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
Photo by: David Kadlubowski
Grant-Foster returns for ASU game
11/12/2024 4:55:00 PM | Men's Basketball, Paul Coro, Lopes Insider Blog
WAC Player of the Year makes season debut Thursday at Suns arena
The only thing that stood out more at Grand Canyon practice this week than a pair of neon-pink Nike Sabrina shoes was the impending Lopes addition wearing them.
At 2-0, GCU upgraded its active roster this week more than any team in the nation by adding Tyon Grant-Foster, the returning WAC Player of the Year, for Thursday night's Hall of Fame Series game against Arizona State at downtown Phoenix's Footprint Center.
"It's really like the season is here," Grant-Foster said. "My teammates held it down for the first two games. Now, it's time for me to come in and help us be better. I'm just ready to go out there and play and be with my teammates."
GCU fills holes and overflows in other areas with the return of Grant-Foster, who led the WAC in scoring last season while averaging 20.1 points, 6.1 rebounds, 1.7 steals and 1.5 blocked shots per game. He ended last season averaging 25.3 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.3 steals and 2.3 blocked shots per game over four postseason games to claim the WAC Tournament championship and reach the NCAA tournament second round.
The Lopes opened this season with wins against Cal State Fullerton and Western Kentucky despite missing starting junior center Duke Brennan to a left arm injury and Grant-Foster after he worked his way back from exploring the NBA Draft's early-entry option.
Grant-Foster's season debut has been highly anticipated, particularly since the Kansas City, Kansas, native was named to the Naismith Award watch list and ESPN analyst Jay Bilas' Preseason All-America second team. The yearning only increased with his return game being the first ASU-GCU meeting since Dec. 9, 2021, in Tempe.
"With everybody, it changes a little bit with Tyon coming back," GCU head coach Bryce Drew said. "But I think it changed for the better. We're a much better team with Tyon. The biggest thing is going to be everybody getting used to playing together and the rhythm. The last couple weeks, we haven't got to practice with him as much because we were so focused on our first two games. We've tried to speed things up this week, so hopefully it'll click right away."
After two years removed from college basketball because of a heart condition, Grant-Foster felt like his leg strength was not providing his optimum burst, speed or stamina until about eight games into the season. He has been able to practice and play scrimmages in preseason workouts, but he did not play in GCU's two exhibitions or two regular-season games.
With 233 days between Grant-Foster games, Drew said he is concerned about where his 6-foot-7 swingman's game rhythm will be but feels like having an experience-laden lineup of seniors and graduate students could make that less of an issue.
"I feel like I'll be good," Grant-Foster said. "I'm going to be a little winded, but that means I've just got to trust in my teammates."
That is the part of Grant-Foster's repertoire that he is eager to show to fans and pro scouts. He averaged 1.6 assists last season but knows he can set up teammates more this season because of how much better he knows the GCU system and how much scoring talent he has around him with four players who averaged double-digit points in his absence – senior forward JaKobe Coles (21.0), senior guard Collin Moore (16.0), senior guard Ray Harrison (14.5) and sophomore guard Makaih Williams (11.5).
"My mid-range game has gotten better, but my playmaking ability for my teammates is better to make the right plays and get them the ball," Grant-Foster said. "I learned a lot, especially the last game. We got punched in the mouth and got down by nine. The guys fought back, and that really showed me a lot about this team.
"We've got more people who can score the ball than we did last year. But we need to tighten up on defense. Our offense can be so much better than it was last year, but our defense can also be better with me because we get bigger with our length."
At 2-0, GCU upgraded its active roster this week more than any team in the nation by adding Tyon Grant-Foster, the returning WAC Player of the Year, for Thursday night's Hall of Fame Series game against Arizona State at downtown Phoenix's Footprint Center.
"It's really like the season is here," Grant-Foster said. "My teammates held it down for the first two games. Now, it's time for me to come in and help us be better. I'm just ready to go out there and play and be with my teammates."GCU fills holes and overflows in other areas with the return of Grant-Foster, who led the WAC in scoring last season while averaging 20.1 points, 6.1 rebounds, 1.7 steals and 1.5 blocked shots per game. He ended last season averaging 25.3 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.3 steals and 2.3 blocked shots per game over four postseason games to claim the WAC Tournament championship and reach the NCAA tournament second round.
The Lopes opened this season with wins against Cal State Fullerton and Western Kentucky despite missing starting junior center Duke Brennan to a left arm injury and Grant-Foster after he worked his way back from exploring the NBA Draft's early-entry option.
Grant-Foster's season debut has been highly anticipated, particularly since the Kansas City, Kansas, native was named to the Naismith Award watch list and ESPN analyst Jay Bilas' Preseason All-America second team. The yearning only increased with his return game being the first ASU-GCU meeting since Dec. 9, 2021, in Tempe.
"With everybody, it changes a little bit with Tyon coming back," GCU head coach Bryce Drew said. "But I think it changed for the better. We're a much better team with Tyon. The biggest thing is going to be everybody getting used to playing together and the rhythm. The last couple weeks, we haven't got to practice with him as much because we were so focused on our first two games. We've tried to speed things up this week, so hopefully it'll click right away."After two years removed from college basketball because of a heart condition, Grant-Foster felt like his leg strength was not providing his optimum burst, speed or stamina until about eight games into the season. He has been able to practice and play scrimmages in preseason workouts, but he did not play in GCU's two exhibitions or two regular-season games.
With 233 days between Grant-Foster games, Drew said he is concerned about where his 6-foot-7 swingman's game rhythm will be but feels like having an experience-laden lineup of seniors and graduate students could make that less of an issue.
"I feel like I'll be good," Grant-Foster said. "I'm going to be a little winded, but that means I've just got to trust in my teammates."
That is the part of Grant-Foster's repertoire that he is eager to show to fans and pro scouts. He averaged 1.6 assists last season but knows he can set up teammates more this season because of how much better he knows the GCU system and how much scoring talent he has around him with four players who averaged double-digit points in his absence – senior forward JaKobe Coles (21.0), senior guard Collin Moore (16.0), senior guard Ray Harrison (14.5) and sophomore guard Makaih Williams (11.5).
"My mid-range game has gotten better, but my playmaking ability for my teammates is better to make the right plays and get them the ball," Grant-Foster said. "I learned a lot, especially the last game. We got punched in the mouth and got down by nine. The guys fought back, and that really showed me a lot about this team.
"We've got more people who can score the ball than we did last year. But we need to tighten up on defense. Our offense can be so much better than it was last year, but our defense can also be better with me because we get bigger with our length."
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