Lopes drop opener at SPI Classic

Friday, December 17

South Padre Island, Texas

2 p.m. (Phoenix time)

Grand Canyon

5-4,0-0WAC

Liberty

10-1,0-0ASUN

Liberty

Grand Canyon

12/17/2021 6:01:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score Photo Gallery

GCU loses tough battle to Liberty in South Padre

SOUTH PADRE ISLAND, Texas — The Grand Canyon women's basketball team battled hard until the end but fell to Liberty 76-61 on Day 1 of the South Padre Island Classic on Friday evening.

"The team that showed up today was connected, tougher and played hard," GCU head coach Molly Miller said. "That, to me, is progress for this team. The result obviously wasn't what we wanted, but I feel hopeful moving forward with the changes that were made. This team was completely different than the team that showed up last week."

Graduate forward Jay McChristine led the GCU offense with 15 points. She also added four rebounds and a game-high three steals for the Lopes.

"I think we needed some of that relentless leadership and she brought that effort and toughness to our team tonight," Miller said. "She was really good at sparking energy from her teammates and I think she has turned a corner herself, now facing some really good, tough posts. Those posts were good, they were legit and she stepped up to the challenge and didn't back down so I'm proud of her for bringing that leadership."

Joining McChristine in double figures was sophomore guard Tiarra Brown, who scored 12 points with six rebounds, and graduate guard Amara Graham, who posted 12 points and five assists.

The Lopes forced 18 Liberty turnovers, turning those takeaways into 12 points.

"That's a tough Liberty team, a lot of credit goes to them, they've mopped some teams," Miller said. "I thought we played them really tough, and to be within five at halftime was a good sign and just our fight and our effort this game gave us a chance. That's all we wanted was to have a chance to win this game and I think our effort, our toughness, our resiliency, our connectivity gave us that chance."

After falling behind 9-7, GCU went on a 6-0 run off of back-to-back three's from Graham with 3:36 left in the first quarter to take a 13-9 lead. The Lopes had a one-point advantage at the end of the quarter. GCU knocked down three 3-pointers to account for nine of its 15 points.

Liberty rallied to take a 31-23 lead before GCU went on a 5-0 run starting at the 2:14 mark in the second period, highlighted by a bucket from Ja'Mya Powell-Smith, to narrow its deficit to 31-28. Liberty responded and expanded its lead, leaving the Lopes trailing 35-30 at halftime.

The Lopes shot a game-low 30.8% in the third quarter, putting them at a 54-45 disadvantage heading to the fourth quarter.

The game was hard-fought by the Lopes but the Flames' 56% shooting performance brought the final score to 76-61.

GCU has a quick turnaround before the final game of the South Padre Island Classic, which is at 3 p.m. (Phoenix time) on Saturday.

"That shows our team more of the progression, is if we can play as hard as we did and fight as hard as we did, but then come back and not be satisfied with our performance and our effort," Miller said. "We have to now dig in a little deeper knowing it's a short turnaround and come prepped with the same focus and the same mentality that we did today."