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
Friday, March 15
Las Vegas, Nev.
6 p.m.
Grand Canyon
28-4,17-3WAC
80
vs
72
Seattle U
19-14,11-9WAC
1
2
F
Seattle U
34
38
72
Grand Canyon
32
48
80
Photo by: David Kadlubowski
Defense, Grant-Foster's 28 earn WAC title game spot
3/15/2024 10:45:00 PM | Men's Basketball, Paul Coro
GCU reaches 5th championship in 6 tourneys, play No. 3 seed UT Arlington
LAS VEGAS – Grand Canyon senior guard Tyon Grant-Foster had not played under the postseason's bright lights since three years ago this month, but he shined on that stage Friday night with scoring that could illuminate a casino.
But even with the astounding story of Grant-Foster returning from a two-year absence for heart surgeries to be a WAC Player of the Year, his 28-point WAC Tournament debut would not have been enough by itself for the Lopes to put away Seattle U in an 80-72 semifinal win at purple-plastered Orleans Arena.
To reach Saturday's 8:30 p.m. WAC Tournament championship game against No. 3 seed UT Arlington (20-13), which beat No. 2 seed Tarleton State 87-84 later Friday, the Lopes needed every morsel of experience, teamwork and grit that has made them a 28-4 team, the winningest one in GCU's 11-year Division I era.
It took defenders chasing Seattle U shooters over every spot of the 3-point arc, limiting the Redhawks to six 3-pointers.
It took graduate power forward Gabe McGlothan nearly going two games without a made basket but delivering a game-high nine rebounds and a clutch putback for a 72-65 lead with 2:40 to go.
It was Grant-Foster protecting a late lead by diving on the floor for a loose ball, which was created by McGlothan switching onto Seattle U guard Cameron Tyson.
It was the Lopes' calm, cool and collected composure to go from 11-for-20 free throw shooting to ending the game with 12 consecutive made free throws that sent GCU to its fifth title game in the last six WAC Tournaments.
"Trust was a big thing," Lopes head coach Bryce Drew said. "They trusted each other. There were a lot of times in that game that if they weren't together, it would've showed.
"There was just a will power to fight through screens and not quit when they got hit, to guard the screen, then guard the shot, then guard the dribble. And then sometimes they responded with great plays at the rim. Not just their first efforts, but their second and third efforts were really good."
GCU had been in similar crunch-time situations against Seattle U, taking one of their four losses at Redhawk Center when the Lopes lost a lead in the final minute. A 14-point lead slipped away at home for GCU to need overtime to beat Seattle U in Phoenix.
This time, with thousands of Lope Nation fans enveloping the court, GCU proved clutch over the final six minutes. The Lopes had spent the previous four minutes unable to shake Seattle U outside of a one-possession game, but also never lost its lead.
Ahead 63-61, the Lopes shut out the Redhawks for three minutes, denying scores on three offensive rebounds in a half that also included Seattle U going without a made field goal for an earlier six-minute stretch.
GCU then put the game away with the next four baskets coming from four players – drives by junior guard Ray Harrison and Grant-Foster, a 3-pointer by graduate guard Jovan Blacksher Jr. and McGlothan's follow for a 72-65 lead with 2:40 to go.
"That's what has made us different all year this whole year – just being able to have so many different weapons that on any given night, you have to respect whether it's me, him, Gabe, Lok (Wur), anybody," said Harrison, who tallied 17 points and four assists with 8-for-8 free throw shooting.
Grant-Foster started the season with a career-high 30 points and is challenging that number regularly of late with 29 points on Senior Night and 28 on Friday night, the first conference tournament game of his career. He did not play in Kansas' lone Big 12 Tournament game in 2021.
"It felt real good just to be back out there, especially with this team and this coaching staff because of how much they believed in me and they allowed me to come here and play basketball the way I know how to play basketball," Grant-Foster said. "They really took me in."
The 6-foot-7 guard went fluidly between scoring levels, knocking down 3-pointers, pulling up in the mid-range, scoring or drawing fouls on drives and throwing down an alleyoop. The WAC scoring champion was part of a GCU offense that went from taking 14 of its 29 first-half shots from 3-point range to only attempting seven in the second half, when the Lopes shot 54% from the field and reached the bonus situation with 13:34 remaining by attacking the lane more.
After his semifinal stardom was done, Grant-Foster passed on reflecting further about his journey from being rushed to the hospital of his DePaul debut in November 2021, leading to doctors to say he could not play basketball for 16 months.
Sitting by his side in the postgame press conference, Harrison quickly interjected, "I'll talk about it. He's special, as y'all can see and as he has shown all year. We're just glad to have him."
Defensively, GCU held Seattle U to 37% shooting from the field in the second half and 6-for-20 shooting on 3s for the game. Tyson, No. 3 among active Division I players for 3s, went 2 for 8 on 3s against Harrison and others blanketing him.
The Redhawks were led by guard Alex Schumacher's 21 points, but he needed 18 field goal attempts and 10 free throw attempts to get there. He made seven assists but also had five turnovers.
"I really want to credit our guys for how hard they played on defense," Drew said. "Seattle is such a hard cover with how much movement they have and different actions and such prolific shooters. These guys had to be on high alert all night, and I'm really proud of their defensive effort."
