Completed Event: Men's Basketball at Baylor on October 10, 2025 , Loss , 74, to, 79
M Basketball
at Baylor
L 74-79
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Grand Canyon University Athletics
Friday, November 17
Glendale, Ariz. / Desert Diamond Arena
7 p.m.
Grand Canyon
3-0,0-0WAC
76
vs
72
San Francisco
2-2,0-0WCC
1
2
F
San Francisco
36
36
72
Grand Canyon
33
43
76
Photo by: David Kadlubowski
Lopes prove tough enough to take down Dons
11/17/2023 11:19:00 PM | Men's Basketball, Paul Coro
Harrison, Grant-Foster combine for 52, set up GCU-South Carolina game on Sunday
GLENDALE, Ariz. – If there is Christmas in July, there can be March Madness in November.
Moving to 3-0 this season was arduously challenging for Grand Canyon on Friday night, when a tough tussle with San Francisco finished with a Lopes flourish that earned a 76-72 win at Desert Diamond Arena.
In tournament fashion on national television, the Lopes' 12-4 closeout advanced them to the Arizona Tip-Off Cactus Division championship game against South Carolina (4-0), which later defeated DePaul 73-68. That 5 p.m. game at Desert Diamond Arena also will be shown on CBS Sports Network.
With about 3,000 GCU fans enveloping a corner of the Glendale arena 9 miles from campus, the Lopes handled a gut-check on the strength of 28 points from senior guard Tyon Grant-Foster, 24 points from junior guard Ray Harrison and clutch moments from the rest of the starters on a scoreless bench night.
"Th
e intensity in that game," Lopes head coach Bryce Drew said. "Every possession, you felt like it could change the whole tempo or momentum of the game. The back and forth by both teams and the physicality. That game was physical from start to finish."
GCU trailed for the first time with two seconds remaining in the first half, and were chasing San Francisco (2-2) for nearly all of the second half. But as the Lopes held the Dons without a field goal for 5 minutes, 40 seconds of the stretch, GCU rallied and made eight of 11 free throws in the final three minutes to win. The Lopes shot 21 more free throws than the Dons, going 28 for 38 for their most free throw attempts in a game since January 2017 at UT Rio Grande Valley.
"That was a lot of fun," said Harrison, who scored 17 second-half points and had a game-high five assists. "That was a victory that we worked so hard to get. We locked in on the details throughout the week. To see the buzzer finally go off felt great."
The Lopes shored up their rebounding in the second half, when they did not allow a second-chance score, and got a key offensive follow with 3:32 to go when sophomore center Duke Brennan's tip-in started a 6-0 run to set up GCU taking the lead.
"These are the games where you look back and you find chemistry within your team," Brennan said. "When you can battle back from being in a deficit, it builds the team in such an exponential way. It was amazing coming back from that."
San Francisco tied the game at 70-70 with 2:02 remaining before Grant-Foster's soaring, scoring drive put the Lopes ahead with one minute remaining. The Lop
es maintained a 74-72 lead when San Francisco had a possession to tie with 26 seconds remaining.
Brennan anticipated a pass to his rolling big man, San Francisco forward Jonathan Mogbo, and deflected the ball off the backboard. Harrison recovered the loose ball and was fouled to cinch the victory with two free throws.
"That last five minutes, he was really good," Drew said of Brennan, the Arizona State transfer. "Just his presence down low and the physicality that he brings. Him playing in the Pac-12 last year, he's used to some really intense games."
GCU allowed 12 offensive rebounds in the first half for nine Dons second-chance points that keep them close enough for Mike Sharavjamts' half-ending 3-pointer to put San Francisco ahead 36-33.
The Lopes won the boards 22-12 in the second half with only two offensive rebounds allowed. Each starter flipped that in the second half, when graduate power forward Gabe McGlothan got five of his game-high eight, Grant-Foster had five of his seven, Brennan had four of his seven, Harrison had four of his five and junior guard Collin Moore had three of his five.
"We knew we didn't have a chance to win this game if we didn't start to rebound the basketball and start to make contact on our boxouts," Drew said.
But even with keeping San Francisco to one shot, the Dons found a way to keep the lead amid foul trouble to Sharavavjamts and Mogbo. Guard Marcus Williams scored 13 consecutive Dons points on his way to 20 points, his highest scoring game since he was a Wyoming freshman in 2020-21.
GCU trailed by as much as seven early in the second half but kept San Francisco in range for the rally with the help of Moore making two 3-pointers and a follow in a four-minute span. Moore also had a key block to set up the Lopes' go-ahead score later.
"We had to just come together as brothers," Harrison said of the starters. "We all looked at each other in the eyes and held each other accountable. We knew our jobs and assignments and did what we needed to do."
San Francisco missed eight of its last nine shots and turned the ball over twice during the final six minutes of the game. GCU kept Mogbo to 6-of-11 shooting, which was impressive because he was 21 of 23 from the field entering the game to be the national field goal percentage leader.
"It's learning under fire," Drew said. "For a third game, what an intense game."
The Lopes bench went 0 for 4 from the field with six turnovers to necessitate a heavy lean on the starting unit. McGlothan scored two points on an alleyoop to open the second half, but had the team's best plus-minus at plus-16 and showed leadership in the game's trying moments.
The celebration was short-lived for the coaching staff, which scouted the nightcap in preparation to face a South Carolina team that shot 48% from the field against DePaul in Friday's late game.
"Long night, but a fun night," Drew said. "Any time you can win and prep for a championship game in a tournament, it's exciting.
"How about our crowd? Our crowd has been sensational in the past. Today felt like a different level of intensity that they brought, especially those last five minutes. Our players fed off that energy and that intensity."
