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
Photo by: Taylor Hansen
Harrison packs scoring skill for move to GCU
4/18/2022 7:07:00 PM | Men's Basketball, Paul Coro
Guard averaged 17 points at Presbyterian, can play 3 Lopes seasons
Ray Harrison spent his first two seasons of Division I basketball averaging 17 points and 35 minutes per game, but his move to Grand Canyon is about changing one statistic – the win column.
Harrison, a 6-foot-4, 180-pound shooting guard, is transferring from Presbyterian to GCU with three seasons of eligibility starting with this fall for the All-Big South second-team honoree.
Big South coaches named the Greenville, South Carolina, as one of the conference's top 10 players for the dynamic scoring ability that led him to 20 or more points in 20 games over his first two collegiate seasons. Harrison's versatile arsenal exploded for a career-high 32 points in November against VMI and he also posted a 31-point, 13-rebound game as a freshman against Charleston Southern.
"From the minute we saw film on Ray, we thought that his game would translate into our system very well," GCU head coach Bryce Drew said. "We love his ability to be able to create off the dribble. He used to play quarterback, so he has tremendous vision at 6 foot 4 to pass the basketball. He's also a proven Division I scorer."
Harrison has drawn opponents' defensive focus for Presbyterian teams that went 19-35 over the past two seasons. Harrison's 38% shooting from the field and 28% shooting on 3-pointers projects to improve with a better floor balance of talent around him at GCU, which has won 73 percent of its games in Drew's first two seasons.
"I'll still be able to have an impact on the program and help them propel back to the top of the WAC," Harrison said. "Most people who know my game know that, as an individual, I'm a good player. Unfortunately, in the recent places I've been, I haven't been able to win. Coming to GCU, winning is my No. 1 priority. I don't care about minutes played, points scored. Winning is No. 1 for me.
"From the people who watch me play, the main thing they tell me is how exciting I am to watch. I don't see why they say it, but that's literally what anybody who comes to watch me says. I have athleticism to have those high-flying moments and different highlights. My game stretches to the perimeter when it comes to shooting the 3-ball and being able to drive. I feel like there are many different aspects that my game covers."
Harrison stayed in his home state for his first two college seasons and had not ventured to the West since a club basketball tournament in Las Vegas during his high school years. Since entering the transfer portal, his talks with the GCU coaching staff led to a weekend visit that turned into a Monday signing.
"The main reason I wanted to be part of the GCU family was because, even though I'm traveling across the country, I still feel as though I'm going to be at home," Harrison said. "It's because the people they have in place there are so welcoming. It felt right. They made me feel more comfortable than schools on the East Coast.
"Everybody was telling me how it's paradise out there. I'm hearing all these good things and it was just a leap of faith to even go out there. I was having hesitations about getting on a plane, but once I got out there, there wasn't anything about the school that didn't blow me away. In all aspects, it was overwhelming to be honest."
Even before Harrison committed to GCU, his father, Ray, told him during the Phoenix visit, "I don't know where you're going, but I'm coming here."
For the family, the Christian aspect of Drew's program and the faith-based mission of the University were significant parts of the draw.
"My faith is important to me," Harrison said. "Surrounding all the good things that the school brings and the staff, that was just a cherry on top."
Harrison is coming cross country to GCU but will not even have the longest trip on an international Lopes roster, which has mixed Phoenix-bred talents, coast-to-coast players and foreign imports. He landed on the Lopes after a wide range of interest, which included Power 5 suitors.
"There were a lot of mid-majors after me, but none of them could compare to Grand Canyon," Harrison said. "The only schools that took my attention away from Grand Canyon were all high majors and that is because Grand Canyon is a high major, to be honest."
Harrison, a 6-foot-4, 180-pound shooting guard, is transferring from Presbyterian to GCU with three seasons of eligibility starting with this fall for the All-Big South second-team honoree.
Big South coaches named the Greenville, South Carolina, as one of the conference's top 10 players for the dynamic scoring ability that led him to 20 or more points in 20 games over his first two collegiate seasons. Harrison's versatile arsenal exploded for a career-high 32 points in November against VMI and he also posted a 31-point, 13-rebound game as a freshman against Charleston Southern.
"From the minute we saw film on Ray, we thought that his game would translate into our system very well," GCU head coach Bryce Drew said. "We love his ability to be able to create off the dribble. He used to play quarterback, so he has tremendous vision at 6 foot 4 to pass the basketball. He's also a proven Division I scorer."Harrison has drawn opponents' defensive focus for Presbyterian teams that went 19-35 over the past two seasons. Harrison's 38% shooting from the field and 28% shooting on 3-pointers projects to improve with a better floor balance of talent around him at GCU, which has won 73 percent of its games in Drew's first two seasons.
"I'll still be able to have an impact on the program and help them propel back to the top of the WAC," Harrison said. "Most people who know my game know that, as an individual, I'm a good player. Unfortunately, in the recent places I've been, I haven't been able to win. Coming to GCU, winning is my No. 1 priority. I don't care about minutes played, points scored. Winning is No. 1 for me.
"From the people who watch me play, the main thing they tell me is how exciting I am to watch. I don't see why they say it, but that's literally what anybody who comes to watch me says. I have athleticism to have those high-flying moments and different highlights. My game stretches to the perimeter when it comes to shooting the 3-ball and being able to drive. I feel like there are many different aspects that my game covers."
Harrison stayed in his home state for his first two college seasons and had not ventured to the West since a club basketball tournament in Las Vegas during his high school years. Since entering the transfer portal, his talks with the GCU coaching staff led to a weekend visit that turned into a Monday signing.
"The main reason I wanted to be part of the GCU family was because, even though I'm traveling across the country, I still feel as though I'm going to be at home," Harrison said. "It's because the people they have in place there are so welcoming. It felt right. They made me feel more comfortable than schools on the East Coast.
"Everybody was telling me how it's paradise out there. I'm hearing all these good things and it was just a leap of faith to even go out there. I was having hesitations about getting on a plane, but once I got out there, there wasn't anything about the school that didn't blow me away. In all aspects, it was overwhelming to be honest."
Even before Harrison committed to GCU, his father, Ray, told him during the Phoenix visit, "I don't know where you're going, but I'm coming here."
For the family, the Christian aspect of Drew's program and the faith-based mission of the University were significant parts of the draw.
"My faith is important to me," Harrison said. "Surrounding all the good things that the school brings and the staff, that was just a cherry on top."
Harrison is coming cross country to GCU but will not even have the longest trip on an international Lopes roster, which has mixed Phoenix-bred talents, coast-to-coast players and foreign imports. He landed on the Lopes after a wide range of interest, which included Power 5 suitors.
"There were a lot of mid-majors after me, but none of them could compare to Grand Canyon," Harrison said. "The only schools that took my attention away from Grand Canyon were all high majors and that is because Grand Canyon is a high major, to be honest."
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