Rout recaptures rhythm for road ahead

Wednesday, December 1

Phoenix, Ariz.

6 p.m.

Grand Canyon

5-1,0-0WAC

Park (Ariz.)

0-5

Park (AZ)

Grand Canyon

Photo by: Skyler Coblentz

12/1/2021 9:59:00 PM | Women's Basketball, Paul Coro

Box Score Photo Gallery

GCU rolls Park 98-48; Tiarra Brown's 17 leads 13-player rotation

By: Paul Coro

When Grand Canyon women's basketball head coach Molly Miller and her players circled the GCU Arena floor with hands up to the crowd Wednesday night, they were not just saying thanks for the support of three home wins in six days. They were waving goodbye for three weeks.

"I don't want to leave home," Miller said. "Home's been good to us."

The Lopes will miss GCU Arena with good reason. They moved to 17-1 at home in Miller's two seasons with a 98-48 Wednesday night rout of Park, an NAIA crosstown visitor that offered GCU more than another home game.

The Lopes (5-1) worked through new lineups in a 13-player rotation that included everything from getting a returning star, sophomore guard Tiarra Brown, back in the groove to getting a freshman, forward Kassidy Dixon, her first collegiate minutes after recovering from knee surgery.

Brown made all seven of her shots for a game-high 17 points, her first double-digit scoring game in her fifth game back from an ankle injury. GCU was plus-36 in Brown's 16 minutes.

During the Lopes' 24-3 run that ended the first quarter, Brown scored six points on drives with one coming off her steal. She scored off penetration and a 3-pointer on consecutive trips in the third and fourth quarters.

Tiarra Brown

"This year, I'm working on still the D, but also scoring from three levels and working with my new teammates," Brown said. "It's a process, but we're getting better every time."

There were chances to work through player combinations Wednesday night with the Lopes storming to a 54-28 halftime lead on 59% shooting and 15 first-half assists.

"We knew were going to get open looks, but let's pass up the good shot for a great shot," Miller said. "We ended up with 24 assists and nine turnovers. I really think that is a selfless statistic for this team. That should unite us and bond us."

The GCU bench racked up 65 points, but none of them drew more crowd and bench attention than the eight points from Dixon. The Goodyear Millennium High School graduate also made three steals and grabbed three rebounds in her 11-minute collegiate debut with her family on hand.

Kassidy Dixon

"Coming back from an injury isn't easy, but Kassidy put a smile on her face and she was the biggest cheerleader for her teammates every single day," Miller said. "To let us cheer for her for once was really rewarding. You could see sparks of what she's going to be in the future."

GCU's 50-point win outdid earlier 47- and 48-point wins, but the Lopes had a sluggish start when they missed their first three shots and a made a turnover before scoring. They trailed 8-7 after five minutes.

Graduate power forward Jay McChristine helped navigate GCU through that with a seven-point, three-steal first quarter. She finished with 15 points and five steals in 17 minutes.

"I can look her in the eye and challenge her a little bit, like, 'Jay, I need more energy and we need offensive rebound putbacks for me right now,' and there she goes getting after it, flying around it, guarding the ball sometimes, getting those o-boards," Miller said. "She's one that you can really rely on to always play hard."

The Lopes improved defensively as the game went, holding Park to a pair of 10-point quarters in the second half and getting major impact from several freshmen. GCU forced 31 turnovers in the game, pushing its nation-leading average to 29.7 opponent turnovers per game. The Lopes' 26 steals also improved their nation-leading average in that category to 19.2 per game.

GCU freshman guard Ja'Mya Powell Smith made 5 of 7 shots for 10 points in 12 minutes and her first double-digit scoring game since the season opener. Another freshman guard, Naudia Evans, also scored 10 with 4-of-6 shooting. Freshman guard Kiyley Flowers has been one of the team's best 3-point shooters, but showed how her game already has evolved by going from a four-turnover season opener to a six-assist game Wednesday in 19 minutes.

"That's a freshman that is figuring some things out," Miller said. "We're six games in and you want them to figure out the feel of the college game – when to give the ball up, when to make a play."

Every GCU player logged less than 20 minutes, but each Lope made the most of her time. Senior forward Kennedi Shorts grabbed a team-high seven rebounds and added a career-high four steals in 18 minutes.

"But like I told them in the locker room, we've got to figure out how to be road warriors right now," said Miller, whose team plays its next four games away from GCU. "This is a big stretch for us. It's going to identify our team a little bit and push us a little bit past our comfort zone."