Completed Event: Men's Basketball at UNLV on February 7, 2026 , Loss , 78, to, 80
M Basketball
at UNLV
L 78-80
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Photo by: Bryce Wheeler
Behrend comes to GCU via 1A preps, Navy service
5/3/2026 7:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball, Paul Coro, Lopes Insider Blog
6-10 Tulsa starter enlisted for military before getting juco break
Tyler Behrend's location was much closer to Grand Canyon than his basketball level when he graduated from high school in 2018.
Playing 3 miles east of GCU for Valley Lutheran against Arizona's smallest high schools, Behrend's future with GCU could not be foreseen when his prep career ended with a Class 1A state quarterfinal loss and two interested colleges – NAIA member Benedictine and Division III Concordia Chicago.
The most unlikely of Division I basketball routes took Behrend from attending GCU games starring DeWayne Russell to signing to play next season for the Lopes. The in-between path included a 3-inch growth spurt, a 5-year Navy enlistment, a chance encounter with a junior college coach, a two-year college gap and starting last season for 30-win Tulsa.
"I'm grateful for the opportunity," Behrend said. "I'll always be grateful. I took a different route to get to where I'm at. I remember being on deployment, and it felt like my Navy contract was never going to end. Looking back, I appreciate everything about the Navy because it made me who I am. I wouldn't do anything different."
Behrend, a 6-foot-10 center who will turn 26 years old before his first GCU game, brings more than an incredible storyline to the Lopes. He started every game last season for Tulsa, which went 30-8 and was the NIT runner-up because Behrend's most dazzling statistic was ranking third in the American Conference for plus/minus (the team's point differential when he played).
After logging only 69 minutes for Tulsa in 2023-24, Behrend averaged 6.5 points, 5.2 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 0.7 steals and 0.3 blocks in 21.6 minutes per game last season. He improved with experience, averaging 8.3 points and 6.9 rebounds during March and April.
"Tyler's coming off a terrific season," GCU head coach Bryce Drew said. "He brings a lot of winning experience to our program and also a lot of maturity with serving in the Navy before coming back to college. We love his ability to step out on the floor at his size and be able to shoot and pass. We also love how he is able to defend people on the perimeter, as well as in the post. We're really excited about him."
Behrend spent seventh through 10th grade in Tucson, coming off the bench for Flowing Wells High School's freshman and junior varsity teams before moving to Phoenix. He grew to 6-7 as a Valley Lutheran senior, when he averaged 20 points per game, but had better baseball prospects as a first baseman and closer.
Unsure about his future after graduation, Behrend thought of joining the U.S. Navy as his mother, Hannah, had in the medical corps. Once he turned 18 that October, Behrend walked into a Navy recruiting office in Phoenix to enlist and was off to Guam and Vietnam while going months without touching a basketball.
The ship on a basketball career seemingly sailed until the USS Theodore Roosevelt docked in Washington for retrofitting.
"I didn't think about playing college at all when I was in the Navy," Behrend said. "I was really just hoopin' on base with my friends. If there were any leagues, I would play just to play because it was just fun."
In one of those leagues, an Olympic College assistant coach played against him and recruited Behrend to join the Bremerton community college team. Behrend averaged 14 points and seven rebounds in 2021-22 but still could not parlay that into the next level until he finished his service in 2023.
A family friend recommended Behrend to Tulsa head coach Eric Konkol, who considered Behrend a project that needed to develop more strength and sharpen timing.
"What we saw in Tyler was someone who was hungry for an opportunity," Konkol said at an NIT press conference. "Someone who had some feel that you really can't teach."
It clicked last season, when Behrend stood out with a 16-point, seven-rebound game at UAB and a nine-point, 12-rebound NIT win against Stephen F. Austin.
"I'm a facilitator," Behrend said. "I'm a big that likes to pass. I play hard. I always play like it's my last game. I'm crashing the glass and running down every loose ball I can. I bring good energy.
"I want to make everyone better around me. At the end of the day, we're playing to win, so whatever I've got to do. It may not be to score the ball every time. It may be sealing or getting someone else open or finding someone on a wrap cut. Whatever I can do to help the team."
The transfer to GCU is a homecoming for Behrend, although his parents no longer live in Arizona. His soon-to-be in-laws are in the Valley, as he, his fiancée Sharmayne and their 1-year-old daughter Tatum move back this month.
"I didn't even need to take a visit," Behrend said. "I did a Zoom with the coaches and bonded. Shar and I had a connection with them. When I was in high school, probably about 10 minutes from GCU, I wasn't going to ASU games. I was definitely going to GCU games. Russell was playing, and those games were so crazy, I got goosebumps just watching. The opportunity to play in front of that type of crowd every game is a dream."
Because of his age, Behrend is accustomed to serving as the big brother on the team. He embraces the role of mentor, which wil be ideal for GCU center Efe Demirel after starting as a freshman last season.
After missing the NCAA Tournament last season, Behrend is just as anxious as Lope Nation for the team to punch a ticket to the Big Dance next season.
