Lopes complete sweep over CBU

Thursday, February 17

Phoenix, Ariz.

6 p.m.

Grand Canyon

17-7,10-3WAC

California Baptist

18-6,9-4WAC

California Baptist

Grand Canyon

Photo by: Zach Campbell

2/17/2022 8:42:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score Photo Gallery

Graham scores 25 in 20-point win against Lancers

By: Sierra Smith

The Grand Canyon women's basketball team took down California Baptist 75-55 on Thursday night at GCU Arena and took back sole possession of second place in the WAC race.

"You like those kind of wins," Lopes head coach Molly Miller said. "That was a great one for us in great fashion. They're a really good basketball team and I don't think they had a rhythm all night, so a lot of kudos to our girls, especially executing the defensive game plan and playing hard. We had a lot of energy from start to finish."

The Lopes (17-7, 10-3 WAC) had three players score in double figures, led by graduate guard Amara Graham's 25 points. Graduate forward Jay McChristine posted 14 points, six rebounds and two steals from the bench and junior forward Dominique Phillips posted a double-double off the bench with 12 points and 11 rebounds.

GCU dominated the boards, outrebounding the Lancers 56 to 35 with Phillips grabbing a team-high 11 boards. The Lopes put in work on the offensive glass, turning 19 rebounds into 18 second-chance points.

"We talked about that," Miller said. "We needed to get second chances and extra opportunities. We know we're going to get some with our defense and forced turnovers, but we also have to take care of the basketball and rebounds. We gotta have more offensive rebounds and then we need to be one and done."

The Lancers' two worst 3-point shooting performances of the season have come against the Lopes. CBU shot 17.2% from deep in the first matchup and 18.9& on Thursday night.

"That's what we do defensively, is disrupt," Miller said. "For them to have some looks but maybe rush them a little bit quicker than they would, or know that someone's coming back into the play, I think that does a lot. Our defense, I just can't say enough about it. This is really holding a great team to 55 points. You're going to win a lot of games doing that."

The Lopes defense forced 18 Lancers turnovers, which turned into 17 points. Freshman point guard Kiyley Flowers and senior forward Kennedi Shorts led the way with three steals apiece.

Graham got the Lopes going right off the bat with back-to-back 3s and went on to finish the first quarter with 14 points off a 4-for-4 showing from behind the arc. After jumping out to a 13-8 advantage, GCU went on a 12-0 run with 3:28 left in the first quarter to increase its lead to 25-8, a score that would hold for the rest of the period. The 25 points marked GCU's best first-quarter offensive output against a Division I team this season.

"You always want to get her to a quick start," Miller said about Graham. "Usually, when we're drawing something up and we're talking about who to get open for a shot, AG's the one we're going to. So for her to hit those first few 3s was almost like a weight lifted off probably everyone, and that helps our team."

The Lopes maintained their lead in the second frame, scoring 14 points against CBU's 15 points and entered the halftime break with a solid 39-23 lead.

GCU continued to preserve its halftime lead before going on a 5-0 run, punctuated by the fifth 3 of the night from Graham, to expand its lead to 51-30 with 1:31 to go in the third. Graham has hit at least five 3s in four games this season, all occurring in WAC play.

The Lopes entered the fourth quarter with a 53-32 advantage.

In the fourth, GCU kept its lead intact before going on a 7-0 run, finished off by Phillips' jumper, to grab its largest lead at 62-35 with 7:40 to go in the game. The Lancers narrowed the margin, but the Lopes still cruised the rest of the way for the 75-55 win to complete the regular-season sweep over the defending WAC regular-season and WAC Tournament champions.

"Every game is really important and we needed this one," Miller said. "With them being at the top right with us, that head-to-head was going to come into play. So it was nice to get that sweep when we're playing them twice. From here on out, every single game matters. To have a bye would be nice, but we don't really care at this point. We're just going to go play our hardest, go out and fight every game for a win and see where it puts us. And then when tournament time comes, you got to have that same mentality."

Up next, the Lopes head to New Mexico State to face the Aggies for the second time this season.