Completed Event: Men's Basketball at Baylor on October 10, 2025 , Loss , 74, to, 79
M Basketball
at Baylor
L 74-79
.png&width=100&type=webp)
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Friday, March 21
Seattle, Wash. / Climate Pledge Arena
1:35 p.m.
Grand Canyon
26-8,13-3WAC
49
vs
81
Maryland
26-8,14-6Big Ten
1
2
F
Grand Canyon
28
21
49
Maryland
42
39
81
Photo by: David Kadlubowski
Early window shuts on GCU season in loss at NCAAs
3/21/2025 7:23:00 PM | Men's Basketball, Paul Coro
Lopes' 26-8 season ends on 28.6% shooting vs. No. 4 seed Maryland
SEATTLE – The chances to change a course of a season or game are never announced.
Just as Grand Canyon's timing to play its best basketball was ideal for its WAC Tournament championship run last week, 13th-seeded GCU missed its fleeting chance against fourth-seeded Maryland early in Friday's NCAA tournament first-round game and unraveled to an 81-49 loss.
The Lopes' Big Dance began with a shuffle to a 7-2 lead through the first five minutes in front of Climate Pledge Arena's 17,024 fans.. It ended with a flight home toting the baggage of the program's largest margin of defeat since another 32-point loss in the 2019 WAC Tournament championship to New Mexico State. This one hit different as the last game for four GCU starters who won 56 games in two seasons.
With Maryland fighting early nerves, GCU's window to build confidence and underdog backing slipped away as it missed 13 of its first 16 shots and then made its first two turnovers consecutively. It took almost eight minutes until the Terrapins (26-8) grabbed their first lead off the Lopes' first turnover.
From there, Maryland (26-8) dissected GCU (26-8) to score methodically on 14 of its next 16 possessions, leaning on the strength of dominant big men Derik Queen (12 points, 15 rebounds) and Julian Reese (18 points, nine rebounds) and point guard Ja'Kobi Gillespie (16 points).
The Terrapins led by double digits for the game's final 28 minutes and limited the Lopes to 28.6% shooting, their second sub-29% shooting game of the season (27.8% vs. San Diego on Dec. 28). GCU's 49 points marked its lowest total since November 2022 against Wichita State.
"They opened the door the first five minutes for us to have a little bit of a lead, and we didn't capitalize it," GCU head coach Bryce Drew said. "Once they got the lead, it just snowballed. And as they took away a little bit of our energy level, then we just got exposed in a lot of ways.
"I think we didn't have the energy and excitement, to be honest, like we had last year. That was kind of alarming in those first few huddles that we didn't really come out because the door was definitely open in that first segment or two."
Maryland entered Seattle off the first-round's longest travel and with a Seattle Regional No. 4 seed that an 11th-ranked team normally does not get. Reese had been left off all three All-Big 12 postseason teams, and the Terrapins had been stinging since taking their fourth last-second loss of the season in a Big 12 Tournament semifinal against Michigan.
"We just didn't put as much pressure on them, just hitting shots," said GCU senior power forward JaKobe Coles, whose four-point game ended his streak of 17 consecutive double-digit scoring games. "I think if we would have made a couple fall, it would have put pressure on the whole team. But give them credit. they used their size well."
The Lopes were outscored 44-16 in paint, putting them at 7-7 this season when losing that category.
It worsened when Lopes junior center Duke Brennan, who fouled on the game's opening possession, picked up a second on a backcourt foul with nine minutes remaining in the first half. Maryland scored the final eight points of an 11-0 run after Brennan exited with four baskets coming at the rim.
"Margin of error, we knew, was going to be small coming in with just how good they are," Drew said. "We needed to be at full strength every possession and have momentum."
The only offensive semblance of that came from graduate swingman Tyon Grant-Foster, who ended his GCU career tweaking his program catchphrase born at last year's NCAA tournament, saying, "We always hoop at GCU." He was the lone Lopes player to score more than six points Friday.
Grant-Foster accounted for GCU's first 18 first-half points by shot or assist, giving the Lopes a 42-28 halftime margin to manipulate because of his 16 first-half points.
"Unfortunately, I wasn't able to stay in a rhythm," said GCU senior guard Ray Harrison, the third-year Lope who scored six points to tie for fourth place on the program's all-time career scoring list.
Maryland's size and power positioned itself for power scores and played skillfully enough to catch the Lopes in mismatches.
Just a week after his WAC Tournament return from a four-week injury hiatus, Grant-Foster gave GCU a chance despite the Lopes being picked apart by the Terrapins for 14 scores during a stretch of 16 possessions late in the first half.