"I'm already thinking about next March," Behrend said. "I want to get there so bad. I'll do anything to play in March Madness, for real. I've been watching it since I was a kid. It's a dream of mine that is closer than I ever thought it would be."
Playing 3 miles east of GCU for Valley Lutheran against Arizona's smallest high schools, Behrend's future with GCU could not be foreseen when his prep career ended with a Class 1A state quarterfinal loss and two interested colleges – NAIA member Benedictine and Division III Concordia Chicago.
The most unlikely of Division I basketball routes took Behrend from attending GCU games starring DeWayne Russell to signing to play next season for the Lopes. The in-between path included a 3-inch growth spurt, a 5-year Navy enlistment, a chance encounter with a junior college coach, a two-year college gap and starting last season for 30-win Tulsa.
"I'm grateful for the opportunity," Behrend said. "I'll always be grateful. I took a different route to get to where I'm at. I remember being on deployment, and it felt like my Navy contract was never going to end. Looking back, I appreciate everything about the Navy because it made me who I am. I wouldn't do anything different."
Behrend, a 6-foot-10 center who will turn 26 years old before his first GCU game, brings more than an incredible storyline to the Lopes. He started every game last season for Tulsa, which went 30-8 and was the NIT runner-up because Behrend's most dazzling statistic was ranking third in the American Conference for plus/minus (the team's point differential when he played).
After logging only 69 minutes for Tulsa in 2023-24, Behrend averaged 6.5 points, 5.2 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 0.7 steals and 0.3 blocks in 21.6 minutes per game last season. He improved with experience, averaging 8.3 points and 6.9 rebounds during March and April.
"Tyler's coming off a terrific season," GCU head coach Bryce Drew said. "He brings a lot of winning experience to our program and also a lot of maturity with serving in the Navy before coming back to college. We love his ability to step out on the floor at his size and be able to shoot and pass. We also love how he is able to defend people on the perimeter, as well as in the post. We're really excited about him."
Behrend spent seventh through 10th grade in Tucson, coming off the bench for Flowing Wells High School's freshman and junior varsity teams before moving to Phoenix. He grew to 6-7 as a Valley Lutheran senior, when he averaged 20 points per game, but had better baseball prospects as a first baseman and closer.
Unsure about his future after graduation, Behrend thought of joining the U.S. Navy as his mother, Hannah, had in the medical corps. Once he turned 18 that October, Behrend walked into a Navy recruiting office in Phoenix to enlist and was off to Guam and Vietnam while going months without touching a basketball.
The ship on a basketball career seemingly sailed until the USS Theodore Roosevelt docked in Washington for retrofitting.
"I didn't think about playing college at all when I was in the Navy," Behrend said. "I was really just hoopin' on base with my friends. If there were any leagues, I would play just to play because it was just fun."
In one of those leagues, an Olympic College assistant coach played against him and recruited Behrend to join the Bremerton community college team. Behrend averaged 14 points and seven rebounds in 2021-22 but still could not parlay that into the next level until he finished his service in 2023.
A family friend recommended Behrend to Tulsa head coach Eric Konkol, who considered Behrend a project that needed to develop more strength and sharpen timing.
"What we saw in Tyler was someone who was hungry for an opportunity," Konkol said at an NIT press conference. "Someone who had some feel that you really can't teach."
It clicked last season, when Behrend stood out with a 16-point, seven-rebound game at UAB and a nine-point, 12-rebound NIT win against Stephen F. Austin.
"I'm a facilitator," Behrend said. "I'm a big that likes to pass. I play hard. I always play like it's my last game. I'm crashing the glass and running down every loose ball I can. I bring good energy.
"I want to make everyone better around me. At the end of the day, we're playing to win, so whatever I've got to do. It may not be to score the ball every time. It may be sealing or getting someone else open or finding someone on a wrap cut. Whatever I can do to help the team."
The transfer to GCU is a homecoming for Behrend, although his parents no longer live in Arizona. His soon-to-be in-laws are in the Valley, as he, his fiancée Sharmayne and their 1-year-old daughter Tatum move back this month.
"I didn't even need to take a visit," Behrend said. "I did a Zoom with the coaches and bonded. Shar and I had a connection with them. When I was in high school, probably about 10 minutes from GCU, I wasn't going to ASU games. I was definitely going to GCU games. Russell was playing, and those games were so crazy, I got goosebumps just watching. The opportunity to play in front of that type of crowd every game is a dream."
Because of his age, Behrend is accustomed to serving as the big brother on the team. He embraces the role of mentor, which wil be ideal for GCU center Efe Demirel after starting as a freshman last season.
After missing the NCAA Tournament last season, Behrend is just as anxious as Lope Nation for the team to punch a ticket to the Big Dance next season.
"I'm already thinking about next March," Behrend said. "I want to get there so bad. I'll do anything to play in March Madness, for real. I've been watching it since I was a kid. It's a dream of mine that is closer than I ever thought it would be."
Players Mentioned
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