Leaders get helping hands with Grant-Foster out

Saturday, March 1 \| 8 p.m. (Phoenix time) \| Redhawk Center \| Seattle, Wash.

	GRAND CANYON LOPES (21-6, 11-2 WAC)	at	SEATTLE U REDHAWKS (11-16, 6-7 WAC)

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SEATTLE – When Tyon Grant-Foster does not play for Grand Canyon, the Lopes miss a wide array of impacts from the senior swingman's multifaceted talent.

Despite being "hopeful" for his eventual return, GCU head coach Bryce Drew said Grant-Foster probably will not play Saturday night at Seattle. That is a situation the Lopes have handled well this season, going 5-0 in games that the WAC Preseason Player of the Year missed with the latest being Thursday night's 85-71 home win against UT Arlington.

Phoenix, AZ Feb. 27, 2025 : The Lopes top UT Arlington 85-71 at Global Credit Union Arena. David Kadlubowski/GCU

Phoenix, AZ Feb. 27, 2025 : The Lopes top UT Arlington 85-71 at Global Credit Union Arena. David Kadlubowski/GCU

GCU seniors JaKobe Coles and Ray Harrison are top scorers regardless, but they are stepping up their games and getting help from the depth of the Lopes to keep GCU in the WAC regular-season title hunt.

With three regular-season games remaining, the Lopes (21-6, 11-2) sit one game out of first place as they head into a game at 8 p.m. (Phoenix time) in a 999-seat Redhawk Center where they lost five of their past six visits. If GCU can extend its four-game winning streak with three more, the Lopes could tie WAC leader Utah Valley with a Wolverines loss and earn the WAC Tournament No. 1 seed on a tiebreaker.

Grant-Foster has missed the past two wins with Harrison averaging 17.5 points on 56% shooting and Coles averaging 15.5 points on 46% shooting.

In games Grant-Foster has missed, Harrison, Coles and senior guard Collin Moore are averaging a cumulative 14.8 points more without him than their scoring averages with him this season. Grant-Foster is averaging 14.6 points per game.

"It's really important to take some load off of Ray and JaKobe, especially with Tyon out," Lopes head coach Bryce Drew said. "The two guys (Thursday night) were Collin and Caleb (Shaw). The great thing is Lok (Wur) and Makiah (Williams) are other guys who are capable of doing the same thing."

When GCU beat Seattle U 83-74 at home Jan. 30, Grant-Foster scored 24 and Redhawks 6-foot-8 power forward Matthew-Alexander Moncrieffe fouled out after racking up 20 points and nine rebounds in 27 minutes.

Phoenix, AZ Feb. 27, 2025 : The Lopes top UT Arlington 85-71 at Global Credit Union Arena. David Kadlubowski/GCU

WAC coaches considered Seattle U to be the Lopes' challenger in the preseason, and the Redhawks play like that at home – 9-4 in Seattle vs. 2-12 out of town. They routed California Baptist 72-48 at home Thursday night.

Shaw was a big part of filling the GCU's scoring void Thursday night, when he went 6 for 6 from the field and logged his season scoring high against a Division I opponent (15).

"We definitely notice missing Tyon out there, the way he can score the ball and rebound the ball," Shaw said. "This week, there was a big emphasis on doing one thing better individually as players but also as a team because he does so much for our team. It's every single individual doing a little bit more to help us win."

Coles has scored in double figures in each game Grant-Foster has missed with an 18.6 scoring average and 51% shooting from the field.

Phoenix, AZ Jan. 30, 2025 : The Lopes come back for a 83-74 win over Seattle U. at Global Credit Union Arena.

Phoenix, AZ Jan. 30, 2025 : The Lopes come back for a 83-74 win over Seattle U. at Global Credit Union Arena.

Harrison, the 2023 WAC Tournament Most Outstanding Player, is flashing that efficient offensive form of late with his best three-game scoring stretch of the season (18.0 points per game) and outstanding defense. He has committed just two turnovers in those three games.

"When more is asked from him, then he usually gives you more," Drew said of Harrison. "With Tyon out, he knows he needs to step and make more plays."

Shaw's emergence has been right on time with GCU needing more on the wings. The 6-foot-6 guard delivered 12.0 points and 5.5 rebounds per game in the past two wins and has averaged 7.0 points and made 45.5% of his 3-point shots since the Lopes' Jan. 9 loss at Utah Valley.

"We've really liked his decision-making," Drew said of Shaw, his nephew. "Earlier in the year, he was forcing a lot of drives. Right now, he has a really good rhythm. He's cutting more. He's spacing more. He's shooting the ball at a high level. He's making better decisions on when to attack the rim and when not to. His energy off the bench is contagious."

For the WAC regular-season title race, GCU and Utah Valley each play two of the final three games on the road. Following Saturday's game at Seattle U, the Lopes will have another split week with a Thursday home finale against Utah Tech before the regular-season finale at Abilene Chistian. Utah Valley will be home Saturday against Utah Tech before a road week at Abilene Christian and Tarleton State.

"We're trying to climb a hill," Shaw said. "We're just trying to be at our peak when we get to that tournament so we can win three games and go back to the Dance."

Phoenix, AZ Jan. 30, 2025 : The Lopes come back for a 83-74 win over Seattle U. at Global Credit Union Arena. David Kadlubowski/GCU

Saturday, March 1 | 8 p.m. (Phoenix time) | Redhawk Center | Seattle, Wash.

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Players Mentioned

JaKobe Coles

Tyon Grant-Foster

Ray Harrison

Collin Moore

Grand Canyon University Athletics