Completed Event: Men's Basketball at Boise State on January 7, 2026 , Win , 75, to, 58
M Basketball
at Boise State
W 75-58
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Photo by: David Kadlubowski/GCU
After 2 huge wins, Lopes lock in for Fresno follow-up
1/23/2026 6:12:00 PM | Men's Basketball, Paul Coro
Bulldogs won past 2 home games, feature freshman who scored 31 at The Pit
FRESNO, Calif. – For the winning ways of Grand Canyon's grand homestand to sustain, the Lopes' habits and hunger must remain on the road when a first-place team is not across from them.
GCU's work to climb into the Mountain West race will only impact Saturday's game at Fresno State if the Lopes can bottle the passionate, purposeful play that toppled Utah State and San Diego State.
"This league is really physical," GCU head coach Bryce Drew said. "There are so many good teams in this league. It's not just the physical wear. It's the mental preparation, but then it's also the emotion that goes into the games. That's what makes it so hard. You're just drained. You're completely drained physically, but also emotionally.
"These games are taxing, and they're hard. That's why on your days off or days in between, one of the biggest parts is to get refreshed or rejuvenated."
The Bulldogs (9-10, 3-5 Mountain West) do not have the stature of conference leaders but are a massively improved team in veteran head coach Vance Walberg's second year at the helm. After a 6-26 debut Bulldogs season, Walberg's unique trek from NBA assistant to Fresno-area high school coach to Fresno State head coach is gaining results after beating Wyoming 63-60 and Colorado State 79-69 in the Bulldogs' last two home games.
Fresno State fans are taking noticed too with a season-high 6,539 fans turning out for the Wyoming win last Saturday. Since then, the Bulldogs went to the The Pit and suffered the same fate that GCU did this month, although their loss was only by nine points and came without starting point guard Zaon Collins, who suffered a leg injury at the end of the Wyoming game.
GCU has to refocus for defensively disciplined Fresno State team that commits the fewest fouls in the Mountain West and ranks eighth nationally in opponent 3-point percentage (27.8%). The Bulldogs balance that with a tremendous shooter in 6-foot-5 senior guard Jake Heidbreder and an emerging freshman star in 6-foot-6 small forward DeShawn Gory, a Victorville, California, native who finished high school at PHH Prep in Phoenix.
Over the past five games, Gory has posted four double-doubles, including setting career highs with 31 points and 14 rebounds at New Mexico on Wednesday.
"There are five games this year that we know we should have won, and we could've win," Walberg told the "Another Night in the Mountain West" podcast recently. "I just felt that if we got one or tow wins, they (the players) would believe in what we're saying and doing, and they've done that."
Fresno State has passed last season's win total for the season and conference, where the Bulldogs won two games last season. As much as GCU has climbed into the five-team fray of teams that have two MW losses apiece behind one-loss San Diego State, Fresno State is jockey for position on the next tier of items. At 3-5, the Bulldogs are tied for seventh with Boise State and Colorado State, teams that were predicted to finish well above the MW Preseason Poll's 11th-place slot for Fresno State.
Junior sixth man Makaih Williams, GCU's leading scorer in MW play at 16.6 points per game, said this veteran-laden team is not set up for a lapse by coming off games against a pair of perennial conference powers.
"It's not hard, honestly, because we know that if we lose to them, they're stopping us from being at the top and winning the league," Williams said. "That's our ultimate goal as a team. It doesn't matter who's in front of us. We're going to come out with the same mindset."
GCU won its first two conference road games at Wyoming and Boise State before being losing at New Mexico when a second-half tie unraveled into an 87-64 loss on Jan. 13. The Lopes atoned for that at home with two landmark wins over five days, but the MW offers no breaks. GCU follows the Saturday game at Fresno State with a Tuesday night game at Nevada, which is tied for second in the MW at 6-2.
"We're trying to play our best basketball at the end of February going into March," said GCU graduate guard Brian Moore Jr., who is listed as questionable for Saturday's game. "You don't want to peak in January. You don't want to peak in November. We have a lot of great talent. That was the most frustrating thing at the beginning of the season, like 'Why is it not working?' But as things keep clicking and the wheels keep turning for everybody, I think we can be a special team."
GCU's work to climb into the Mountain West race will only impact Saturday's game at Fresno State if the Lopes can bottle the passionate, purposeful play that toppled Utah State and San Diego State.
"This league is really physical," GCU head coach Bryce Drew said. "There are so many good teams in this league. It's not just the physical wear. It's the mental preparation, but then it's also the emotion that goes into the games. That's what makes it so hard. You're just drained. You're completely drained physically, but also emotionally."These games are taxing, and they're hard. That's why on your days off or days in between, one of the biggest parts is to get refreshed or rejuvenated."