Moving to 3-0 this season was arduously challenging for Grand Canyon on Friday night, when a tough tussle with San Francisco finished with a Lopes flourish that earned a 76-72 win at Desert Diamond Arena.
In tournament fashion on national television, the Lopes' 12-4 closeout advanced them to the Arizona Tip-Off Cactus Division championship game against South Carolina (4-0), which later defeated DePaul 73-68. That 5 p.m. game at Desert Diamond Arena also will be shown on CBS Sports Network.
With about 3,000 GCU fans enveloping a corner of the Glendale arena 9 miles from campus, the Lopes handled a gut-check on the strength of 28 points from senior guard Tyon Grant-Foster, 24 points from junior guard Ray Harrison and clutch moments from the rest of the starters on a scoreless bench night.
"Th
e intensity in that game," Lopes head coach Bryce Drew said. "Every possession, you felt like it could change the whole tempo or momentum of the game. The back and forth by both teams and the physicality. That game was physical from start to finish."GCU trailed for the first time with two seconds remaining in the first half, and were chasing San Francisco (2-2) for nearly all of the second half. But as the Lopes held the Dons without a field goal for 5 minutes, 40 seconds of the stretch, GCU rallied and made eight of 11 free throws in the final three minutes to win. The Lopes shot 21 more free throws than the Dons, going 28 for 38 for their most free throw attempts in a game since January 2017 at UT Rio Grande Valley.
"That was a lot of fun," said Harrison, who scored 17 second-half points and had a game-high five assists. "That was a victory that we worked so hard to get. We locked in on the details throughout the week. To see the buzzer finally go off felt great."
The Lopes shored up their rebounding in the second half, when they did not allow a second-chance score, and got a key offensive follow with 3:32 to go when sophomore center Duke Brennan's tip-in started a 6-0 run to set up GCU taking the lead.
"These are the games where you look back and you find chemistry within your team," Brennan said. "When you can battle back from being in a deficit, it builds the team in such an exponential way. It was amazing coming back from that."
San Francisco tied the game at 70-70 with 2:02 remaining before Grant-Foster's soaring, scoring drive put the Lopes ahead with one minute remaining. The Lop
es maintained a 74-72 lead when San Francisco had a possession to tie with 26 seconds remaining.Brennan anticipated a pass to his rolling big man, San Francisco forward Jonathan Mogbo, and deflected the ball off the backboard. Harrison recovered the loose ball and was fouled to cinch the victory with two free throws.
"That last five minutes, he was really good," Drew said of Brennan, the Arizona State transfer. "Just his presence down low and the physicality that he brings. Him playing in the Pac-12 last year, he's used to some really intense games."
GCU allowed 12 offensive rebounds in the first half for nine Dons second-chance points that keep them close enough for Mike Sharavjamts' half-ending 3-pointer to put San Francisco ahead 36-33.
The Lopes won the boards 22-12 in the second half with only two offensive rebounds allowed. Each starter flipped that in the second half, when graduate power forward Gabe McGlothan got five of his game-high eight, Grant-Foster had five of his seven, Brennan had four of his seven, Harrison had four of his five and junior guard Collin Moore had three of his five.
"We knew we didn't have a chance to win this game if we didn't start to rebound the basketball and start to make contact on our boxouts," Drew said.But even with keeping San Francisco to one shot, the Dons found a way to keep the lead amid foul trouble to Sharavavjamts and Mogbo. Guard Marcus Williams scored 13 consecutive Dons points on his way to 20 points, his highest scoring game since he was a Wyoming freshman in 2020-21.
GCU trailed by as much as seven early in the second half but kept San Francisco in range for the rally with the help of Moore making two 3-pointers and a follow in a four-minute span. Moore also had a key block to set up the Lopes' go-ahead score later.
"We had to just come together as brothers," Harrison said of the starters. "We all looked at each other in the eyes and held each other accountable. We knew our jobs and assignments and did what we needed to do."
San Francisco missed eight of its last nine shots and turned the ball over twice during the final six minutes of the game. GCU kept Mogbo to 6-of-11 shooting, which was impressive because he was 21 of 23 from the field entering the game to be the national field goal percentage leader.
"It's learning under fire," Drew said. "For a third game, what an intense game."
The Lopes bench went 0 for 4 from the field with six turnovers to necessitate a heavy lean on the starting unit. McGlothan scored two points on an alleyoop to open the second half, but had the team's best plus-minus at plus-16 and showed leadership in the game's trying moments.
The celebration was short-lived for the coaching staff, which scouted the nightcap in preparation to face a South Carolina team that shot 48% from the field against DePaul in Friday's late game.
"Long night, but a fun night," Drew said. "Any time you can win and prep for a championship game in a tournament, it's exciting.
"How about our crowd? Our crowd has been sensational in the past. Today felt like a different level of intensity that they brought, especially those last five minutes. Our players fed off that energy and that intensity."
Team Stats
USF
GCU
FG%
.400
.396
3FG%
.304
.250
FT%
.765
.737
RB
36
43
TO
14
16
STL
11
10
Game Leaders
Pts
28
FGM
7
3FGM
3
FTM
11
Pts
24
FGM
6
3FGM
1
FTM
11
Pts
14
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
8
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Players Mentioned
F
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/ Men's BasketballWilhelm celebrates the putback
Wednesday, November 12
GCU Men's Basketball vs. Northern Illinois - Postgame with Caleb Shaw, Makaih Williams
Tuesday, November 11
GCU Men's Basketball vs. Northern Illinois - Postgame Radio with Bryce Drew
Tuesday, November 11
GCU Men's Basketball vs. Northern Illinois - Postgame with Bryce Drew
Tuesday, November 11