Tangle with Tarleton State touts title implications

Thursday, Feb. 22 \| 5 p.m. (Phoenix time) \| Wisdom Gym \| Stephenville, Texas

	GRAND CANYON LOPES (24-2, 14-1 WAC)	at	TARLETON STATE TEXANS (18-7, 11-3 WAC)

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STEPHENVILLE, Texas – Accountability can be one of the most difficult tasks for coaches to maintain over the course of a season.

Grand Canyon coaches have done it well for the Lopes to hold the nation's best record at 24-2, but they get some help this week with a Thursday night game at GCU's main WAC challenger, Tarleton State.

The Lopes (24-2, 14-1 WAC) take a two-game lead in the conference standings' loss column to Stephenville, where the Texans (18-7, 11-3 WAC) are 8-2 this season at old-school Wisdom Gym with its 2,400-person capacity.

GCU thumped Tarleton State 74-48 in the teams' first meeting this season, but the returning Lopes recall how terribly last season's visit to Tarleton State went. The Texans led by as much as 33 points and won 81-62.

"It's just the motivation for this year – the championship and raising some banners in the rafters," Lopes graduate power forward Gabe McGlothan said. "If you look at last year's team, it's a whole different squad, so it's a whole different situation. I don't want to carry that energy and that weight (from last season's loss) with this group of guys. I trust every single one of them, so they don't have to bear the burden that some of us took last year."

Phoenix, AZ jan. 13, 2024 GCU dominates Tarleton State with a 74-48 win at Global Credit Union Arena in Phoenix. David Kadlubowski/GCU

Phoenix, AZ jan. 13, 2024 GCU dominates Tarleton State with a 74-48 win at Global Credit Union Arena in Phoenix. David Kadlubowski/GCU

GCU has won a share of the WAC regular-season title and been to two NCAA tournaments in the past three seasons but is seeking its first outright WAC championship. The Lopes appear even closer to securing the WAC Tournament top seed because of their massive lead in the WAC Resume Seeding System that determines seeding.

Tarleton State is ineligible for the NCAA tournament because it is in the last year of its four-year Division I transition period, but the Texans will play in the WAC Tournament.

"It makes us continue to stay locked in," GCU junior guard Ray Harrison said of Tarleton State's standings proximity. "We know that we can't let up any because they are only two games behind. It helps us stay more focused."

Playing the team with the WAC's third-best field goal and free throw shooting percentages, the Lopes were pressed in practices this week to raise their defensive level from recent games. GCU defeated California Baptist on Saturday night despite allowing the Lancers to shoot 48% from the field without the Lancers' WAC-leading scorer, Dominique Daniels Jr.

"Our ball screen coverage and our defending the basketball is something that we're working on and it's got to get better," Lopes head coach Bryce Drew said. "We need guys who can stop the ball and can stop them in a ball screen.

"Tarleton is playing really well right now. They'll be back home, so we're going to have to play at a high level."

Part of how Drew tries to maintain GCU's defense is by playing some of its players even after they draw two first-half fouls. According to kenpom.com, Drew is No. 24 for use of players in the first half after they get a second foul.

"I've just always had the philosophy that when I had I had two fouls I wanted to play," said Drew, a former Valparaiso star and six-year NBA player. "I tried to be more careful out there when I got two. With these guys, the same thing. I want our best players on the floor and they just have to be smart when they get their fouls and how they get them."

Lope tracks

Graduate power forward Gabe McGlothan needs four rebounds to reach 1,000 career rebounds. He ranks 13th nationally among active players for career rebounds.
McGlothan also needs 13 points to pass Kenny Archbold for ninth place on the program's all-time scoring list.
Graduate point guard Jovan Blacksher Jr. needs five points to pass Chad Briscoe for seventh place on the program's all-time scoring list.
Junior guard Ray Harrison ranks 17th nationally for career scoring average (16.6) among active Division I players.
Senior guard Tyon Grant-Foster ranks 17th nationally for free throws made (142) and 56th for points per game (18.9).
The Lopes' 14-game winning streak from Nov. 25 to Jan. 18 is tied for the third-longest in the nation this season. It was the Lopes' longest winning streak since 1978-79.
Their current seven-game winning streak is tied for the fifth-longest active winning streak in the nation. Tarleton's six-game winning streak is its longest ever in WAC play.
The Lopes rank in the national top 25 for free throws made per game (fourth, 19.21, blocks per game (15th, 5.3), scoring margin (16th, plus-13.0 per game) and rebounding margin (23rd, plus-6.8 per game).
Tarleton State leads the WAC in steals per game (9.0) and has the third-best field goal percentage (45.0%) and free throw percentage (74.4%) in the conference.
In August, Tarleton State broke ground on a $110 million arena that will hold 8,000 people for basketball games. Until then, the Texans play in Wisdom Gym and rank last in the WAC for attendance at 1,408 per home game.
Tarleton State 6-foot-6 senior forward Jakorie Smith ranks fifth in the WAC for scoring at 16.1 points per game and fourth for steals at 1.7 per game. Since being held to seven points at GCU on Jan. 13, Smith is averaging 18.9 points per game.
Texans senior forward KiAndre Giddy, at 6 feet 6, has the nation's ninth-best offensive rebounds average (3.9 per game).
Tarelton State guard Lue Williams is averaging 20.5 points with 58% shooting from the field during the six-game winning streak.

WAC Resume Seeding System (updated Feb. 18)
Rank	Team	Record (WAC only)	WAC points
1.	GCU	24-2 (14-1)	8.44
2.	Tarleton State	18-7 (11-3)	2.77
3.	Seattle U	16-10 (9-6)	0.89
4.	UT Arlington	13-13 (8-7)	-1.18
5.	Stephen F. Austin	14-11 (7-7)	-1.58
6.	Utah Valley	12-14 (7-8)	-1.78
7.	California Baptist	14-11 (7-7)	-2.07
8.	Abilene Christian	10-15 (5-9)	-4.13
9.	Utah Tech	10-16 (6-9)	-4.35
10.	Southern Utah	9-17 (4-11)	-5.94
11.	UT Rio Grande Valley	6-19 (2-12)	-8.84

The WAC Resume Seeding System will determine seeding for the eight-team WAC Tournament. The top two seeds will receive first- and second-round byes. The third and fourth seeds will receive first-round byes.

Thursday, Feb. 22 | 5 p.m. (Phoenix time) | Wisdom Gym | Stephenville, Texas

Lope tracks

WAC Resume Seeding System (updated Feb. 18)

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Players Mentioned

Jovan Blacksher Jr.

Tyon Grant-Foster

Ray Harrison

Gabe McGlothan

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