The Bulldogs (9-10, 3-5 Mountain West) do not have the stature of conference leaders but are a massively improved team in veteran head coach Vance Walberg's second year at the helm. After a 6-26 debut Bulldogs season, Walberg's unique trek from NBA assistant to Fresno-area high school coach to Fresno State head coach is gaining results after beating Wyoming 63-60 and Colorado State 79-69 in the Bulldogs' last two home games.
Fresno State fans are taking noticed too with a season-high 6,539 fans turning out for the Wyoming win last Saturday. Since then, the Bulldogs went to the The Pit and suffered the same fate that GCU did this month, although their loss was only by nine points and came without starting point guard Zaon Collins, who suffered a leg injury at the end of the Wyoming game.
GCU has to refocus for defensively disciplined Fresno State team that commits the fewest fouls in the Mountain West and ranks eighth nationally in opponent 3-point percentage (27.8%). The Bulldogs balance that with a tremendous shooter in 6-foot-5 senior guard Jake Heidbreder and an emerging freshman star in 6-foot-6 small forward DeShawn Gory, a Victorville, California, native who finished high school at PHH Prep in Phoenix.
Over the past five games, Gory has posted four double-doubles, including setting career highs with 31 points and 14 rebounds at New Mexico on Wednesday.
"There are five games this year that we know we should have won, and we could've win," Walberg told the "Another Night in the Mountain West" podcast recently. "I just felt that if we got one or tow wins, they (the players) would believe in what we're saying and doing, and they've done that."
Fresno State has passed last season's win total for the season and conference, where the Bulldogs won two games last season. As much as GCU has climbed into the five-team fray of teams that have two MW losses apiece behind one-loss San Diego State, Fresno State is jockey for position on the next tier of items. At 3-5, the Bulldogs are tied for seventh with Boise State and Colorado State, teams that were predicted to finish well above the MW Preseason Poll's 11th-place slot for Fresno State.
Junior sixth man Makaih Williams, GCU's leading scorer in MW play at 16.6 points per game, said this veteran-laden team is not set up for a lapse by coming off games against a pair of perennial conference powers.
"It's not hard, honestly, because we know that if we lose to them, they're stopping us from being at the top and winning the league," Williams said. "That's our ultimate goal as a team. It doesn't matter who's in front of us. We're going to come out with the same mindset."GCU won its first two conference road games at Wyoming and Boise State before being losing at New Mexico when a second-half tie unraveled into an 87-64 loss on Jan. 13. The Lopes atoned for that at home with two landmark wins over five days, but the MW offers no breaks. GCU follows the Saturday game at Fresno State with a Tuesday night game at Nevada, which is tied for second in the MW at 6-2.
"We're trying to play our best basketball at the end of February going into March," said GCU graduate guard Brian Moore Jr., who is listed as questionable for Saturday's game. "You don't want to peak in January. You don't want to peak in November. We have a lot of great talent. That was the most frustrating thing at the beginning of the season, like 'Why is it not working?' But as things keep clicking and the wheels keep turning for everybody, I think we can be a special team."
Lope tracks
- GCU is 11-0 this season when leading at halftime.
- The Lopes are one of eight Mountain West teams in the NET top 100. GCU moved to No. 86 on Tuesday.
- GCU and Fresno State met once before in 2004, when the Lopes were in Division I and lost 64-54 at Fresno State.
- Lopes redshirt freshman center Dennis Evans accumulated nine points, 10 rebounds and eight blocks in 39 minutes against Utah State and San Diego State. In his nine prior appearances, he had 40 minutes, 13 points, nine rebounds and nine blocks.
- Moore has improved from nonconference shooting percentages of 46% on field goals, 39% on 3-pointers and 70% on free throws to Mountain West clips of 51% on field goals, 50% on 3s and 85% on free throws.
- GCU senior guard Jaden Henley, averaging 16.9 points per game, has scored in double figures in all but one game this season (eight vs. Coastal Carolina).
- Heidbreder came to Fresno State after playing at Clemson and Air Force. He leads the Mountain West in free throw percentage (90.6%), field goal attempts (256) and playing time (37 minutes per game) and ranks third in scoring (17.5 points per game). He had a streak of 40 consecutive made free throws this season,
- Walberg, whose nephews attended GCU, followed four NBA assistant coaching seasons with three teams by having a second stint at nearby Clovis West High School (2016-24).
- Fresno State ranks in the bottom 25 nationally for turnovers per game (14.1).
- Former Phoenix Suns guard Tyler Johnson (2018-20), an ex-Bulldogs player, is a Fresno State assistant coach.
Players Mentioned
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