The Lopes won the regular-season series against UT Arlington, beating the Mavericks 76-69 at home on Dec. 2 and winning at UT Arlington 67-61 on Jan. 27.
But even with the astounding story of Grant-Foster returning from a two-year absence for heart surgeries to be a WAC Player of the Year, his 28-point WAC Tournament debut would not have been enough by itself for the Lopes to put away Seattle U in an 80-72 semifinal win at purple-plastered Orleans Arena.
To reach Saturday's 8:30 p.m. WAC Tournament championship game against No. 3 seed UT Arlington (20-13), which beat No. 2 seed Tarleton State 87-84 later Friday, the Lopes needed every morsel of experience, teamwork and grit that has made them a 28-4 team, the winningest one in GCU's 11-year Division I era.
It took defenders chasing Seattle U shooters over every spot of the 3-point arc, limiting the Redhawks to six 3-pointers.
It took graduate power forward Gabe McGlothan nearly going two games without a made basket but delivering a game-high nine rebounds and a clutch putback for a 72-65 lead with 2:40 to go.
It was Grant-Foster protecting a late lead by diving on the floor for a loose ball, which was created by McGlothan switching onto Seattle U guard Cameron Tyson.
It was the Lopes' calm, cool and collected composure to go from 11-for-20 free throw shooting to ending the game with 12 consecutive made free throws that sent GCU to its fifth title game in the last six WAC Tournaments.
"Trust was a big thing," Lopes head coach Bryce Drew said. "They trusted each other. There were a lot of times in that game that if they weren't together, it would've showed.
"There was just a will power to fight through screens and not quit when they got hit, to guard the screen, then guard the shot, then guard the dribble. And then sometimes they responded with great plays at the rim. Not just their first efforts, but their second and third efforts were really good."
GCU had been in similar crunch-time situations against Seattle U, taking one of their four losses at Redhawk Center when the Lopes lost a lead in the final minute. A 14-point lead slipped away at home for GCU to need overtime to beat Seattle U in Phoenix.This time, with thousands of Lope Nation fans enveloping the court, GCU proved clutch over the final six minutes. The Lopes had spent the previous four minutes unable to shake Seattle U outside of a one-possession game, but also never lost its lead.
Ahead 63-61, the Lopes shut out the Redhawks for three minutes, denying scores on three offensive rebounds in a half that also included Seattle U going without a made field goal for an earlier six-minute stretch.
GCU then put the game away with the next four baskets coming from four players – drives by junior guard Ray Harrison and Grant-Foster, a 3-pointer by graduate guard Jovan Blacksher Jr. and McGlothan's follow for a 72-65 lead with 2:40 to go.
"That's what has made us different all year this whole year – just being able to have so many different weapons that on any given night, you have to respect whether it's me, him, Gabe, Lok (Wur), anybody," said Harrison, who tallied 17 points and four assists with 8-for-8 free throw shooting.
Grant-Foster started the season with a career-high 30 points and is challenging that number regularly of late with 29 points on Senior Night and 28 on Friday night, the first conference tournament game of his career. He did not play in Kansas' lone Big 12 Tournament game in 2021."It felt real good just to be back out there, especially with this team and this coaching staff because of how much they believed in me and they allowed me to come here and play basketball the way I know how to play basketball," Grant-Foster said. "They really took me in."
The 6-foot-7 guard went fluidly between scoring levels, knocking down 3-pointers, pulling up in the mid-range, scoring or drawing fouls on drives and throwing down an alleyoop. The WAC scoring champion was part of a GCU offense that went from taking 14 of its 29 first-half shots from 3-point range to only attempting seven in the second half, when the Lopes shot 54% from the field and reached the bonus situation with 13:34 remaining by attacking the lane more.
After his semifinal stardom was done, Grant-Foster passed on reflecting further about his journey from being rushed to the hospital of his DePaul debut in November 2021, leading to doctors to say he could not play basketball for 16 months.
Sitting by his side in the postgame press conference, Harrison quickly interjected, "I'll talk about it. He's special, as y'all can see and as he has shown all year. We're just glad to have him."
Defensively, GCU held Seattle U to 37% shooting from the field in the second half and 6-for-20 shooting on 3s for the game. Tyson, No. 3 among active Division I players for 3s, went 2 for 8 on 3s against Harrison and others blanketing him.
The Redhawks were led by guard Alex Schumacher's 21 points, but he needed 18 field goal attempts and 10 free throw attempts to get there. He made seven assists but also had five turnovers.
"I really want to credit our guys for how hard they played on defense," Drew said. "Seattle is such a hard cover with how much movement they have and different actions and such prolific shooters. These guys had to be on high alert all night, and I'm really proud of their defensive effort."
The Lopes won the regular-season series against UT Arlington, beating the Mavericks 76-69 at home on Dec. 2 and winning at UT Arlington 67-61 on Jan. 27.
Team Stats
SU
GCU
FG%
.421
.455
3FG%
.300
.333
FT%
.900
.719
RB
34
35
TO
14
11
STL
5
7
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
28
FGM
9
3FGM
3
FTM
7
Pts
17
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
8
Pts
9
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
F
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