Completed Event: Women's Basketball at #2 South Carolina on November 3, 2025 , Loss , 54, to, 94
W Basketball
at #2 South Carolina
L 54-94
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Saturday, November 8
Phoenix, Ariz.
6 p.m.
Grand Canyon
vs
Idaho State
Photo by: David Kadlubowski
Home opener puts growth on display Saturday
11/7/2025 10:42:00 AM | Women's Basketball, Paul Coro
Scrimmages, opener tested GCU vs. Power 4 opponents in Gandy's 1st year
The Grand Canyon women's basketball team possesses the right materials to follow the drafts of an ideal architect.
The Lopes' construction project takes time when done right, but an early look at first-year head coach Winston Gandy's work will be unveiled at 6 p.m. Saturday with GCU's home opener against Idaho State at Global Credit Union Arena.
Gandy was hired as Lopes head coach in March and went to work on the program's framework with an all-new coaching staff and a roster with two returnees. GCU built it through the summer and held inspections with secret scrimmages against USC and Washington before Saturday's bold season opener – a 94-54 loss at No. 2 South Carolina.
"While we may not see it show up in the scoreboard, I think our growth is going to show up where we want it to show up as we get deeper into the season," Gandy said. "Overall, I'm really pleased with where everybody is. I'm really pleased with how they hung in there. A lot of good growth. That was all part of it when you do the scheduling the way we did. It was designed for us to be tested."
For a game aired on Arizona's Family Sports and streamed on Mountain West Network, the Lopes will start a lineup of all-new players that features Mountain West Preseason Newcomer of the Year Chloe Mann. The 5-foot-8 sophomore guard, who transferred from Cincinnati after averaging 8.3 points last season, scored 15 points Monday against the 2025 national runner-up in front of a crowd of 15,601 fans.
Twice, Mann drew fouls while make a 3-point shot, but she also showed an arsenal of threats with drives, stepbacks and pick-and-roll play. She and fellow Preseason All-Mountain West pick, 6-1 junior guard Juliana LaMendola, each picked up two fouls early to hinder GCU's start.
"We were obviously playing a great team so maybe it didn't seem like that from the score, but we took a lot of the things that we learned from exhibition games and that we're going to take into account for Saturday," Mann said. "We're learning to play with each other a lot better."
Another bright spot from Saturday's opener was the play of senior Anisa Jeffries, a versatile 5-foot-11 player who handled point guard at times and finished with 11 points on 5-of-10 shooting with five rebounds.
Jeffries moved from Mexico when school started in September and suffered an ankle sprain early in training to limit her to about a week of practicing with GCU.
"She can play, so it was nice to see her showcase that," Gandy said.
Jeffries started and showed an ability to get to the paint and score on spin moves off either pivot foot. She also scored on a reverse and set up one of the four-point plays with her offensive rebound.
"I learned to trust my teammates more," said Jeffries, who is from Zacatecas in central Mexico. "I think we're a very good team. I learned that we have to communicate more, offensively and defensively.
"The confidence that the staff is giving us is amazing. It's incredible. I feel more confident after the first game."
Graduate guard Ale'jah Douglas, who played on GCU's NCAA Tournament team last season, led the Lopes with 16 points off the bench. The 5-foot-6 guard made three 3-pointers but also made plays with her driving ability and took a charge.
Nearly every GCU player is stepping into a larger role than what she held last season, whether it is coming from another college, a foreign team, a high school or last season's Lopes.
"For players who weren't the No. 1, No. 2 or No. 3 options, now they have the attention of the whole opposing team," Gandy said. "You get the best defender. You get different looks. You get disciplined defenders on you, so you've got to work a little bit harder to get what you watch. That takes some getting used to."
For GCU's home opener, visiting Idaho State was picked to finish fourth in the Big Sky preseason poll with one first-place vote.
The Bengals return four of their top five scorers from last season, featuring senior 5-8 guard Tasia Jordan. In Idaho State's 99-47, season-opening win against Westminster, Jordan tallied 26 points on 11-of-13 shooting. Sophomore 6-1 forward Piper Carlson added an 11-point, 13-rebound line as the Bengals shot 59% from the field.
"We'll have our hands full," Gandy said. "We don't have the teams where we can exhale or let our foot off the gas. Everybody we play, whether it's home or away, we're going to be tested. It's going to take us four or five games to figure out who we are because some of these players have never played this much or been relied on."
The Lopes also will be getting used to their home court, where they are looking forward to playing in front of the Havocs for the first time after two scrimmages without fans and the opener at South Carolina.
