Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball at Baylor on October 10, 2025 at 2 p.m. (MST)
M Basketball
2 p.m. (MST)
at Baylor
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Grand Canyon University Athletics
Monday, December 30
Phoenix, Ariz.
6 p.m.
Grand Canyon
10-4,0-0WAC
112
vs
66
Bryant
6-9,0-0America East
1
2
F
Bryant
23
43
66
Grand Canyon
61
51
112
Photo by: David Kadlubowski
Williams' career night fuels 46-point rout of Bryant
12/30/2024 11:11:00 PM | Men's Basketball, Paul Coro
GCU guard delivers 31 points, 5 steals off bench for team's D-I era scoring record
Just in time for conference play, Grand Canyon reminded everyone of how they ruled the WAC last season and why they were picked unanimously by opposing conference coaches to win the title again this season.
That message came vehemently in the form of the program's second-greatest blowout of a Division I opponent for the Lopes' fourth consecutive win Monday night. GCU destroyed Bryant with a 61-23 first half on the way to routing the Bulldogs 112-66 at Global Credit Union Arena.
A Lopes 48-12 finish to the first half was charged by a breakout night from GCU sophomore reserve guard Makaih Williams, who set career highs for points and steals before halftime by scoring 24 of his 31 points and snatching four of his five steals.
The outburst for GCU's highest D-I era scoring total came after the Lopes (10-4) shot 28% to beat San Diego on Saturday night in Inglewood, California. Williams went from missing all eight of his shots in that game to outscoring Bryant by himself in Monday night's first half on 8-of-12 shooting.
"Just playing my best," said Williams, whose previous GCU scoring high was 14 points against Stanford last month. "God got me through all of this. I haven't been playing my best recently, but he just brought me through the storm. I just went out there and played. My teammates trusted me, and I just kept going.
"That first 3 in transition, after I seen that go in, I knew it was going to be a good game."
With just one day to prepare for Bryant after returning from California, GCU held a Bulldogs team with the nation's fifth-fastest pace and an 88-point scoring average to 23 first-half points. Bryant (6-9) committed 15 first-half turnovers to the Lopes' two as the Lopes scored their most first-half points (61) in their 12-year Division I era.
A run of three consecutive Bulldogs turnovers broke open the game open in the first half, when GCU turned them into points on back-to-back turnaround jumpers by senior power forward JaKobe Coles and graduate forward Lök Wur's fastbreak layup off a Williams steal. Leading 13-11 after eight minutes, the Lopes outscored the Bulldogs by 36 over the half's final 12 minutes.
GCU scored 37 points off Bryant turnovers in the game, returning to its early-season uptempo for 24 fastbreak points, a season high against a D-I opponent.
"I
t was fun to watch them," Lopes head coach Bryce Drew said. "That Norfolk State game, we were good. I think we were better this half. I thought we were just sensational in that first half. That group that was in with Makaih (Williams), Ray (Harrison), Caleb (Shaw), Lök (Wur) and Duke (Brennan) was just fantastic."
The GCU defense held Bryant's high-scoring arsenal without a made field goal for an eight-minute span of the first half. The Lopes outscored the Bulldogs 23-1 during that timeframe to go ahead 44-13 on a Williams 3 off Wur's assist with 4:53 to go.
The Lopes shot 16 more field goals and 17 more free throws than Bryant because of the extra opportunities created by 22 offensive rebounds and 23 Bulldogs turnovers. It was GCU's highest offensive rebound total since also grabbing 22 in a November 2021 home game against Wyoming. It led to a 35-8 advantage in second-chance points Monday night with Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant sitting courtside.
GCU junior center Duke Brennan led that effort with seven offensive rebounds as part of his 15 boards, one off his career high. With 11 points and the first 10-rebound half of his career, Brennan's first double-double of the season lifted his career-high rebounding average to 8.6 per game.
With America East title contender Bryant shooting a season-low 34.3%, the Lopes set a D-I era program record for rebounds (61) as Brennan outrebounded the Bulldgos' three-man front line by himself and kept other rebound opportunities alive for teammates. Only Florida has grabbed more rebounds (62) in a game against a D-I opponent this season.
"He is just setting the tone with energy," Williams said of Brennan. "(Fifteen rebounds) is amazing. That's crazy. He barely played the second half. That's what we need, really. Everybody on the team has to come in after that and bring the same energy and just keep it going."
