GCU speeds off on UTA after momentum U-turn

Thursday, January 12

Phoenix, Ariz.

7 p.m.

Grand Canyon

12-5,3-1WAC

UT Arlington

5-13,0-5WAC

UT Arlington

Grand Canyon

1/12/2023 10:09:00 PM | Men's Basketball, Paul Coro

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Harrison, Baumann combine for 31 points of Lopes' 52-point 2nd half

By: Paul Coro

Down two starters in the lineup and down 10 points on the scoreboard, Grand Canyon was far from down and out Thursday night.

The Lopes unleashed a 42-point turnaround on UT Arlington, using a 52-point second half to flip the game like chefs and cook the Mavericks 80-48 at GCU Arena.

GCU (12-4, 3-1 WAC) put five scorers in double figures with sophomore guard Ray Harrison scoring 15 of his 17 points in the second half and graduate forward Noah Baumann netting 14 of his season-high 19 points after halftime.

By the time the Lopes had outscored the Mavericks 57-18 over the conference game's final 22 minutes, the sluggish start was a distant memory for GCU to take the momentum into a Saturday night game at California Baptist.

The torrid perimeter shooting was more than enough to make the defensive effort stand up. UT Arlington shot 32.7% from the field, 25.9% in the second half, and matched GCU's opponent low for scoring (81-48 vs. Grambling State).

"I wish we could bottle up that second half and keep it and use it every game the rest of the year," GCU head coach Bryce Drew said. "It was really fun to watch in the second half. First half, UT Arlington did a really good job of subbing a lot, keeping fresh bodies. Their defense gave us a lot of problems in the first half. Their rotations, we were charging and throwing the ball away. Second half, we hit those three straight 3s and, from there, our offense really took off."

And by offense, he means Harrison, who is taking the lead a week after the Lopes lost point guard Jovan Blacksher Jr. to a season-ending knee injury.

Sophomore guard Chance McMillian (14 points) and Baumann hit back-to-back 3-pointers for the first GCU lead since 4-3 before Harrison's four-point play on a made 3-pointer while getting fouled from behind.

That started a string of 12 consecutive Harrison points after a two-point first half without a field goal made or an assist. By the time that diverse deluge of shots ended, the Lopes led 46-34 six minutes into the half to be on their way to their ninth win in 10 home games.

"He's a special player," Drew said of Harrison, who has 10 consecutive games of 16 points or more. "He made some plays out there that were incredible that we haven't seen at GCU in a while.

"He and Jovan were special because they can make some of those plays that are extraordinary. I thought Ray scored it, but I thought he passed it. I thought he had some really good passes that kept the defense on their heels and keep them out of rotation a little bit."

The Lopes scored more points (30) in the first 9:28 of the second half than they did in the first half. They needed a late 5-0 run charged by McMillian's pull-up jumper and assist on a 3 by junior guard Josh Baker to trail 30-28 at halftime.

GCU went even heavier to its thriving small-ball lineup that won an overtime game a week ago at Sam Houston. With Baumann and junior Gabe McGlothan able to handle the front line, the Lopes play three-guard lineups out of Harrison, McMillian, Baker and redshirt freshman Kobe Knox.

Baumann is 17 for 35 from 3-point range in the past six games, posting a 19-point game and four consecutive double-digit scoring games for the first time since last January for Georgia. This time, the Phoenix Desert Vista High graduate is doing it off the bench for a team that is motiated to play for Blacksher, junior Yvan Ouedraogo, redshirt freshman Isaiah Carr and freshman Derrick Michael Xzavierro.

"Everyone's a brother," Baumann said. "It's a very close atmosphere. Everyone's for each other. For us, it's next man up. Whoever's on the floor, we're going to play hard, our style of basketball and whatever Bryce Drew wants from us."

Knox scored 13 points in 15 minutes to set his scoring high against a Division I opponent. The active 6-foot-5 brother of NBA player Kevin Knox II is averaging 20.3 minutes in the past three games after playing 29 minutes in all of December.

"(Drew) brought me aside and told me, 'Now it's time to step up,' " Knox said. "Coach Walk (assistant coach Jamall Walker) told me, 'You got to grow up fast now that Nuna is out.' I stay in the gym and work out and I know I'm ready for the challenge they put in front of me."