"I think our growth happens over a period of time," LaMendola said. "It's not one big jump, and I'm excited to see where it goes. We have to play like a team, be unselfish, be cohesive, play hard and play for our teammates. That's the identity of our team this year."
The Lopes' construction project takes time when done right, but an early look at first-year head coach Winston Gandy's work will be unveiled at 6 p.m. Saturday with GCU's home opener against Idaho State at Global Credit Union Arena.
Gandy was hired as Lopes head coach in March and went to work on the program's framework with an all-new coaching staff and a roster with two returnees. GCU built it through the summer and held inspections with secret scrimmages against USC and Washington before Saturday's bold season opener – a 94-54 loss at No. 2 South Carolina."While we may not see it show up in the scoreboard, I think our growth is going to show up where we want it to show up as we get deeper into the season," Gandy said. "Overall, I'm really pleased with where everybody is. I'm really pleased with how they hung in there. A lot of good growth. That was all part of it when you do the scheduling the way we did. It was designed for us to be tested."
For a game aired on Arizona's Family Sports and streamed on Mountain West Network, the Lopes will start a lineup of all-new players that features Mountain West Preseason Newcomer of the Year Chloe Mann. The 5-foot-8 sophomore guard, who transferred from Cincinnati after averaging 8.3 points last season, scored 15 points Monday against the 2025 national runner-up in front of a crowd of 15,601 fans.
Twice, Mann drew fouls while make a 3-point shot, but she also showed an arsenal of threats with drives, stepbacks and pick-and-roll play. She and fellow Preseason All-Mountain West pick, 6-1 junior guard Juliana LaMendola, each picked up two fouls early to hinder GCU's start.
"We were obviously playing a great team so maybe it didn't seem like that from the score, but we took a lot of the things that we learned from exhibition games and that we're going to take into account for Saturday," Mann said. "We're learning to play with each other a lot better."
Another bright spot from Saturday's opener was the play of senior Anisa Jeffries, a versatile 5-foot-11 player who handled point guard at times and finished with 11 points on 5-of-10 shooting with five rebounds.
Jeffries moved from Mexico when school started in September and suffered an ankle sprain early in training to limit her to about a week of practicing with GCU.
"She can play, so it was nice to see her showcase that," Gandy said.
Jeffries started and showed an ability to get to the paint and score on spin moves off either pivot foot. She also scored on a reverse and set up one of the four-point plays with her offensive rebound."I learned to trust my teammates more," said Jeffries, who is from Zacatecas in central Mexico. "I think we're a very good team. I learned that we have to communicate more, offensively and defensively.
"The confidence that the staff is giving us is amazing. It's incredible. I feel more confident after the first game."
Graduate guard Ale'jah Douglas, who played on GCU's NCAA Tournament team last season, led the Lopes with 16 points off the bench. The 5-foot-6 guard made three 3-pointers but also made plays with her driving ability and took a charge.
Nearly every GCU player is stepping into a larger role than what she held last season, whether it is coming from another college, a foreign team, a high school or last season's Lopes.
"For players who weren't the No. 1, No. 2 or No. 3 options, now they have the attention of the whole opposing team," Gandy said. "You get the best defender. You get different looks. You get disciplined defenders on you, so you've got to work a little bit harder to get what you watch. That takes some getting used to."
For GCU's home opener, visiting Idaho State was picked to finish fourth in the Big Sky preseason poll with one first-place vote.
The Bengals return four of their top five scorers from last season, featuring senior 5-8 guard Tasia Jordan. In Idaho State's 99-47, season-opening win against Westminster, Jordan tallied 26 points on 11-of-13 shooting. Sophomore 6-1 forward Piper Carlson added an 11-point, 13-rebound line as the Bengals shot 59% from the field.
"We'll have our hands full," Gandy said. "We don't have the teams where we can exhale or let our foot off the gas. Everybody we play, whether it's home or away, we're going to be tested. It's going to take us four or five games to figure out who we are because some of these players have never played this much or been relied on."
The Lopes also will be getting used to their home court, where they are looking forward to playing in front of the Havocs for the first time after two scrimmages without fans and the opener at South Carolina.
"I think our growth happens over a period of time," LaMendola said. "It's not one big jump, and I'm excited to see where it goes. We have to play like a team, be unselfish, be cohesive, play hard and play for our teammates. That's the identity of our team this year."
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballMidnight Madness 2025
Monday, October 06
Non-Conference Schedule Release | GCU Women's Basketball
Monday, August 18
Mic'd Up: Sidney Anderson & Karley Johnson | Women's Hoops
Monday, August 11
Mic'd Up: Kaitlyn Elsholz | Women's Hoops
Monday, August 11