped on campus, nobody has been able to keep him off the boards. Right now, that's his game."

Finke has proven to be a good passer who takes good care of the ball and he carries the team's best 3-point shooting percentage (38.9). But he continually puts a stamp on games with his rebounding. His season-high total of eight rebounds Wednesday at Northern Iowa was even more important with his brother and Lopes leading rebounder Michael out for a foot injury.

"I've got to hold it down for the Finkes," said Tim, who also scored eight points and made two steals.

He has a knack for reading how missed shots will come off the rim. More importantly, he shows a willingness to crash because he usually is coming from the outside because he is defending a guard.

"I'm always looking at the game and seeing what I can do to impact it in every single aspect," Finke said. "When I got in the game at Northern Iowa, I tried to impact the game in a lot of areas and get our team going and light a spark."

Lope tracks

GCU has the best free throw percentage (71.8) in the WAC.
The Lopes were outscored by 16 at the free throw line against then-No. 6 Nevada in a seven-point loss. After fouling 21 times in that game, GCU averaged 12.5 fouls in the past two games. Northern Iowa did not shoot a free throw in Wednesday's first half.
GCU junior guard Carlos Johnson averaged 9.4 points and shot 35 percent when he started the first five games. Since moving to the bench, he is averaging more points (11.2) and shooting better (43 percent).

Follow Paul Coro on Twitter: @paulcoro.

Saturday, Dec. 22 | 7 p.m. (Phoenix time) | Phoenix, Ariz.

VS

Players Mentioned

Tim Finke

Carlos Johnson

Grand Canyon University Athletics