Senior spotlight: Joshua Braun

Joshua Braun has worn "GCU" across his chest like a second skin for four seasons.

He has scored the second-most points in the 69-season history of Grand Canyon basketball.

He obliterated the record for most career 3-pointers made by a Lope.

Five years after becoming head coach Dan Majerle's first recruit, Braun will head out of GCU Arena's northwest tunnel for his final regular-season home game on Saturday night.

"It's going to be emotional for sure," Braun said. "I've really enjoyed my time here. It's crazy that five years have gone by so quickly. I've had a blast here. I've learned a lot here. I've grown as a person and as a player. Senior Night is going to be crazy. It's surreal. I don't know if it's fully hit me yet."

GCU's staff and student body has become so attached to Braun that he will not be alone in the sentimentality.

Braun is a campus fixture, readily shaking hands by day and shaking defenders by night. He has been a standout socially, academically and athletically.

"Josh has been unbelievable," Majerle said. "To be my first recruit signed and to see everything he has accomplished through all of his injuries is nothing short of amazing. To be a two-time first-team Academic All-American, to be two-time first team All-WAC, to be considered WAC Preseason Player of the Year twice, to do what he's done on our campus and represent GCU on and off the floor, you couldn't have a better face for the franchise. He has been that for the last five years."

Braun, a graduate student, leads the team in scoring (12.3 points per game) this season even with a slip in his shooting. He is a career 38.7 percent 3-point shooter with a school-record 253 3-pointers, crushing the previous mark of 198. Three seasons ago, the 6-foot-4 guard was even the team's leading rebounder for a season when he was an undersized post-up player.

This season, he has reunited with childhood teammate Casey Benson in the Lopes backcourt for a team that will go for its third consecutive 20-win season on Saturday. Braun is the only player to have been part of the program for all five of the program's Division I seasons, including redshirting his first year on campus to finish knee rehabilitation.

"Obviously, this year has been a disappointment for him, but that's not going to take away from everything he has done and the things he's done for this university," Majerle said. "He has put this basketball team on the map because of his play and because of the way he is. I just love him because I know the things he's had to go through, as far as the surgeries, is not easy to do but he's battled back and has done it. He can be proud of what he's accomplished here because he's accomplished a lot."

Braun is the hometown hero, moving south on Interstate 17 from Anthem to build a program that gave him a chance when most other coaches backed off recruiting him because he suffered torn anterior cruciate ligaments in his knee twice after his junior year.

The springy rise in his jump shot remained to reach 1,681 career points. He refined his body to stay healthy and has started every game this season, including a 70^th career start to come Saturday.

"It's been a dream," Braun said. "It's been a great time. I could go on and on about memories, the good times I've had at this place and the way it's treated me and all of its players. I couldn't ask for anything better out of a college experience."

This concludes a series of four senior spotlights as the Lopes enter their final regular-season home game Saturday against Cal State Bakersfield.

Grand Canyon University Athletics

Players Mentioned

Casey Benson

Joshua Braun

Related Videos