'Party' turns up for No. 23 Utah State's visit

Saturday, January 17

Phoenix, Ariz.

12:30 p.m.

Grand Canyon

Utah State

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Photo by: David Kadlubowski

1/16/2026 10:59:00 AM | Men's Basketball, Paul Coro

National TV tunes in to see if Lopes can use home-court edge to upset 15-1 Aggies

By: Paul Coro

From the 2016 visit of No. 14 Louisville, Rick Pitino and Donovan Mitchell to upsetting a No. 25 San Diego State team that had just been 2023 national runner-up, Grand Canyon has hosted glitzy games that turned up the human surround sound of Global Credit Union Arena.

This Saturday is different.

GCU not only faces its highest-ranked home opponent ever when No. 23 Utah State checks in for "The Biggest Party in College Basketball" at 12:30 p.m. on FS1, but the Lopes-Aggies clash also carries the weight of a Mountain West game.

"It's going to be a great atmosphere," GCU graduate Nana Owusu-Anane said with Havocs camping out since Wednesday. "We've got to give them something to be proud of, for sure. We've got a great opportunity to make some things happen.

The Aggies (15-1, 6-0 MW) are toting an eight-game winning streak, the best start in program history and an 86-point scoring average, just one of their conference-leading categories along with the nation's second-best shooting percentage (52.8%) and steals (9.9 per game) that add up to an average scoring margin of plus-19.3 per game. Their NET ranking of No. 15 is the highest for a GCU visitor in the eight years of NET, although Louisville was No. 12 in RPI when it came to GCU in 2016.

"We want to win the Mountain West championship, so this is what we've got to do," GCU senior guard Jaden Henley said. "We've got to knock off the best teams. In New Mexico, we played really good basketball for about 30 minutes and let it get away from us. We didn't really execute, so we have to step up and get a big one."

After GCU (10-6. 3-2 MW) won by 17 points at Boise State to give head coach Leon Rice his second-largest loss there in 16 years, Utah State beat Boise State by 25 for the largest ever in the Rice era. Before GCU lost at home to Colorado State, the Aggies routed the Rams by 42.

The Lopes are amid the toughest of MW three-game gauntlets, having let a second-half tie with New Mexico turn into a 23-point loss at The Pit and hosting the other undefeated MW team, San Diego State, up next Wednesday. In between, they get a Utah State team that has won conference games by an average of 23.3 points.

Albuquerque, NM Jan. 13, 2026: The Lopes fall 87-64 to the New Mexico Lobos. At The Pit in Albuquerque, NM. David Kadlubowski/GCU

Albuquerque, NM Jan. 13, 2026: The Lopes fall 87-64 to the New Mexico Lobos. At The Pit in Albuquerque, NM. David Kadlubowski/GCU

"It's a great growth period for us," GCU head coach Bryce Drew said. "The league is so good. You have to look ahead. You can't look behind. We've always got to keep our eyes moving forward. We'll reflect on the past and try to get better, but then it's over and done. We really need to lock in and be at our best Saturday."

Utah State offers the unique challenge of trying to score on a disruptive 2-3 matchup zone defense that switches on the perimeter and stop the conference's best two players – the Aggies guard duo of junior Mason Falslev and senior MJ Collins.

Falslev has nearly an identical stat line to last season with 16.2 points, 5.9 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game and an efficient shooting line of 54% from the field, 38% on 3-pointers and 78% on free throws. But now he pairs with Collins, a Vanderbilt transfer who is averaging 20.1 points with 56% shooting from the field, 46% on 3s and 87% on free throws.

"He's playing at a high level," Drew said of Collins. "The way he's playing right now, he could play anywhere in the country. As you watch him, you enjoy his defense as much as his offense. He's really good on the ball. He's great at passing angles."

Drew took the blame for Tuesday's 87-64 loss at New Mexico, where a 10-point game unraveled after he picked up consecutive technical fouls with 10 minutes to go for his second career ejection. It led to GCU's largest margin of defeat in a regular-season game since January 2022, when Drew did not coach due to illness at Stephen F. Austin.

"It was my fault," Drew said of his frustration with a series of calls. "I've got to be on the floor."

Owusu-Anane said, "I feel like Coach got those techs to rally us up, so we have to respond for the better, which we didn't. That second half wasn't a good indicating factor of our team and who we are, but we're definitely going to be better moving forward."

Beyond Falslev and Collins, Utah State also features a familiar face in 6-foot-5 guard Drake Allen. The 24-year-old graduate played against GCU for Southern Utah in 2022-23 and Utah Valley in 2023-24 before finishing his final two college seasons at Utah State. His poised, pinpoint passing leads the Mountain West with 5.3 assists per game

Utah State's only loss this season came Dec. 4, when it fell trailed by 23 in the first half at South Florida in a 74-61 defeat. The Aggies were challenged more by Nevada's mix of defenses on Wednesday but still won 71-62 at home by holding the Wolf Pack to 34% shooting.

"We're balanced," Utah State second-year head coach Jerrod Calhoun said after the Wednesday win. "Our guys have bought into that from Day 1. Starting in the offseason, our practices have been 60-65% defense. Recently, over the last month, I've stolen a lot of time and made some adjustments to our offense to make sure we can get organized, we understand spacing, we can read the ball, we're training their eyes, we know our package going into the game.

"But you're really proud of the guys battling, flying around, jumping on balls, getting loose balls, contesting shots, finishing plays and winning ugly."

Amid the national television audience and national media present, the Lopes are in a standings fight at their quarter pole of a 20-game Mountain West season. GCU is tied for fifth place in a conference that awards Mountain West Championship first-round byes to the top four regular-season finishers.

As one of six conferences with eight top-100 NET teams, the challenges come weekly. None are larger than facing the two teams tied for first place in consecutive games, starting with a top-25 visitor in Utah State on Saturday. GCU has recorded two wins against top-25 opponents in the past 25 months – a December 2023 home game vs. No. 25 San Diego State and a March 2024 NCAA Tournament game vs. No. 15 Saint Mary's.

"It gets you up out of your seats, gets you going, gets you juiced," Owusu-Anane said. "There's a lot of attention around them right now, so it's going to be a good game."