Lopes return home for midweek matinee vs. Liberty

Wednesday, November 27

Phoenix, Ariz.

11:30 a.m.

Grand Canyon

Liberty

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11/26/2024 11:36:00 AM | Women's Basketball

GCU plays 2nd of 2 WAC/CUSA schedullng initiative games

By: Nick Macdonald

Wednesday, Nov. 27 \| 11:30 a.m. (Phoenix time) \| Global Credit Union Arena \| Phoenix, Ariz.

	LIBERTY FLAMES (3-2)	at	GRAND CANYON LOPES (2-2)

WATCH: ESPN+ \| STATS: LINK \| TICKETS: LINK

THIS GAME

Returning from a nine-day break, GCU hosts Liberty for the first of three straight home games at Global Credit Union Arena.
The contest is the second of two WAC/Conference USA scheduling initiative games. GCU played at Middle Tennessee earlier this month, while Liberty hosted California Baptist.
It is the Lopes' first home game since Nov. 4, their regular-season opener versus CSU Bakersfield.

STORYLINES

The Lopes are 51-12 at Global Credit Union Arena since head coach Molly Miller took the helm in 2020. GCU has won at least 12 games at home in each of her three seasons in Phoenix and tied the Division I-era record for most home wins in a season (13) in 2023-24.
GCU enters the game ranked 12th in the nation for 3-point percentage defense (20.8%) while Liberty is 11th in the country in 3-point percentage (41.5%). Opponents have made 15 shots from 3-point range in four games (3.8 per game) against the Lopes, and Liberty has made 44 in five games (8.8 per contest).
Lopes senior guard Alyssa Durazo-Frescas is 11th in the nation and first in the WAC in 3-pointers with 3.5 per game. The shooting guard has made 14 on the season and has three games with three or more made 3s this season. Durazo-Frescas holds a 41.7% mark on 3s for her career, ranking her eighth among active Division I players.
Returning Lopes headliners include senior guard Trinity San Antonio, the WAC Preseason Player of the Year. San Antonio is coming off a 2023-24 campaign in which she averaged 11.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.3 steals per game. Her 63 steals led the squad, earning All-WAC Defensive Team honors.
GCU graduate Tiarra Brown is second in the WAC with 2.8 steals per game, totaling 11 so far this season. Brown is the GCU all-time record holder in steals and 145 points shy of tying the D-I era record for career points.
San Antonio surpassed 1,000 points for her career at Oregon, scoring a game-high 18 to become the first Lope this season and third player on the squad to have 1,000 career points. Brown and graduate Nneka Obiazor reached the milestone last season.
GCU is second in the WAC for scoring defense, allowing 59.5 points per game while totaling 41 steals (10.3 per game) and forcing 75 turnovers (18.8 per game).
Head coach Molly Miller ranks fifth among active coaches in winning percentage (.834) with nine or more seasons of coaching. She trails only Geno Auriemma (UConn), Kim Caldwell (Tennessee), Kim Mulkey (LSU) and Jeff Hans (Northern Kentucky).

LAST TIME THEY MET

The Lopes fell to Liberty last December in the teams' first-ever meeting in Lynchburg. It was the first of two WAC/CUSA initiative games of the season.
The loss snapped a six-game winning streak for the Lopes, and the 13-point deficit proved to be the largest margin of defeat for GCU this season.
Trinity San Antonio dished out three assists and scored nine points while graduate Sydney Erikstrup had eight points and two boards. Liberty made 8 of 13 (61.5%) from beyond the arc and shot 50% from the field in the first quarter to take a 21-11 lead.

SCOUTING THE FLAMES

Liberty heads west for its third road game of the season. It is the second of two WAC/CUSA initiative games, with the Flames defeating California Baptist 72-44 on Nov. 9.
The Flames rank 11th in the country and first in Conference USA in 3-point shooting percentage with a 41.5% clip from beyond the arc.
Bella Smuda ranks first in the conference in blocks per game (2.4) and is second in total blocks (12) this season.
Smuda also leads the squad with 13.2 points per game and is pulling down a team-high 7.2 rebounds per contest.

WHAT'S NEXT?

GCU plays host to the Talking Stick Resort Thanksgiving Classic on Friday and Saturday with two games per day starting at noon (Phoenix time).
The Lopes will face UC Santa Barbara on Friday at 2:30 p.m. and East Texas A&M on Saturday at 2:30 p.m.
East Texas A&M will take on Seattle U at noon Friday while Seattle U will play UC Santa Barbara in the first game Saturday at noon.