Picture comes into focus for CBU home game

Saturday, Feb. 22 \| 6 p.m. \| Global Credit Union Arena \| Phoenix, Ariz.

	CALIFORNIA BAPTIST LANCERS (13-12, 6-5 WAC)	at	GRAND CANYON LOPES (19-6, 9-2 WAC)

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The vivid picture of how Grand Canyon played down the stretch last weekend at UT Arlington is becoming a lasting image.

The Lopes were picturesque in finishing off UT Arlington and now are entering Saturday's 6 p.m. Homecoming game against California Baptist with the big picture in mind.

GCU is not in control of the WAC regular-season championship race, beyond closing Utah Valley's lead to one game with a Lopes win Saturday night. They are in control playing championship-ready basketball with five regular-season games before a Big Dance ticket is issued at the WAC Tournament.

Arlington, TX Feb. 15, 2025 : The Lopes come from behind to take a 82-75 win over UT Arlington at the College Park Center in Arlington, Texas.. David Kadlubowski/GCU

Arlington, TX Feb. 15, 2025 : The Lopes come from behind to take a 82-75 win over UT Arlington at the College Park Center in Arlington, Texas.. David Kadlubowski/GCU

"We are honestly proving to ourselves how much better we can be," GCU senior guard Ray Harrison said. "Every time, we have those glimpses of when we're really focused and locked in, it pushes us to stay that way all the time.

"We all have to be focused on doing the right thing, and nothing else matters. No points. No shots. None of that should matter. If we continue to play that way, the sky's the limit."

The Lopes (19-6, 9-2 WAC) will try to avenge a conference loss for the second time when they face the Lancers team that handed them their largest defeat, 85-71, of the season on Feb. 8 in Riverside, California.

"I feel like when we play like that on a regular basis, we're one of the best teams in the conference," California Baptist senior Kendal Coleman said after that game on the Lancers Athletic Podcast. "I don't think nobody can play with us when we do stuff like that. Running the floor, crashing the boards, just doing all the little stuff and playing tough, I don't think nobody can really compete with us in this conference."

GCU, which has won 29 of its past 30 home games, and the Havocs have been separated for three weeks with the Lopes not playing at Global Credit Union Arena since Feb. 1, when they avenged their other conference loss against Utah Valley. The Wolverines narrowly moved to 11-1 in WAC play with a Thursday night overtime win at Utah Tech.

GCU was idle Thursday for the first time since the week at California Baptist, where a loss of committing 22 turnovers and allowing 14 offensive rebounds prompted head coach Bryce Drew's first ejection in 421 games. Their practice rhythm was altered this week to avoid another pitfall.

"We're only coaching one way, and that's full speed ahead," Lopes head coach Bryce Drew said. "We want our guys to be more aggressive and more physical. So we've been trying every day to look toward that."

As much as the Lopes know what they must improve upon from the first GCU-CBU game, they can look upon the final 6 1/2 minutes of Saturday's win at UT Arlington for what to replicate.

Arlington, TX Feb. 15, 2025 : The Lopes come from behind to take a 82-75 win over UT Arlington at the College Park Center in Arlington, Texas.. David Kadlubowski/GCU

The Lopes ended the game by scoring on 12 consecutive possessions, a stretch that included 12 Tyon Grant-Foster points in the 25-11 run. Grant-Foster hit a pair of straightaway 3-pointers and split a double team for a 3-point play, but he also passed out of double teams for a pair of key layups by junior Duke Brennan to start the run.

The offense is fun, but defense usually sparks the Lopes with their fastest-tempo of the program's Division I era. Ranked nationally in the top 20 for steals (13th) and blocked shots (19th), the Lopes got stops and switched ends swiftly off blocks by Grant-Foster and Coles and a steal by sophomore guard Makaih Williams in that time.

The team that committed its most turnovers in a regulation game since January 2017 at California Baptist was a distant memory on Saturday, when GCU did not commit a turnover in the final nine minutes.

"When we start good on defense, you can create offense from defense," Drew said. "Offense can't create stuff on the defensive end for you. Defense is a great opportunity to be connected and telling how you want the game to be played. We've got to be at a high level the rest of the year on the defensive end.

"If you're more aggressive on defense, you're more aggressive on offense, if you're not as aggressive on defense, it usually comes out in how you cut, how you offensive rebound, how you screen and other things off the ball."

Lope tracks

Since Dec. 17, GCU is allowing the seventh-lowest field goal percentage in the nation (38.7%). For the season, the Lopes rank 45th at 41.0% after being at No. 259 in mid-December.
The Lopes are averaging 19.3 free throw points per game for the second consecutive season. That average ranked third nationally last season and sixth this season.
Grant-Foster is shooting 53% from the field since Jan. 1 with averages of 17.4 points, 6.0 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1.9 blocks and 1.8 steals in 27.4 minutes per game. He reached 1,000 career points at UT Arlington on Feb. 15
GCU opponents are shooting 29.7% from 3-point range (22nd lowest nationally) and averaging 15.2 turnovers per game (20th highest nationally).
The Lopes' 85-71 loss at California Baptist was their largest margin of defeat in the teams' 78-game all-time series (GCU leads 66-12).
After their win against GCU, the Lancers lost 82-79 at UT Arlington and won 86-83 at home against Utah Tech last week and were also idle Thursday.
California Baptist leads the WAC in offensive rebounds per game (12.4), free throw percentage (75.1%) and least turnovers per game (11.6).
After scoring 36 points last Saturday vs. Utah Tech, Lancers 5-foot-10 guard Dominque Daniels Jr. ranks 10th in the nation and first in the WAC with 20.0 points per game. He is shooting 38% from the field and 27% from 3-point range after making 36% of 3s last season. He takes 34% of his team's shots to rank 18th nationally in that category.
GCU plays at the 15th-fastest tempo in the nation, according to kenpom.com. California Baptist's tempo ranks 235th.
Harrison is tied with Doug Baker (1955-59) for sixth on the Lopes' all-time scoring list at 1,373 points. He is 47 points shy of Jim Irvine (1970-74) in fifth place. With two seasons at Presbyterian, Harrison has 2,264 career points to rank ninth among active Division I players.
By NET (NCAA Evaluation Tool) ranking, GCU is the top WAC team and CBU is third best with Utah Valley second.

Phoenix, AZ Feb. 1, 2025 : The Lopes led from the tip earning a 75-57 win over Utah Valley at Global Credit Union Arena. David Kadlubowski/GCU

Saturday, Feb. 22 | 6 p.m. | Global Credit Union Arena | Phoenix, Ariz.

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Players Mentioned

Duke Brennan

Tyon Grant-Foster

Ray Harrison

Makaih Williams

Grand Canyon University Athletics