Completed Event: Men's Basketball versus Stetson on December 2, 2025 , Win , 67, to, 45
M Basketball
vs Stetson
W 67-45
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Monday, December 22
Phoenix, Ariz.
6 p.m.
Grand Canyon
8-4,1-0Mountain West
91
vs
78
IU Indy
4-10,0-3Horizon
1
2
F
IU Indy
39
39
78
Grand Canyon
48
43
91
Photo by: David Kadlubowski
Henley career high sparks 3rd straight win
12/22/2025 10:47:00 PM | Men's Basketball, Paul Coro
Moore adds season high to send GCU into Christmas break at 8-4
The Christmas countdown was getting late in the shot clock for Grand Canyon's holiday to-do list when the Lopes played their final pre-break game Monday night against IU Indy.
So they finished decorating Global Credit Union Arena with a festive night, packaging senior guard Jaden Henley's career-high 29 points and graduate guard Brian Moore Jr.'s season's high 17 points to gift a 91-78 win to a winter-break overflow crowd of 7,291 fans at Global Credit Union Arena.
The Lopes (8-4) turned the Jaguars' nation-leading pace and foul rate against them, outscoring IU Indy on fastbreaks by eight (holding the Jaguars 12 below its fastbreak scoring average of 19) and on free throws by 17 (making 26 of 30 attempts) for their highest-scoring game of the season.
"Our guys persevered," GCU head coach Bryce Drew said. "I thought they showed a lot of heart tonight in this game."
Drew said scheduling a rested IU Indy team for Monday after winning an emotional Mountain West debut at Wyoming on Saturday was a mistake, but the Lopes looked neither leg weary or error prone in darting to a 37-22 lead with 13 points from Henley in those first 13 minutes.
The 6-foot-7 guard thrived on drives and fastbreak finishes and continued breaking out of his 3-point shooting slump by hitting a pair of 3s for the second consecutive game.
Henley capped the night by passing the 1,000-point career mark on his final free throw trip, making him one of nine active players who are 6-7 or taller and have at least 1,000 career points and 100 career steals .
"It feels pretty good," Henley said. "All the preparation you put in and all the work shows out here. My teammates trusted me to get me the ball in the right positions and me being able to score."
IU Indy (4-10) was relentlessly committed to its full-court defensive pressure, turning GCU over nine times in the second half to work the Lopes lead down to 67-64 on consecutive Maguire Mitchell 3-pointers.
But Mitchell's ensuing technical foul for taunting drew two free throws for junior guard Dusty Stromer, who followed with a 3-pointer that fueled GCU's 15-2 run that sent IU Indy into a double-digit deficit for good.
Stromer made three 3s in a game for the first time as a Lope. His 11 points made him one of five GCU players to score in double figures, a feat the Lopes also achieved last month against Northern Illinois.
"He's shooting the ball way better," Drew said of Stromer. "I think he's getting more comfortable. A lot of his shots early, he was rushing them, shooting too fast. His pace is a lot smoother right now. He made some big 3s for us when we broke the press and found him. When he makes 3s, those are huge momentum plays for us."
The GCU guards were difficult for IU Indy to contain, with junior guard Makaih Williams following up a season high-tying 20 points at Wyoming with all 11 of his Saturday points in the first half.
Moore never let up returning IU Indy's pressure to put Jaguars on their heels. He gave GCU 17 points and three assists with one turnover in 33 minutes after fouls had limited him to 14 minutes at Wyoming.
After Saturday night's win, he told GCU assistant coach Matt Lottich, "Right now, I'm in the space where I'm just trying to do whatever to help us win."
That package includes the leadership he is showing, from enjoying a win at Wyoming as much as his breakout offensive night to offering freshman center Efe Demirel a ride to the airport.
"We thought this could be a great game for Brian and he was spectacular in his 33 minutes," Drew said. "A lot was just breaking the press. He had three assists and only one turnover. I thought he really controlled the game a lot with his speed, and he made really good decisions."
It was Moore's coast-to-coast layup past and through IU Indy defenders that capped GCU's game-clinching 15-2 run.
"Last year, I was a scorer and real efficient," Moore said of Norfolk State. "This year's not going the way I wanted so far, but we're still winning games. That's what I want to do at the end of the day. Whatever I've got to do to help my team win, that's what I'm going to do. It's been tough with the injuries, more mentally than anything. Some days, I feel like Brian Moore and some days, it's tough."
Joining Henley, Moore, Stromer and Williams in the quintet of GCU double-digit scorers was Demirel, who posted 11 points and eight rebounds in 19 minutes to continue being a promising asset over the past four solid games.
"The last three games, I feel like they're really starting to know each other better and feeling more comfortable with what we're doing," Drew said. " It's been really fun to see them progress though these last few weeks."
The Lopes have won three in a row for the first time this season, but the turnaround really dates back to Thanksgiving week, when a win against Utah in Palm Desert, California, showed a positive shift with offensive changes and defensive reinforcement.
"We might not have had the nonconference signature wins that we wanted, but it's a good conference," Moore said of the Mountain West, one of five conferences with five top-100 NET teams. " If we win a lot of games, we've still got a chance to get an at-large even if we don't win (the conference tournament)."
When GCU returns from Christmas break, the Lopes will prepare for their resumption of their first Mountain West season. The Lopes' conference home debut comes Jan. 3 against Colorado State (9-3), which lost its MW opener at Utah State and plays Nevada at home Tuesday.
