It’s that time of year again for Grand Canyon University men’s basketball.
In what is becoming a yearly tradition, GCU is returning to Las Vegas as a favorite in the Western Athletic Conference Tournament. While not quite as dominant as the previous year, the Lopes finished the regular season 23-7, and a strong conference record of 13-3 has the team as the No. 2 seed in the conference tournament.
GCU tips off postseason play Wednesday night against UT Arlington, a team it beat twice in the regular season. With just days left until the NCAA Tournament, Grand Canyon seeks to get back to a familiar place in recent seasons.
In four years, GCU has gone from March Madness newcomers to recurring guest. The Lopes are searching for their third straight trip to the NCAA Tournament and fourth in five years after making the program’s first appearance in 2021.
Entering Wednesday’s game, the teams are on opposite trajectories. GCU has won six of its last seven games while UT Arlington is on a three-game losing streak.
However, The Lopes might be without star and senior leader Tyon Grant-Foster, who has been out since Feb. 15 with an ankle injury and is a game-time decision, coach Bryce Drew said.
While GCU has gone 4-1 in Grant-Foster’s absence, including an 85-71 victory over UT Arlington on Feb. 27, the team will take a big blow on both ends if the reigning WAC Player of the Year can’t go, Drew said.
“The ability to close games, but also some of the dynamic plays he makes throughout the game,” Drew said. “When the offense breaks down, he can go get a basket. Defensively, he can recover and block some shots.”
Drew added that while Grant-Foster could have sat out the season with the injury, he’s “doing the best he can” to get back on the court.
Even before Grant-Foster’s injury, the Lopes are getting contributions throughout the roster. While Grant-Foster’s average of 14.6 points was down from 20.1 in 2023-24, senior forward Jakobe Coles is right behind at 14.3 points per game. Guard Ray Harrison and forward Duke Brennan also average double figures, and three more players average at least eight points.
UT Arlington (13-17) averages 74.2 points per game and has three players averaging double-digit points. Lance Ware leads the team in scoring with 13.7 points per game, while grabbing 9.8 rebounds. GCU held Ware in check in both matchups, but he did grab 17 rebounds in GCU’s 85-71 win. Keeping Ware off the glass will go a long way in GCU’s odds at advancing.
Related story: Ray Harrison, decorated GCU seniors show out in final regular-season home game with eyes on more history
With or without Grant-Foster, Drew is confident GCU’s chemistry can bring success.
“Chemistry is so important. I think guys are locked in, being focused, wanting to do it together and not individually,” Drew said. “That’s such a big thing, especially at this time of year.”
Coles and Grant-Foster were selected to the WAC All-Conference First Team. A transfer from TCU, Coles has made the Big Dance in each of the last three years and has history playing Arizona schools. In 2022, his Horned Frogs lost to Arizona in the Round of 32 of the NCAA Tournament, and he hit the game-winning shot to knock off Arizona State in 2023.
While this is Coles’ first postseason with the Lopes, he knows being a two-time reigning conference champion brings extra attention.
“Wherever we go, we’re getting every team’s best,” Coles said. “It comes with a lot of pressure, but I think a lot of guys on this team can handle a lot of pressure, and we’ve shown that over the past few months.”
The Lopes have played numerous close games with the target on their back. Their average scoring margin is 9.7 points with 14 games decided by single digits. Grant-Foster is the team’s closer, but the team still managed two close victories in his absence, beating California Baptist 66-64 on Feb. 22 and Seattle 63-60 on March 1.
Drew and the players are confident that if games get down to the wire, the team’s previous tournament experience will play to their benefit.
“A lot of these teams … they’re going to be playing their hearts out,” said Brennan, who was selected to the WAC All-Conference Second Team and All-Defensive Team. “Games are going to get close, so being able to prevail through some of those games has allowed us to know we can win those close games.”
With injuries and close losses down the stretch, including an overtime loss to Abilene Christian in the regular-season finale, GCU sits in a more difficult spot than a year ago, according to Drew.
However, his squad is prepared to do whatever it takes to defend the title and get back to the NCAA Tournament, a title defense that began at the start of the 2024-25 season.
“It’s a championship mindset, we’ve been talking about that since the beginning of the season,” Brennan said. “The championship mindset knowing we hang banners up in this place. This is a program that knows how to win those big games and knows how to bring home championships for our school.”
anyone remember the run of the Florida undertakers – who won over UA to remove them from play.. WOW would it be nice to have GCU take a similar path of victories GCU GCU GCU !!!