Mann's career-high scoring spoiled by Broncos

Sunday, December 14

Phoenix, Ariz.

1 p.m. (MST)

Grand Canyon

1-9,0-0Mountain West

Santa Clara

9-3,0-0WCC

Santa Clara

Grand Canyon

Photo by: David Kadlubowski

12/14/2025 4:25:00 PM | Women's Basketball, Paul Coro

Box Score Photo Gallery

Santa Clara moves to 10-3 by blowing open 3-point game in 4th

By: Paul Coro

The Grand Canyon women's basketball team has spent most of the season challenging opponents, only to have victory slip away nearly every time.

Sunday's game was another yo-yo. Lopes sophomore guard Chloe Mann's career-high 29 points reeled in double-digit deficits twice to challenge Santa Clara before the string snapped in the fourth quarter for GCU's 91-72 loss at Global Credit Union Arena.

Phoenix, AZ Dec. 14, 2025: The Lopes fall to Santa Clara 91-72 at Global Credit Union Arena. David Kadlubowski/GCU

Phoenix, AZ Dec. 14, 2025: The Lopes fall to Santa Clara 91-72 at Global Credit Union Arena. David Kadlubowski/GCU

GCU dropped to 1-9 this season against the nation's 15th-hardest schedule, but it will prefer to take the arduous preparation and go by a new record: 0-0. The Lopes open their first Mountain West season at home Wednesday night against defending conference champion UNLV for the GCU program's first nationally televised broadcast (CBS Sports Network).

"Our whole thing has been not playing in fear of winning or losing," Lopes first-year head coach Winston Gandy said. "Just playing to the best of your ability, possession by possession, second by second and stacking those. For us, we're in much need of a clean slate."

But Gandy also cited the adage that those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.

That was the case with GCU ball security, following up a 26-turnover tally in a winnable home game last Sunday against Saint Mary's with a 23-turnover total Sunday to waste the Lopes' season-best 47.2% team shooting and Mann's sizzling scoring.

After taking its previous five losses by an average of four points, GCU was trialing 67-64 with 7:58 remaining before the Broncos (9-3) put the game away with a 15-2 run.

"They did a good job coming back, but you obviously expend a lot of energy to do that," Gandy said. "That's the most challenging thing with our group – and I'm a part of it – in a sense of not being able to learn either from the person in front of you or previous events.

"When you turn over the ball as much as we did and you get that many fewer attempts at the basket, this is what happens."

Phoenix, AZ Dec. 14, 2025: The Lopes fall to Santa Clara 91-72 at Global Credit Union Arena.

Phoenix, AZ Dec. 14, 2025: The Lopes fall to Santa Clara 91-72 at Global Credit Union Arena.

Santa Clara put six scorers in double figures, but Mann was GCU's only double-digit scorer. In the best scoring stretch of her career, Mann followed up games of 17 and 26 points by making 10 of 15 shots from the field and 7 of 8 at the free throw line for her 29 points Sunday.

Mann made her first nine shots, not missing until a long 3-point attempt late in the third quarter.

"I was just trying to take good shots and taking the shots the coaches want me to take," Mann said.

"Confidence is going up. Obviously, we're not getting the results that we're wanting to get, so it's kind of bittersweet. The good thing is we have a new season coming up. The conference is starting, so hopefully we'll be able to turn it around and take these losses as lessons."

A reverse layup form senior guard Anisa Jeffries gave GCU its last threat, trailing 75-66 with 6:25 remaining. The Lopes did not put a shot on the rim over the next five possessions with three consecutive turnovers sandwiched by two airballs.

After having its highest scoring first half of the season to trail 42-41 at halftime, GCU ended with its lowest-scoring fourth quarter (12 points) since its season-opening loss at No. 3 South Carolina.

Mann committed nine of the team's 23 turnovers, setting a career high for the second consecutive game.

"It's all self-inflicted at the end of the day, so cleaning that up would put us in good shape," Mann said.

Phoenix, AZ Dec. 14, 2025: The Lopes fall to Santa Clara 91-72 at Global Credit Union Arena. David Kadlubowski/GCU

GCU defended Santa Clara leading scorer Maia Jones well, keeping the guard to 2-of-10 shooting. But she contributed 6-of-6 free throw shooting to the Broncos' 25-for-27 accuracy and matched a career high with six steals.

Santa Clara senior power forward Sophie Glancey, who followed first-year head coach Loree Payne from Northern Arizona, also matched a carere high with 13 made free throws on 13 attempts. The 6-foot-2 forward scored 29 points – one shy of her career high.

The Broncos, who make the 10th-least turnovers in the nation, only committed 12 on Sunday. Having nearly half as many turnovers but twice as many offensive rebounds gave Santa Clara 14 more field goal attempts.

"When you're fatigued, your mind starts to go," Gandy said. "You process slower. There's a little bit of miscommunication, where you're thinking somebody is going to do something and they're not quite on their way. Also, people are trying to make plays. But in order to make plays, people have to be in position to finish the plays.

"It's a little disheartening. I hate making the same mistake."

Santa Clara used a 9-0 run to lead 25-15 with 2:20 to go in the first quarter, but the Broncos' penchant for shooting 3s brought misses and allowed GCU back in the game.

The Lopes had a Mann-charged, 10-0 run and later tied the score at 31-31 before junior guard Julianna LaMendola's half-ending 3-pointer cut the Santa Clara lead to 42-41.LaMendola scored six points on 2-of-7 shooting and led GCU with five assists.

The Broncos scored the first 12 points of the second half to lead 54-41, but the Lopes crawled back into the game again by shutting out Santa Clara for 3 1/2 minutes. The fourth quarter started with the Lopes cutting the lead to three twice before fading.

It marked the third consecutive game that Mann was the only Lopes player to reach double-digit scoring. She is averaging 24 points per game in the stretch.

"I saw a lot of people at different times let go of the rope," Gandy said. "That's on me to figure it out who that is, who that isn't. We have to regroup and put together a much better showing here for UNLV on Wednesday."