Pivotal road stretch lies ahead at Utah Tech, California Baptist

Thursday, February 15

St. George, Utah

7 p.m. MST

Grand Canyon

Utah Tech

Pivotal road stretch lies ahead at Utah Tech, California Baptist

2/14/2024 11:21:00 AM | Women's Basketball

GCU faces top-4 WAC teams with 7 games reamining in regular season

By: Nick Macdonald


Grand Canyon Lopes (20-4, 12-1 WAC)	at	Utah Tech Trailblazers (14-10, 8-5 WAC)	California Baptist Lancers (19-2, 11-1 WAC)
		Thursday, Feb. 15 7 p.m. (MST)	Saturday, Feb. 17 2 p.m. (MST)
Game Notes		Watch Live Stats	Watch Live Stats

THIS WEEK

The Lopes take on a two-game road stretch this week, beginning Thursday evening at Utah Tech and concluding Saturday afternoon at California Baptist.
Thursday's contest in St. George, Utah, is a the second game between the Trailblazers and Lopes this season. GCU prevailed 73-48 in Phoenix on Jan. 6. Saturday's game against the Lancers is the teams' first meeting of the season, with CBU being the last remaining team that GCU has yet to face in WAC play.
With seven games remaining, the Lopes hit a pivotal stretch of their schedule. Utah Tech enters fourth in the WAC standings, and California Baptist is second overall and first in the WAC Resume Seeding System.

STORYLINES

GCU boasts one of the best defenses in the country, holding opponents to 54.7 points per game, ranking 12th in the nation in scoring defense. It's 36.9 field goal percentage defense is 32nd in the country, while it's 29.2 three point percentage defense is second in the WAC. The Lopes also average 10.2 steals per game, second best in the conference.
The Lopes have held its opponents to 31% or less from behind the three point line in five straight games. In that span, opponents are averaging 24% from behind the arc. Both Utah Tech and California Baptist enter the weekend averaging above 30% from three.
Senior forward Olivia Lane recorded her third double-double of the season at Southern Utah Feb. 10. She notched 14 points and 10 boards, her second against the Thunderbirds this season. Lane has a team-high 152 rebounds, 80 of which have come on the offensive glass.
Junior guard Naudia Evans continues to shine from outside the three point line, shooting 39.2% from three with 14 games with multiple three pointers made.
Head Coach Molly Miller ranks fourth among active coaches in winning % (.845) with 8+ seasons of coaching. She trails only Geno Auriemma (UConn), Kim Caldwell (Marshall), and Kim Mulkey (LSU).
The Lopes are 48-11 at Global Credit Union Arena since Molly Miller took the helm in 2020. GCU has won at least 12 games at home in each of her three seasons in Phoenix, including a season-high 13 last year. GCU's win over UT Arlington Jan. 27 marked the fifth straight season with double digit wins at home.

CREATING HER OWN LANE

Senior forward Olivia Lane leads the team with 152 total rebounds and a rebounding margin of 6.3 boards per game. Of her total rebounds, 80 have come on the offensive glass, attributing to GCU's second best rebounding margin in the WAC (3.8).
Lane has three double-doubles on the season and 17 games with five or more rebounds, including a streak of 13 straight games with five or more boards. In her last four games, she is averaging 11.8 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 1.3 assists while shooting 13-of-15 from the free throw line.

EFFICIENT FROM THE FLOOR

The Lopes rank first in the WAC with a field goal percentage of 44.2%. It has never shot under 30% on the season, with a season low 30.8% against Oregon back on Nov. 16. GCU has shot under 40% only seven times this season and has shot above 40% in three of its past four games.
GCU has recorded seven games above 40% behind the arc, going 7-0 in such contests. It is 15-1 when shooting 30% or higher, with a 5-3 record when shooting below 30%. Six Lopes are shooting above 30% on the season, led by junior guard Naudia Evans, who has made a team-best 47 threes in 23 games played.

TOP-15 SCORING DEFENSE

The Lopes have held opposing offenses in check for most of the season, allowing 54.7 points per game to rank 12th in the country and first in the WAC.
GCU has held opponents to 50 points or less nine times this season. During its six game winning streak from Nov. 24 to Dec. 17, the Lopes defense allowed an average 49.3 points per contest. In its eight game winning streak Dec. 27 to Jan. 20, it kept opponents to 56.4 points per game and 25.3% from three point range (43-of-166).
The Lopes held UT Arlington to 35 points Jan. 27, the fewest points allowed under Molly Miller's tenure (since 2020-21 season). The 35 points were the fewest since allowing only 34 vs. New Mexico State Feb. 10, 2018. It held Seattle U to 40 points in the very next game (Feb. 1), the 75 combined total points a season-low in back-to-back games this season.
It has allowed only 70 or more points twice this season and only once in regulation.

NO. 15 IN COLLEGE INSIDER MID-MAJOR POLL

GCU ranks No. 15 in the most recent College Insider Mid Major Poll. The Lopes are one of two teams from the WAC ranked in the poll, joining California Baptist at No. 17. GCU is the only team from the WAC to be ranked in every poll released by College Insider this season.

BOOSTED FREE THROW PRODUCTION

The Lopes ranked 11th in the conference with a 67.2% free throw mark last season, but have boosted its free throw production with new additions to the squad who have performed well at the line in their careers.
GCU has shot 70% or better from the free throw line 13 times this season. During the team's six game winning streak from Nov. 24 to Dec. 17, it made 71-of-92 attempts (77.1%). In its eight game winning streak from Dec. 27 to Jan. 20, it made 101-of-142 attempts (71.1%).
Of the 14 player roster, eight shot 70% or better in 2022-23 with three players shooting 80% or higher. Junior Naudia Evans (82%) and Lane (80.9%) ranked fifth and sixth, respectively, in the WAC in free throw percentage while senior Anna Ostlie shot 80.5% from the charity stripe her junior year at Boise State.
Graduate Shay Fano (75.6% / Utah Valley) and junior Trinity San Antonio (75% / California Baptist) both ranked in the top-three of their respective WAC schools, while graduate Sydney Erikstrup shot 74.1% at Arizona State and junior Callie Cooper 72% at UC Santa Barbara.
The Lopes are shooting 71% from the line in WAC play, with four players shooting above 73% with 20 or more attempts. Evans is 28-of-34 from the line (82.4%) against WAC teams this season.