GCU's top two scorers came off the bench on a night when graduate swingman Tyon Grant-Foster (12 points, 1 for 13 from the field, 10 for 12 free throws) and senior guard Collin Moore (nine points, three assists, two steals) returned to the starting lineup.
After a 6-for-39 shooting slump over the previous seven games, Williams became the 11th reserve in the nation to score 30 points against a Division I opponent this season. The Lopes' second-leading scorer, Wur, also came off the bench to tally 14 points, eight rebounds, two steals and a blocked shot.
GCU senior guard Ray Harrison tied a career high with four steals and contributed 13 points, thrusting him past GCU assistant director of student-athlete development Jerome Garrison for 11th place on the all-time Lopes scoring list.
"What I loved is when we got a steal, we converted it," Drew said. "We got the ball down quick. We've talked a lot about changing ends faster, and I thought that this was maybe the fastest game that we changed ends to get to the offensive end to score."
Williams was a one-man run when the Lopes were blowing the game open in the first half. As GCU scored 13 unanswered points for a 44-13 lead, Williams scored the last nine starting with a steal and breakaway layup and showing off a repertoire with a driving score, drawing a foul for two free throws and hitting one of his three 3-pointers.
Harrison, Williams and Wur each made three 3s with Wur putting his season 3-point percentage at 47.5%.
Williams was not most proud of his career high for points or steals. His delight came in not making a turnover over his 29 minutes of action. On the flip side, GCU scored 37 points off Bryant's 23 turnovers to help set the Lopes program's D-I era record for scoring in a game (previous was 104 vs. Omaha in a December 2015 overtime game)..
"It just feels great," said Williams, a UT Arlington starter as a freshman last season. "Everybody's out there having fun, playing together as we should. I said earlier in an interview that we're going to jell one of these days. And I feel like today was the starting point of that. We just gotta keep it going from here.
"We have depth. If one person has an off-night, somebody else is going to step up. So we're going to be scary when everybody has a great game."
After reaching 10 nonconference wins for the fourth consecutive season, GCU will start a 16-game WAC schedule at 6 p.m. Saturday with a home game against Southern Utah (8-6).
The Lopes, who are 24-1 at home over the past two seasons, have gone 4-0 against Southern Utah since the Thunderbirds joined the WAC for 2022-23.
That message came vehemently in the form of the program's second-greatest blowout of a Division I opponent for the Lopes' fourth consecutive win Monday night. GCU destroyed Bryant with a 61-23 first half on the way to routing the Bulldogs 112-66 at Global Credit Union Arena.
A Lopes 48-12 finish to the first half was charged by a breakout night from GCU sophomore reserve guard Makaih Williams, who set career highs for points and steals before halftime by scoring 24 of his 31 points and snatching four of his five steals.
The outburst for GCU's highest D-I era scoring total came after the Lopes (10-4) shot 28% to beat San Diego on Saturday night in Inglewood, California. Williams went from missing all eight of his shots in that game to outscoring Bryant by himself in Monday night's first half on 8-of-12 shooting.
"Just playing my best," said Williams, whose previous GCU scoring high was 14 points against Stanford last month. "God got me through all of this. I haven't been playing my best recently, but he just brought me through the storm. I just went out there and played. My teammates trusted me, and I just kept going."That first 3 in transition, after I seen that go in, I knew it was going to be a good game."
With just one day to prepare for Bryant after returning from California, GCU held a Bulldogs team with the nation's fifth-fastest pace and an 88-point scoring average to 23 first-half points. Bryant (6-9) committed 15 first-half turnovers to the Lopes' two as the Lopes scored their most first-half points (61) in their 12-year Division I era.
A run of three consecutive Bulldogs turnovers broke open the game open in the first half, when GCU turned them into points on back-to-back turnaround jumpers by senior power forward JaKobe Coles and graduate forward Lök Wur's fastbreak layup off a Williams steal. Leading 13-11 after eight minutes, the Lopes outscored the Bulldogs by 36 over the half's final 12 minutes.
GCU scored 37 points off Bryant turnovers in the game, returning to its early-season uptempo for 24 fastbreak points, a season high against a D-I opponent.
