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
Rapid Recap: Iowa 86, GCU 74
3/20/2021 3:34:00 PM | Men's Basketball, Paul Coro
No. 2 seed Hawkeyes end No. 15 seed Lopes' season
INDIANAPOLIS — Grand Canyon passed the eye test in postseason play at the WAC Tournament but could not pass the Hawkeye test in the Lopes' first NCAA tournament appearance Saturday night.
GCU's season came to an end against an Iowa offensive juggernaut that played as advertised, knocking out the Lopes 86-74 in a first-round game at Indiana Farmers Coliseum. The second-seeded Hawkeyes (22-8) led wire to wire with 54% shooting, including 10-for-22 marksmanship on 3-pointers, and only made six turnovers to lead by as much as 19 in the second half.
The 15th-seeded Lopes could not keep up shot for shot with arguably the nation's top offense, but GCU senior center Asbjørn Midtgaard bounced back from early foul trouble to finish with 18 points, two off his career high, and six rebounds. Midtgaard was tasked with going head-to-head with the two-time Sporting News Player of the Year Luka Garza, who faced help from Lopes sophomore power forward Gabe McGlothan's 13 points and five rebounds in the first half
GCU shot 43% from the field, including 7-for-26 shooting from 3-point range, and was outscored 18-7 at the free throw line. Beyond Midtgaard's team high, Lopes sophomore point guard Jovan Blacksher Jr. continued his brilliant late-season run with a 15-point, seven-assist performance in 38 minutes.
The game started off with worst-case scenarios — Garza dropping two 3-pointers in the first 2:25 and Midtgaard picking up his second foul five minutes into the game.
The Lopes picked a poison with the Hawkeyes' 3-point shooting, but senior point guard Jordan Bohannon followed Garza's 3s with another one that put Iowa ahead 11-2 after the first 3:35 of the game. It was Midtgaard's second foul that unexpectedly helped GCU stay in the game when McGlothan entered and energized the Lopes.
The reserve power forward made a post-up move and scored twice off follows to cut Iowa's lead to 13-10. The Lopes could not cut the lead any closer but they remained within striking distance when Blacksher dropped back-to-back 3s to make Iowa's lead 27-23.
GCU seemingly picked up a game-turning break when senior power forward Alessandro Lever and Garza were whistled for a double foul, sending Garza to the bench with two fouls when Iowa led 29-24 with five minutes remaining in the first half.
Instead of making a push with Garza out for the remainder of the half, the Lopes went 2 for 10 and committed a shot-clock violation on its final possession when freshman guard Chance McMillian's driving layup came after the buzzer. Iowa stretched its lead to 42-31 by halftime and opened the first half by finding its transition game to score on six of its first seven possessions and led 56-39 within 3 1/2 minutes.
GCU went without a field goal for five minutes, even with several of the chances coming around the rim and had its largest deficit at 65-45 with 10:53 to play.
Lever asserted himself offensively to score eight of 11 points during one second-half stretch, but Iowa rarely went multiple possessions without scoring and Garza's points answered every GCU challenge. The Lopes cut the lead to 13 on three consecutive possessions, but Iowa countered with a score each time.
The Hawkeyes surround Garza with experienced shooters who made the program-high matching seed stand up. Iowa junior guard Joe Wieskamp posted 16 points, eight rebounds and five assists with 9-for-10 free throw shooting. Bohannon made three deep 3s on his way to a 13-point game and freshman forward Keegan Murray added 13 points, above his 7.0 season average, and seven rebounds for the Hawkeyes.
Return to gculopes.com for Paul Coro's full game recap with comments from GCU head coach Bryce Drew and Iowa head coach Fran McCaffrey.
GCU's season came to an end against an Iowa offensive juggernaut that played as advertised, knocking out the Lopes 86-74 in a first-round game at Indiana Farmers Coliseum. The second-seeded Hawkeyes (22-8) led wire to wire with 54% shooting, including 10-for-22 marksmanship on 3-pointers, and only made six turnovers to lead by as much as 19 in the second half.
The 15th-seeded Lopes could not keep up shot for shot with arguably the nation's top offense, but GCU senior center Asbjørn Midtgaard bounced back from early foul trouble to finish with 18 points, two off his career high, and six rebounds. Midtgaard was tasked with going head-to-head with the two-time Sporting News Player of the Year Luka Garza, who faced help from Lopes sophomore power forward Gabe McGlothan's 13 points and five rebounds in the first half
GCU shot 43% from the field, including 7-for-26 shooting from 3-point range, and was outscored 18-7 at the free throw line. Beyond Midtgaard's team high, Lopes sophomore point guard Jovan Blacksher Jr. continued his brilliant late-season run with a 15-point, seven-assist performance in 38 minutes.
The game started off with worst-case scenarios — Garza dropping two 3-pointers in the first 2:25 and Midtgaard picking up his second foul five minutes into the game.
The Lopes picked a poison with the Hawkeyes' 3-point shooting, but senior point guard Jordan Bohannon followed Garza's 3s with another one that put Iowa ahead 11-2 after the first 3:35 of the game. It was Midtgaard's second foul that unexpectedly helped GCU stay in the game when McGlothan entered and energized the Lopes.
The reserve power forward made a post-up move and scored twice off follows to cut Iowa's lead to 13-10. The Lopes could not cut the lead any closer but they remained within striking distance when Blacksher dropped back-to-back 3s to make Iowa's lead 27-23.
GCU seemingly picked up a game-turning break when senior power forward Alessandro Lever and Garza were whistled for a double foul, sending Garza to the bench with two fouls when Iowa led 29-24 with five minutes remaining in the first half.
Instead of making a push with Garza out for the remainder of the half, the Lopes went 2 for 10 and committed a shot-clock violation on its final possession when freshman guard Chance McMillian's driving layup came after the buzzer. Iowa stretched its lead to 42-31 by halftime and opened the first half by finding its transition game to score on six of its first seven possessions and led 56-39 within 3 1/2 minutes.
GCU went without a field goal for five minutes, even with several of the chances coming around the rim and had its largest deficit at 65-45 with 10:53 to play.
Lever asserted himself offensively to score eight of 11 points during one second-half stretch, but Iowa rarely went multiple possessions without scoring and Garza's points answered every GCU challenge. The Lopes cut the lead to 13 on three consecutive possessions, but Iowa countered with a score each time.
The Hawkeyes surround Garza with experienced shooters who made the program-high matching seed stand up. Iowa junior guard Joe Wieskamp posted 16 points, eight rebounds and five assists with 9-for-10 free throw shooting. Bohannon made three deep 3s on his way to a 13-point game and freshman forward Keegan Murray added 13 points, above his 7.0 season average, and seven rebounds for the Hawkeyes.
Return to gculopes.com for Paul Coro's full game recap with comments from GCU head coach Bryce Drew and Iowa head coach Fran McCaffrey.
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