Upcoming Event: Women's Basketball at South Carolina on November 3, 2025 at TBA
W Basketball
TBA
at South Carolina
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Sunday, December 8
Phoenix, Ariz.
1 p.m.
Grand Canyon
7-2,0-0WAC
76
vs
62
Utah State
1-9,0-0Mountain West
1
2
3
4
F
Utah St.
11
17
15
19
62
Grand Canyon
24
12
13
27
76
Photo by: David Kadlubowski
GCU pulls away twice for 5th consecutive win
12/8/2024 2:30:00 PM | Women's Basketball, Paul Coro
With 53% shooting, Lopes put 5 scorers in double figures
For where Grand Canyon women's basketball is rising as a program, there is a standard that can make even a double-digit win seem not as unfulfilling.
After taking a 16-point, first-quarter lead, GCU defeated Utah State 76-62 at home Sunday and left Global Credit Union Arena with the physical and emotional tolls of a five-game, 12-day winning streak showing.
With three rotation players out injured and graduate forward Laura Erikstrup playing through illness for Thursday's win at Arizona and Sunday's win, the Lopes (7-2) still delivered satisfying numbers to pull away from the Aggies twice with 53% shooting and only three steals by a Utah State team averaging four times that to rank 28th nationally.
"Taking care of the ball and sharing it was still good," GCU head coach Molly Miller said after her team assisted on 21 of 30 baskets. "It was just some of the energy and intensity that we usually show was lacking. Probably a little predictable. But in that predictability, you have to understand what it looks like to not be flat. That's where growth comes in, and I think they recognize it."
GCU expected more of what it did in the first quarter against Utah State (1-9), which trailed by 19 in the second quarter and pulled within four points early in the fourth quarter.
Erikstrup scored 11 of her 15 points in the fourth quarter, when she went 5 for 5 with a jumper and four layups that included a 3-point play for a 62-50 lead with 4:49 to go. The 6-foot-2 forward tallied double-digit points for the fifth consecutive game after never doing so in more than two consecutive games previously in her 123-game career.
Miller emphasized how the team needs to empty whatever is in the tank, and Erikstrup was emblematic of that with 15 points, six rebounds, a blocked shot and a steal in 23 minutes while feeling ill.
"Laura is the epitome of 'Leave it out on the floor,' " Miller said. "She's been really sick, so the fact that she can dig deep and find a way to keep producing at a high level where her high motor constantly goes is a testament to her approach mentally to each game."
The Lopes built a 20-6 start with senior guard Alyssa Durazo-Frescas making three consecutive 3-pointers on her 13-point day. Durazo-Frescas, now shooting 45% from 3-point range, and graduate forward Tiarra Brown, who scored the team high and her season high with 18 points, each played all 40 minutes.
Graduate forward Nneka Obiazor, who scored 15 points in a season-high 20 reserve minutes, helped push the GCU lead to 30-11 less than two minutes into the second quarter, but the Lopes went 1 for 11 the rest of the quarter against Utah State's changing defenses.
Once the Aggies hit foul trouble, GCU did more damage in the paint with second-chance points, rim attacks and drawing fouls for 12-of-13 free throw shooting.
"We did a good job of being strong and then buying in when we needed to," Obiazor said. "We were honing in on defending because that was something we needed to work on coming into this game. We know we have the talent, but defense is something we need to forever be fixated on.
"(Miller) did a good job at halftime of reminding us that we can play to any potential. We just need to buy into one another and hit the open person."
Lopes junior guard Trinity San Antonio only played 18 minutes because of foul trouble, but she still delivered eight assists to go with 10 points. Her 6.1 assist average for the season ranks in the top 15 nationally.
Utah State committed 21 turnovers, the second-highest GCU opponent total of the season. The Lopes drew Aggies shot clock violations three times, and Brown snagged a team-high three steals.
An Obiazor fastbreak layup put GCU ahead 64-50 with 4:15 to go, but a 4-point play reinvigorated the Aggies for the stretch. Utah State typically relies on 3-pointers (9 of 26), but it was 13 for 20 from inside the arc.