"I
t was fun to watch them," Lopes head coach Bryce Drew said. "That Norfolk State game, we were good. I think we were better this half. I thought we were just sensational in that first half. That group that was in with Makaih (Williams), Ray (Harrison), Caleb (Shaw), Lök (Wur) and Duke (Brennan) was just fantastic."The GCU defense held Bryant's high-scoring arsenal without a made field goal for an eight-minute span of the first half. The Lopes outscored the Bulldogs 23-1 during that timeframe to go ahead 44-13 on a Williams 3 off Wur's assist with 4:53 to go.
The Lopes shot 16 more field goals and 17 more free throws than Bryant because of the extra opportunities created by 22 offensive rebounds and 23 Bulldogs turnovers. It was GCU's highest offensive rebound total since also grabbing 22 in a November 2021 home game against Wyoming. It led to a 35-8 advantage in second-chance points Monday night with Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant sitting courtside.
GCU junior center Duke Brennan led that effort with seven offensive rebounds as part of his 15 boards, one off his career high. With 11 points and the first 10-rebound half of his career, Brennan's first double-double of the season lifted his career-high rebounding average to 8.6 per game.With America East title contender Bryant shooting a season-low 34.3%, the Lopes set a D-I era program record for rebounds (61) as Brennan outrebounded the Bulldgos' three-man front line by himself and kept other rebound opportunities alive for teammates. Only Florida has grabbed more rebounds (62) in a game against a D-I opponent this season.
"He is just setting the tone with energy," Williams said of Brennan. "(Fifteen rebounds) is amazing. That's crazy. He barely played the second half. That's what we need, really. Everybody on the team has to come in after that and bring the same energy and just keep it going."
GCU's top two scorers came off the bench on a night when graduate swingman Tyon Grant-Foster (12 points, 1 for 13 from the field, 10 for 12 free throws) and senior guard Collin Moore (nine points, three assists, two steals) returned to the starting lineup.
After a 6-for-39 shooting slump over the previous seven games, Williams became the 11th reserve in the nation to score 30 points against a Division I opponent this season. The Lopes' second-leading scorer, Wur, also came off the bench to tally 14 points, eight rebounds, two steals and a blocked shot.
GCU senior guard Ray Harrison tied a career high with four steals and contributed 13 points, thrusting him past GCU assistant director of student-athlete development Jerome Garrison for 11th place on the all-time Lopes scoring list."What I loved is when we got a steal, we converted it," Drew said. "We got the ball down quick. We've talked a lot about changing ends faster, and I thought that this was maybe the fastest game that we changed ends to get to the offensive end to score."
Williams was a one-man run when the Lopes were blowing the game open in the first half. As GCU scored 13 unanswered points for a 44-13 lead, Williams scored the last nine starting with a steal and breakaway layup and showing off a repertoire with a driving score, drawing a foul for two free throws and hitting one of his three 3-pointers.
Harrison, Williams and Wur each made three 3s with Wur putting his season 3-point percentage at 47.5%.
Williams was not most proud of his career high for points or steals. His delight came in not making a turnover over his 29 minutes of action. On the flip side, GCU scored 37 points off Bryant's 23 turnovers to help set the Lopes program's D-I era record for scoring in a game (previous was 104 vs. Omaha in a December 2015 overtime game)..
"It just feels great," said Williams, a UT Arlington starter as a freshman last season. "Everybody's out there having fun, playing together as we should. I said earlier in an interview that we're going to jell one of these days. And I feel like today was the starting point of that. We just gotta keep it going from here."We have depth. If one person has an off-night, somebody else is going to step up. So we're going to be scary when everybody has a great game."
After reaching 10 nonconference wins for the fourth consecutive season, GCU will start a 16-game WAC schedule at 6 p.m. Saturday with a home game against Southern Utah (8-6).
The Lopes, who are 24-1 at home over the past two seasons, have gone 4-0 against Southern Utah since the Thunderbirds joined the WAC for 2022-23.
Team Stats
BRY
GCU
FG%
.343
.410
3FG%
.143
.321
FT%
.593
.795
RB
43
61
TO
23
9
STL
5
15
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
31
FGM
9
3FGM
3
FTM
10
Pts
13
FGM
3
3FGM
3
FTM
4
Pts
12
FGM
1
3FGM
0
FTM
10
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's BasketballG
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