Sweet 3-peat: GCU wins WAC to dance again

Saturday, March 15

Las Vegas, Nev.

8:40 p.m.

Grand Canyon

26-7,13-3WAC

Utah Valley

25-8,15-1WAC

Grand Canyon

Utah Valley

Photo by: David Kadlubowski

3/15/2025 11:33:00 PM | Men's Basketball, Paul Coro

Box Score Photo Gallery

Lopes earn 4th NCAA tournament trip in 5 years under Drew

By: Paul Coro

LAS VEGAS – Grand Canyon could not just hit repeat to get to the three-peat.

The Lopes evolved and grew through new experiences since last March to feel an unbridled joy this March. They defended their honor for a WAC Tournament three-peat with Saturday night's 89-82 championship victory over top-seeded Utah Valley at a passionately purple Orleans Arena.

GCU (26-7) punched its Big Dance ticket for the fourth time in five years under head coach Bryce Drew by being the only team to beat Utah Valley – twice – in the Wolverines' last 22 games. The Lopes' NCAA tournament first-round matchup will be revealed on the CBS selection show at 3 p.m. Sunday.

Las Vegas, NV March 15, 2025 : Lopes earn a 89-82 win over Utah Valley in their WAC Championship game in Las Vegas. David Kadlubowski/GCU

Las Vegas, NV March 15, 2025 : Lopes earn a 89-82 win over Utah Valley in their WAC Championship game in Las Vegas. David Kadlubowski/GCU

"I'm so thankful," Drew said. "I'm thankful to the Lord that I get to coach basketball. I love the sport, and I love being with these guys and coaching. This week was their best week of the season. They were fantastic. With Tyon (Grant-Foster) coming back, there was some concern that he hadn't played in about a month. He hadn't played with these guys. They hadn't played with him. Just incredible how these three guys (Grant-Foster, JaKobe Coles and Ray Harrison) and everybody else bonded together and played their best week of the year."

GCU led Utah Valley (25-8) for the final 27 minutes of the game by putting six scorers in double figures and holding WAC Player of the Year Dominick Nelson to 2-of-9 shooting with three turnovers.

The Lopes played one of their most efficient offensive games of the season, shooting 52% from the field and committing only eight turnovers for the second consecutive tournament game.

For this team, it was three win-or-go home situations in four Lope Vegas nights. For Harrison, it is nine wins with no losses in three WAC Tournaments.

"It's something that has become part of our identity, just our culture here at GCU," Harrison said.

Las Vegas, NV March 15, 2025 : Lopes earn a 89-82 win over Utah Valley in their WAC Championship game in Las Vegas. David Kadlubowski/GCU

Senior power forward JaKobe Coles became the third player on this Lopes team to win the tournament's Most Outstanding Player with 19.7 points per game, but foul trouble limited him to 19 minutes in the championship game. He still scored 13 points, but the Lopes came at the Wolverines in waves of scorers with a team-high 18 points from Harrison, the 2023 MOP winner before Grant-Foster won it in 2024.

"The big trophy for me is what means most," Coles said of his first conference championship. "This (MOP trophy) is just an additional little cherry on top. Them guys fought hard today I got in a little foul trouble, and them guys picked me up. They kept talking to me positive throughout the whole game, and I had some spurts in the game where I had made some good plays. But I couldn't thank my team enough. They did so much for me this season, picking me up. We all fought through adversity, coaches included. It's just a great experience and a great feeling."

GCU junior center Duke Brennan added his season's 10th double-double (ninth since January) with 16 points and 10 rebounds while graduate swingman Tyon Grant-Foster, graduate forward Lök Wur and sophomore guard Makaih Williams each scored 12.

"We hoop at GCU, and it just gets better in March," Grant-Foster said on a day when the Lopes became one of six schools to capture men's and women's basketball conference tournament crowns.

Las Vegas, NV March 15, 2025 : Lopes earn a 89-82 win over Utah Valley in their WAC Championship game in Las Vegas. David Kadlubowski/GCU

The Lopes were leading 33-32 when they shut out the Wolverines for 3 1/2 minutes and made it a 40-33 halftime lead with a four-guard lineup. GCU's relentless attack did not back off in the second half, when the tempo picked up with five consecutive scoring possessions that had the Lopes advantage at 52-41 after the half's first five minutes.

"That's who Grand Canyon is," Wolverines head coach Todd Phillips said. "They can just put it into fifth gear and score 10 points in a hurry."

Utah Valley cut the GCU lead to a single possession once at 61-58 with 8:54 to go, when Drew called timeout and the Lopes responded. They stretched the lead back to 10 in two minutes with Harrison's aggressive drives, a Williams 3 and a Wur jumper.

"He has shown up in this tournament for three straight years and just been incredible, making clutch play after clutch play," Drew said of Harrison. "I couldn't be happier for him. He came all the way across the country to Phoenix. He didn't know anything about us. He's been loyal, which in today's world, is really hard to find."

The Lopes knocked down 27 of 33 free throws to secure the win despite Utah Valley guard Tanner Toolson knocking down six 3-pointers for his career-high 28 points.

Utah Valley led 19-10 after about eight minutes when GCU had another timeout response by scoring on six consecutive possessions and then eight of nine when Wur knocked down consecutive 3-pointers for a 29-26 lead with 7:10 remaining in the first half. GCU never trailed again in the game.

"These guys got in the huddle, and I think Tyon maybe said something first and other guys responded," Drew said. "They went out and got stops. One possession at a time, they scored. We got back in the game. And that was a high-level game. Those weren't just easy baskets being made. Both teams were making tough shots and tough plays.

Las Vegas, NV March 15, 2025 : Lopes earn a 89-82 win over Utah Valley in their WAC Championship game in Las Vegas. David Kadlubowski/GCU

"These three guys (Coles, Grant-Foster and Harrison) just had some sensational plays and plays setting up their teammates. You get to high-level games like this, you need high-level players and I'm thankful I've got three of them here next to me ... This was the week they were waiting for all year."

Grant-Foster had not played since suffering an injury Feb. 15 until this tournament, when he started all three games with an increasing minute total on each night. The All-WAC first-team honoree averaged 14.0 points and 4.3 rebounds and had multi-steal, multi-block games in the quarterfinal and championship.

"He didn't have to come back," Drew said of Grant-Foster, who missed the last five regular-season games. "A lot of college players are shutting it down, which is sad to see. Yet, Tyon came back. We don't win this tournament without him."

GCU president Brian Mueller, whose university growth vision included a nationally prominent basketball program, shared his perspective after witnessing a fourth NCAA tournament trip in the Division I era's seven postseason chances.

"Four out of five years is unbelievable," Mueller said of the Drew era. "Coach Drew and his staff and the entire community has come behind this thing and supported this thing. It has created a very special community here. It's just growing. It's absolutely growing. It is more difficult to repeat than doing it the first time because you have a target on your back. You play a little bit defensively because you're expected to win.

"He (Drew) kept them together. He didn't let the thing splinter. He didn't let them offer excuses. He kept finding ways to get wins. He kept finding ways to get performance out of people that you wouldn't expect. He was the ultimate chemist this year. He never let the guys lose confidence that we could do this."