Grant-Foster ended the first half with a 3-pointer to cap his 16-point first half and reduce Maryland's halftime lead to 42-28. Grant-Foster scored on a putback in GCU's opening second-half possession but then he was shut out for nearly 8 1/2 minutes.
"The only adjustment we wanted to make was to make sure that we keep a body on him (Grant-Foster)," Terrapins head coach Kevin Lillard said. "We gave him a little space. His story is unbelievable. He's a tremendous, tremendous player, but we just wanted to be a little bit more physical with him."
After yielding 9-0 and 11-0 runs in the first half, Maryland shut out GCU for more than four second-half minutes. The 8-0 run of more Maryland poise, patience and post play put the Terrapins ahead 59-36 with about 11 minutes remaining.
A game that began with GCU missing a layup ended with the Lopes failing to connect for a fastbreak slam, summing up a night of frustration that did not define a season that continued the program's upward trajectory with a fourth NCAA tournament trip in the past five seasons. Only 27 other programs in the nation have done that.
"This senior group's been fantastic," Drew said. "They won 30 games last year, 26 this year. It was a remarkable two years for them. I'm so proud of what they accomplished.
"These guys helped lay a foundation. Now, we need to get to the next level. We've got to hit the portal hard. We've got to replace a lot of good players and hopefully take our program up a whole other level for next year."
GCU underwent a midseason defensive turnaround to enter Friday ranked fifth nationally for defensive rating since Dec. 17. That was dismantled Friday. Even when Maryland missed 10 of its first 13 shots to start the second half, its lead grew off second chances and free throws.
"We just stayed together as a team and just kept punching and kept punching and kept punching," said Queen, a 6-foot-10, 246-pound freshman who is projected to be taken early in this year's NBA Draft first round. "We defended and just did everything well that we usually do as a team."
The Lopes did not make any of seven second-half attempts from 3-point range, where they were 5 for 23 for the game. Nine of their first 16 shots of the game were 3s, the vast majority of which were open looks.
GCU shot 31.2% on the season despite entering Friday with a scoring average of 79.2, 30 points more than they scored against Maryland.
Lope Nation traveled strongly again but did not have a chance to inflict its usual energizing presence.
"The crowd was great," Drew said. "If we would have made shots, I think they would have got behind us even more. We didn't give them enough of a reason to get behind us, and that's on us."
Just as Grand Canyon's timing to play its best basketball was ideal for its WAC Tournament championship run last week, 13th-seeded GCU missed its fleeting chance against fourth-seeded Maryland early in Friday's NCAA tournament first-round game and unraveled to an 81-49 loss.
The Lopes' Big Dance began with a shuffle to a 7-2 lead through the first five minutes in front of Climate Pledge Arena's 17,024 fans.. It ended with a flight home toting the baggage of the program's largest margin of defeat since another 32-point loss in the 2019 WAC Tournament championship to New Mexico State. This one hit different as the last game for four GCU starters who won 56 games in two seasons.
With Maryland fighting early nerves, GCU's window to build confidence and underdog backing slipped away as it missed 13 of its first 16 shots and then made its first two turnovers consecutively. It took almost eight minutes until the Terrapins (26-8) grabbed their first lead off the Lopes' first turnover.From there, Maryland (26-8) dissected GCU (26-8) to score methodically on 14 of its next 16 possessions, leaning on the strength of dominant big men Derik Queen (12 points, 15 rebounds) and Julian Reese (18 points, nine rebounds) and point guard Ja'Kobi Gillespie (16 points).
The Terrapins led by double digits for the game's final 28 minutes and limited the Lopes to 28.6% shooting, their second sub-29% shooting game of the season (27.8% vs. San Diego on Dec. 28). GCU's 49 points marked its lowest total since November 2022 against Wichita State.
"They opened the door the first five minutes for us to have a little bit of a lead, and we didn't capitalize it," GCU head coach Bryce Drew said. "Once they got the lead, it just snowballed. And as they took away a little bit of our energy level, then we just got exposed in a lot of ways."I think we didn't have the energy and excitement, to be honest, like we had last year. That was kind of alarming in those first few huddles that we didn't really come out because the door was definitely open in that first segment or two."
Maryland entered Seattle off the first-round's longest travel and with a Seattle Regional No. 4 seed that an 11th-ranked team normally does not get. Reese had been left off all three All-Big 12 postseason teams, and the Terrapins had been stinging since taking their fourth last-second loss of the season in a Big 12 Tournament semifinal against Michigan.