"We're potentially playing to the level of our opponent," Miller said. "We played really well against Arizona, and now we weren't as sharp."
GCU takes a break from the action for finals week before returning to Global Credit Union Arena at 6 p.m. Saturday against Westcliff.
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After taking a 16-point, first-quarter lead, GCU defeated Utah State 76-62 at home Sunday and left Global Credit Union Arena with the physical and emotional tolls of a five-game, 12-day winning streak showing.
With three rotation players out injured and graduate forward Laura Erikstrup playing through illness for Thursday's win at Arizona and Sunday's win, the Lopes (7-2) still delivered satisfying numbers to pull away from the Aggies twice with 53% shooting and only three steals by a Utah State team averaging four times that to rank 28th nationally.
"Taking care of the ball and sharing it was still good," GCU head coach Molly Miller said after her team assisted on 21 of 30 baskets. "It was just some of the energy and intensity that we usually show was lacking. Probably a little predictable. But in that predictability, you have to understand what it looks like to not be flat. That's where growth comes in, and I think they recognize it."
GCU expected more of what it did in the first quarter against Utah State (1-9), which trailed by 19 in the second quarter and pulled within four points early in the fourth quarter.Erikstrup scored 11 of her 15 points in the fourth quarter, when she went 5 for 5 with a jumper and four layups that included a 3-point play for a 62-50 lead with 4:49 to go. The 6-foot-2 forward tallied double-digit points for the fifth consecutive game after never doing so in more than two consecutive games previously in her 123-game career.
Miller emphasized how the team needs to empty whatever is in the tank, and Erikstrup was emblematic of that with 15 points, six rebounds, a blocked shot and a steal in 23 minutes while feeling ill.
"Laura is the epitome of 'Leave it out on the floor,' " Miller said. "She's been really sick, so the fact that she can dig deep and find a way to keep producing at a high level where her high motor constantly goes is a testament to her approach mentally to each game."
The Lopes built a 20-6 start with senior guard Alyssa Durazo-Frescas making three consecutive 3-pointers on her 13-point day. Durazo-Frescas, now shooting 45% from 3-point range, and graduate forward Tiarra Brown, who scored the team high and her season high with 18 points, each played all 40 minutes.Graduate forward Nneka Obiazor, who scored 15 points in a season-high 20 reserve minutes, helped push the GCU lead to 30-11 less than two minutes into the second quarter, but the Lopes went 1 for 11 the rest of the quarter against Utah State's changing defenses.
Once the Aggies hit foul trouble, GCU did more damage in the paint with second-chance points, rim attacks and drawing fouls for 12-of-13 free throw shooting.
"We did a good job of being strong and then buying in when we needed to," Obiazor said. "We were honing in on defending because that was something we needed to work on coming into this game. We know we have the talent, but defense is something we need to forever be fixated on.
"(Miller) did a good job at halftime of reminding us that we can play to any potential. We just need to buy into one another and hit the open person."
Lopes junior guard Trinity San Antonio only played 18 minutes because of foul trouble, but she still delivered eight assists to go with 10 points. Her 6.1 assist average for the season ranks in the top 15 nationally.Utah State committed 21 turnovers, the second-highest GCU opponent total of the season. The Lopes drew Aggies shot clock violations three times, and Brown snagged a team-high three steals.
An Obiazor fastbreak layup put GCU ahead 64-50 with 4:15 to go, but a 4-point play reinvigorated the Aggies for the stretch. Utah State typically relies on 3-pointers (9 of 26), but it was 13 for 20 from inside the arc.
"We're potentially playing to the level of our opponent," Miller said. "We played really well against Arizona, and now we weren't as sharp."
GCU takes a break from the action for finals week before returning to Global Credit Union Arena at 6 p.m. Saturday against Westcliff.
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Team Stats
USU
GCU
FG%
.478
.526
3FG%
.346
.308
FT%
.563
.923
RB
24
25
TO
21
13
STL
4
10
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
18
FGM
8
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
15
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Pts
15
FGM
7
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Pts
13
FGM
4
3FGM
3
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
G/F
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's Basketball
G
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