Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball at Baylor on October 10, 2025 at 2 p.m. (MST)
M Basketball
2 p.m. (MST)
at Baylor
.png&width=100&type=webp)
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Photo by: David Kadlubowski
Drew makes Coach of the Year watch list
2/23/2024 10:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
With GCU at 24-3, Lopes leader joins 16 others as award finalists
Grand Canyon head coach Bryce Drew was recognized as an elite college basketball coach Friday when the Atlanta Tipoff Club named him to the 15-man Werner Ladder Naismith Men's Coach of the Year Late Season Watch List.
In his fourth season at the helm of GCU, Drew has led the Lopes to a 24-3 record this season. That gives GCU the second-best winning percentage in the nation (.889) and ties the Lopes for fewest losses in the nation.
At 14-2 in conference play, GCU also has a 1 1/2-game lead for the WAC regular-season title with four games remaining before the WAC Tournament. He has done so with only two roster returnees (Ray Harrison and Gabe McGlothan) who played a full season in 2022-23.
GCU achieved its highest NET ranking in program history, rising to as high as No. 31 in mid-December, and has received AP Top 25 votes for 10 of the past 11 weeks.
Drew is 88-30 (.746) at GCU, where he guided the Lopes to the program's first two NCAA Division I tournament appearances in 2021 and 2023. This is the first time a GCU men's basketball head coach has led teams to at least 23 wins in three consecutive seasons since Ben Lindsey did it from 1977-78 to 1979-80 as an NAIA program.
For his coaching career, Drew is 252-138 (.646) over 12 seasons to average 20 victories per year.
Ten semifinalists for the award will be announced March 15 with the group being narrowed to four finalists on March 25. The Coach of the Year will be announced on April 7 in Phoenix during Final Four weekend.
In his fourth season at the helm of GCU, Drew has led the Lopes to a 24-3 record this season. That gives GCU the second-best winning percentage in the nation (.889) and ties the Lopes for fewest losses in the nation.
At 14-2 in conference play, GCU also has a 1 1/2-game lead for the WAC regular-season title with four games remaining before the WAC Tournament. He has done so with only two roster returnees (Ray Harrison and Gabe McGlothan) who played a full season in 2022-23.
GCU achieved its highest NET ranking in program history, rising to as high as No. 31 in mid-December, and has received AP Top 25 votes for 10 of the past 11 weeks.
Drew is 88-30 (.746) at GCU, where he guided the Lopes to the program's first two NCAA Division I tournament appearances in 2021 and 2023. This is the first time a GCU men's basketball head coach has led teams to at least 23 wins in three consecutive seasons since Ben Lindsey did it from 1977-78 to 1979-80 as an NAIA program.
For his coaching career, Drew is 252-138 (.646) over 12 seasons to average 20 victories per year.
Ten semifinalists for the award will be announced March 15 with the group being narrowed to four finalists on March 25. The Coach of the Year will be announced on April 7 in Phoenix during Final Four weekend.
Werner Ladder Naismith Men's Coach of the Year Late Season Watch List |
|
| Name | School |
| Hubert Davis | North Carolina |
| Bryce Drew | Grand Canyon |
| Anthony Grant | Dayton |
| Dan Hurley | UConn |
| Nate Oats | Alabama |
| T.J. Otzelberger | Iowa State |
| Matt Painter | Purdue |
| Lamont Paris | South Carolina |
| Bruce Pearl | Auburn |
| Richard Pitino | New Mexico |
| Mark Pope | BYU |
| Kelvin Sampson | Houston |
| Josh Schertz | Indiana State |
| Kyle Smith | Washington State |
| Danny Sprinkle | Utah State |
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's BasketballMakaih Williams | Media Availability | 9.3.25
Thursday, September 04
Dusty Stromer | Media Availability | 9.3.25
Thursday, September 04
Kaleb Smith | Media Availability | 9.3.25
Thursday, September 04
Non-Conference Schedule Release | Men's Basketball
Monday, August 04