"We have a team that works so hard," Henley said. "We know guys are going to be in the gym to be prepared mentally and physically, doing whatever it takes to be ready to go."
So they finished decorating Global Credit Union Arena with a festive night, packaging senior guard Jaden Henley's career-high 29 points and graduate guard Brian Moore Jr.'s season's high 17 points to gift a 91-78 win to a winter-break overflow crowd of 7,291 fans at Global Credit Union Arena.
The Lopes (8-4) turned the Jaguars' nation-leading pace and foul rate against them, outscoring IU Indy on fastbreaks by eight (holding the Jaguars 12 below its fastbreak scoring average of 19) and on free throws by 17 (making 26 of 30 attempts) for their highest-scoring game of the season."Our guys persevered," GCU head coach Bryce Drew said. "I thought they showed a lot of heart tonight in this game."
Drew said scheduling a rested IU Indy team for Monday after winning an emotional Mountain West debut at Wyoming on Saturday was a mistake, but the Lopes looked neither leg weary or error prone in darting to a 37-22 lead with 13 points from Henley in those first 13 minutes.
The 6-foot-7 guard thrived on drives and fastbreak finishes and continued breaking out of his 3-point shooting slump by hitting a pair of 3s for the second consecutive game.
Henley capped the night by passing the 1,000-point career mark on his final free throw trip, making him one of nine active players who are 6-7 or taller and have at least 1,000 career points and 100 career steals .
"It feels pretty good," Henley said. "All the preparation you put in and all the work shows out here. My teammates trusted me to get me the ball in the right positions and me being able to score."
IU Indy (4-10) was relentlessly committed to its full-court defensive pressure, turning GCU over nine times in the second half to work the Lopes lead down to 67-64 on consecutive Maguire Mitchell 3-pointers.
But Mitchell's ensuing technical foul for taunting drew two free throws for junior guard Dusty Stromer, who followed with a 3-pointer that fueled GCU's 15-2 run that sent IU Indy into a double-digit deficit for good.
Stromer made three 3s in a game for the first time as a Lope. His 11 points made him one of five GCU players to score in double figures, a feat the Lopes also achieved last month against Northern Illinois.
"He's shooting the ball way better," Drew said of Stromer. "I think he's getting more comfortable. A lot of his shots early, he was rushing them, shooting too fast. His pace is a lot smoother right now. He made some big 3s for us when we broke the press and found him. When he makes 3s, those are huge momentum plays for us."
The GCU guards were difficult for IU Indy to contain, with junior guard Makaih Williams following up a season high-tying 20 points at Wyoming with all 11 of his Saturday points in the first half.
Moore never let up returning IU Indy's pressure to put Jaguars on their heels. He gave GCU 17 points and three assists with one turnover in 33 minutes after fouls had limited him to 14 minutes at Wyoming.After Saturday night's win, he told GCU assistant coach Matt Lottich, "Right now, I'm in the space where I'm just trying to do whatever to help us win."
That package includes the leadership he is showing, from enjoying a win at Wyoming as much as his breakout offensive night to offering freshman center Efe Demirel a ride to the airport.
"We thought this could be a great game for Brian and he was spectacular in his 33 minutes," Drew said. "A lot was just breaking the press. He had three assists and only one turnover. I thought he really controlled the game a lot with his speed, and he made really good decisions."
It was Moore's coast-to-coast layup past and through IU Indy defenders that capped GCU's game-clinching 15-2 run.
"Last year, I was a scorer and real efficient," Moore said of Norfolk State. "This year's not going the way I wanted so far, but we're still winning games. That's what I want to do at the end of the day. Whatever I've got to do to help my team win, that's what I'm going to do. It's been tough with the injuries, more mentally than anything. Some days, I feel like Brian Moore and some days, it's tough."
Joining Henley, Moore, Stromer and Williams in the quintet of GCU double-digit scorers was Demirel, who posted 11 points and eight rebounds in 19 minutes to continue being a promising asset over the past four solid games."The last three games, I feel like they're really starting to know each other better and feeling more comfortable with what we're doing," Drew said. " It's been really fun to see them progress though these last few weeks."
The Lopes have won three in a row for the first time this season, but the turnaround really dates back to Thanksgiving week, when a win against Utah in Palm Desert, California, showed a positive shift with offensive changes and defensive reinforcement.
"We might not have had the nonconference signature wins that we wanted, but it's a good conference," Moore said of the Mountain West, one of five conferences with five top-100 NET teams. " If we win a lot of games, we've still got a chance to get an at-large even if we don't win (the conference tournament)."
When GCU returns from Christmas break, the Lopes will prepare for their resumption of their first Mountain West season. The Lopes' conference home debut comes Jan. 3 against Colorado State (9-3), which lost its MW opener at Utah State and plays Nevada at home Tuesday.
"We have a team that works so hard," Henley said. "We know guys are going to be in the gym to be prepared mentally and physically, doing whatever it takes to be ready to go."
Team Stats
IUIndy
GCU
FG%
.453
.509
3FG%
.333
.412
FT%
.600
.867
RB
26
35
TO
15
15
STL
6
7
Game Leaders
Pts
29
FGM
10
3FGM
2
FTM
7
Pts
17
FGM
5
3FGM
1
FTM
6
Pts
11
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
4
Pts
11
FGM
3
3FGM
3
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
C
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GCU Men's Basketball vs. IU Indy - Highlights
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