Completed Event: Men's Basketball at UNLV on February 7, 2026 , Loss , 78, to, 80
M Basketball
at UNLV
L 78-80
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Insider: Focus turns quickly to Lopes-Aggies II
1/30/2021 1:47:00 PM | Men's Basketball, Paul Coro, Lopes Insider Blog
GCU can take early command of WAC race with follow-up win vs. NMSU
There is little time to digest Grand Canyon's 70-62 Friday night win over New Mexico State before chewing on the 7 p.m. Saturday second course at GCU Arena.
All of the Aggies streaks lost their storylines, but the Lopes kept their streak alive with a seventh consecutive victory to tie GCU for the nation's 11th-longest active winning streak. Taking that to eight on Saturday night could be more difficult because Friday's game gave WAC defending champion New Mexico State a chance to re-establish a rhythm in playing its first Division I opponent since Dec. 28.
After Friday night's breakthrough victory, Lopes head coach Bryce Drew quelled any locker room celebration by reminding his players that they are on a mission to achieve more this season.
"We want to sweep them and leave no doubt that we're really the best team in the conference this year," GCU senior guard Mikey Dixon said after his 14-point, four-assist game Friday night.
Lope tracks
All of the Aggies streaks lost their storylines, but the Lopes kept their streak alive with a seventh consecutive victory to tie GCU for the nation's 11th-longest active winning streak. Taking that to eight on Saturday night could be more difficult because Friday's game gave WAC defending champion New Mexico State a chance to re-establish a rhythm in playing its first Division I opponent since Dec. 28.After Friday night's breakthrough victory, Lopes head coach Bryce Drew quelled any locker room celebration by reminding his players that they are on a mission to achieve more this season.
"We want to sweep them and leave no doubt that we're really the best team in the conference this year," GCU senior guard Mikey Dixon said after his 14-point, four-assist game Friday night.
Lope tracks
- New Mexico State's WAC regular-season winning streak of 31 games was the fifth-longest in the nation this century and a conference record.
- Lopes senior power forward Alessandro Lever passed Duane Gagnon for third place on the all-time GCU scoring list, but he needs 224 points to pass No. 2 Josh Braun (the Division I-era leader at 1,714). The Lopes have nine remaining scheduled games before the WAC Tournament.
- GCU senior center Asbjorn Midtgaard has made 15 consecutive shots to keep his national lead for field goal percentage (75.5%) … and comfortably with a 6.7% lead. His toughest shot was one of the Friday game's most important to take a 59-55 lead with 4:09 to go. Midtgaard dribbled the baseline against 6-foot-10 Will McNair, pump-faked and almost blindly nailed a jump hook.
- Midtgaard has recorded the first five double-doubles of his career this season and had another six games in which he scored in double figures and grabbed nine rebounds in each.
- Lopes sophomore point guard Jovan Blacksher Jr. posted a brilliant line of 11 points and eight assists with only two turnovers, but his defense on NMSU senior point guard Evan Gilyard II deserves notice too. Gilyard made a deep 3-pointer on the Aggies' first possession Friday and did not make another shot, missing the next nine against Blacksher's and freshman Chance McMillian's defense.
- New Mexico State was leading the nation in opponent field goal percentage (37.7%) before GCU shot 53.1% on Friday.
- The Lopes remain the only team in the nation this season to rank in the top 10 for field goal percentage (fourth at 51.8%) and opponent field goal percentage (third at 37.3%).
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