"We just didn't put as much pressure on them, just hitting shots," said GCU senior power forward JaKobe Coles, whose four-point game ended his streak of 17 consecutive double-digit scoring games. "I think if we would have made a couple fall, it would have put pressure on the whole team. But give them credit. they used their size well."
The Lopes were outscored 44-16 in paint, putting them at 7-7 this season when losing that category.
It worsened when Lopes junior center Duke Brennan, who fouled on the game's opening possession, picked up a second on a backcourt foul with nine minutes remaining in the first half. Maryland scored the final eight points of an 11-0 run after Brennan exited with four baskets coming at the rim."Margin of error, we knew, was going to be small coming in with just how good they are," Drew said. "We needed to be at full strength every possession and have momentum."
The only offensive semblance of that came from graduate swingman Tyon Grant-Foster, who ended his GCU career tweaking his program catchphrase born at last year's NCAA tournament, saying, "We always hoop at GCU." He was the lone Lopes player to score more than six points Friday.
Grant-Foster accounted for GCU's first 18 first-half points by shot or assist, giving the Lopes a 42-28 halftime margin to manipulate because of his 16 first-half points.
"Unfortunately, I wasn't able to stay in a rhythm," said GCU senior guard Ray Harrison, the third-year Lope who scored six points to tie for fourth place on the program's all-time career scoring list.
Maryland's size and power positioned itself for power scores and played skillfully enough to catch the Lopes in mismatches.
Just a week after his WAC Tournament return from a four-week injury hiatus, Grant-Foster gave GCU a chance despite the Lopes being picked apart by the Terrapins for 14 scores during a stretch of 16 possessions late in the first half.Grant-Foster ended the first half with a 3-pointer to cap his 16-point first half and reduce Maryland's halftime lead to 42-28. Grant-Foster scored on a putback in GCU's opening second-half possession but then he was shut out for nearly 8 1/2 minutes.
"The only adjustment we wanted to make was to make sure that we keep a body on him (Grant-Foster)," Terrapins head coach Kevin Lillard said. "We gave him a little space. His story is unbelievable. He's a tremendous, tremendous player, but we just wanted to be a little bit more physical with him."
After yielding 9-0 and 11-0 runs in the first half, Maryland shut out GCU for more than four second-half minutes. The 8-0 run of more Maryland poise, patience and post play put the Terrapins ahead 59-36 with about 11 minutes remaining.
A game that began with GCU missing a layup ended with the Lopes failing to connect for a fastbreak slam, summing up a night of frustration that did not define a season that continued the program's upward trajectory with a fourth NCAA tournament trip in the past five seasons. Only 27 other programs in the nation have done that.
"This senior group's been fantastic," Drew said. "They won 30 games last year, 26 this year. It was a remarkable two years for them. I'm so proud of what they accomplished."These guys helped lay a foundation. Now, we need to get to the next level. We've got to hit the portal hard. We've got to replace a lot of good players and hopefully take our program up a whole other level for next year."
GCU underwent a midseason defensive turnaround to enter Friday ranked fifth nationally for defensive rating since Dec. 17. That was dismantled Friday. Even when Maryland missed 10 of its first 13 shots to start the second half, its lead grew off second chances and free throws.
"We just stayed together as a team and just kept punching and kept punching and kept punching," said Queen, a 6-foot-10, 246-pound freshman who is projected to be taken early in this year's NBA Draft first round. "We defended and just did everything well that we usually do as a team."
The Lopes did not make any of seven second-half attempts from 3-point range, where they were 5 for 23 for the game. Nine of their first 16 shots of the game were 3s, the vast majority of which were open looks.
GCU shot 31.2% on the season despite entering Friday with a scoring average of 79.2, 30 points more than they scored against Maryland.
Lope Nation traveled strongly again but did not have a chance to inflict its usual energizing presence.
"The crowd was great," Drew said. "If we would have made shots, I think they would have got behind us even more. We didn't give them enough of a reason to get behind us, and that's on us."
Team Stats
GCU
MD
FG%
.286
.508
3FG%
.217
.438
FT%
.632
.500
RB
33
44
TO
13
8
STL
2
6
Game Leaders
Pts
23
FGM
5
3FGM
3
FTM
10
Pts
6
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
4
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballMidnight Madness 2025
Monday, October 06
Makaih Williams | Media Availability | 9.3.25
Thursday, September 04
Dusty Stromer | Media Availability | 9.3.25
Thursday, September 04
Kaleb Smith | Media Availability | 9.3.25
Thursday, September 04