Change of pace needed against Colorado

Tuesday, Dec. 22 \| 9 p.m. (Phoenix time) \| T-Mobile Arena

	COLORADO BUFFALOES (5-1)	vs.	GRAND CANYON LOPES (4-2)

WATCH: P ac-12 Network \| LISTEN: 1580 The Fanatic \| STATS: View

LAS VEGAS – The Grand Canyon men's basketball team is only four weeks into games in the Bryce Drew coaching era and the Lopes already are at the end of the toughest four-game stretch they will face this season.

And they save the hardest task for last.

GCU (4-2) will play Colorado (5-1) in each team's second Far West Classic game at T-Mobile Arena after the Buffaloes have disposed of their previous three opponents with an average win margin of 33.7 points.

Now receiving votes in the top-25 polls and cracking the top 25 of computerized rankings, the Buffaloes meet the Lopes at 9 p.m. (Phoenix time) for a Pac-12 Network telecast.

"I think they'll have a chance to win the conference this year just because they're so experienced and so deep," GCU head coach Bryce Drew said. "This is the best team we've faced all year. They go to the bench and bring off starters so this will be a great challenge for our guys to play against maybe the hottest team in the Pac-12 right now."

Colorado's only loss came at No. 8 Tennessee, which slowed the tempo for a 56-47 win. The Buffaloes averaged 84.8 points in five wins, including Sunday night's 92-69 "nonconference" demolishing of Washington in a game that wasn't even as close as its lopsided score.

The Buffaloes only needed five points from two-time All-Pac-12 first-teamer McKinley Wright IV because their depth and the 6-foot senior point guard's playmaking put five other players in double figures against Washington.

"We can't get an up-and-down game with them," Drew said. "They're too deep. They're too experienced. They're too talented to make this a 10-second shot clock game. This needs to be a 30-second shot clock game where we defend and we make them hold the ball more than 10 seconds to get a shot."

Much of that onus falls on GCU sophomore point guard Jovan Blacksher Jr., but that is nothing new. In this challenging stretch of games against Nevada, Arizona State and San Francisco, Blacksher has averaged two minutes of rest.

"It's going to have to start with our guard play," Blacksher said after a team practice Monday at T-Mobile Arena. "We can't panic if they press us. They're more experienced so we have to control the game and tempo and not rush shots. If we force them into long possessions, we'll be fine."

Drew called Wright the best all-around guard that GCU has faced this season. He is averaging 15.5 points and 5.7 assists with 61.7% shooting this season after leading 11th-year head coach Tad Boyle's Buffaloes to 21 wins last season.

Wright will lead the Colorado pressure that intends to rush opponents' offenses.

"I feel like we've done well against pressure," Blacksher said. "The last three teams were trying to get the ball out of my hands and not let me bring it up to run the play. We're going to have to adapt to that."

GCU will have the new wrinkle of an opposing 7-footer for its 7-footer, Asbjørn Midtgard, to handle. Dallas Walton, who has undergone three knee surgeries, is coming off a 45-point season but posted a career-high 22-point game against Washington. He shoots 75% from the field and went 10 for 10 on free throws against the Huskies.

"He'll get NBA looks because of his athleticism and his size but also his ability to step out and make a 3," Drew said. "It'll be a big challenge for us. We'll have to get in his body. We'll try to play physical, so he doesn't have his legs underneath him to be able to block shots and then to be able to shoot over the top of us with his hook shots."

The Monday practice was as good of ambiance preparation as the Sunday game. No fans attend the games at T-Mobile Arena, leaving the public address announcer as the only sound outside of coaches, players and sneakers.

Until Sunday, the Lopes had not played a game outside GCU Arena.

"This was a new environment for us," Blacksher said. "Here, it's no one. It's different. We have to bring more energy as a team from the bench and on the court."

Lope tracks

Blacksher ranks 25th in the nation for assists per game at 6.2
Midtgaard ranks 26th in the nation for rebounds per game at 10.0.
GCU ranks 23rd in the nation for field goal shooting percentage at 51.1.
Lopes senior power forward Alessandro Lever needs 12 points to pass Jim Irvine for fourth place on the all-time list of GCU career scoring leaders.
Colorado leads the nation in free throw shooting percentage at 85.8.
The Buffaloes rank 11th in the nation for scoring defense at 56.3 points allowed per game.
This game marks the first-ever meeting between GCU and Colorado.

Tuesday, Dec. 22 | 9 p.m. (Phoenix time) | T-Mobile Arena

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Jovan Blacksher Jr.

Alessandro Lever

Grand Canyon University Athletics