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SCHEDULE / RESULTS

OVERALL RECORD: 15-7WAC: 4-2 | Non-Conference: 11-5

Home: 11-2 | Away: 3-4 | Neutral: 1-1

NOVEMBER Result/Time (AZ)

10 Florida A&M W, 67-51 13 Robert Morris W, 75-61 18 Little Rock W, 76-5120 Norfolk State W, 85-60 25 San Diego L, 72-62DECEMBER 2 UC Riverside W, 68-56 5 St. John’s# (@Talking Stick Arena) L, 68-60 9 Grambling State W, 87-53 11 North Carolina Central W, 64-59 13 at Boise State L, 85-80 18 Mississippi Valley State W, 71-38 21 Longwood W, 86-56 23 at Louisville L, 74-5627 Morgan State# (@Orleans Arena) W, 100-7430 at Illinois L, 62-58JANUARY 6 at Seattle U* W, 73-57 11 New Mexico State* L, 70-59 13 UTRGV* W, 84-71 18 at Chicago State* W, 86-58 20 at UMKC* W, 86-69 23 William Jessup W, 96-8027 at Utah Valley* L, 68-56FEBRUARY 1 UMKC* 7:00 p.m. 3 Chicago State* 7:00 p.m. 8 at UTRGV* 6:00 p.m. 10 at New Mexico State* 7:00 p.m. 17 at CSU Bakersfield* 8:00 p.m. 22 Seattle U* 7:00 p.m. 24 Utah Valley* 7:00 p.m.MARCH 3 CSU Bakersfield* 7:00 p.m. 8-10 WAC Tournament# (Las Vegas, Nev.) TBD * Denotes WAC games # Neutral Site

MEN’S BASKETBALL2017-18 GAME NOTES

LIVE STATSStatbroadcasthttp://www.gcustats.com

TWITTER@GCU_MBB@GCU_Lopes

FTP INFORMATIONURL: https://swft.exavault.comUsername: GCUMediaPassword Lopes

WATCHYurView ArizonaBarry Buetel (play-by-play)Scott Williams (analyst)Kate Longworth (sideline)Online StreamGCU.tv / ESPN3

LISTEN1580 AM The Fanatic Michael Potter (play-by-play)Tom Kuyper (analyst)

1580 AM The Fanatic Stream (Stream)The Fanatic App (Download the App)

GRAND CANYONLOPES

(15-7, 4-2 WAC)

VS

UMKCKANGAROOS

(6-17, 1-5 WAC)

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 1, 2018 | GCU ARENA (7,000) | PHOENIX, ARIZ.

SERIES HISTORY

Grand Canyon vs. UMKC• 12th meeting all-time dating back to 1974.• Overall: 8-3 (Home: 5-1, Away: 3-2, Neutral: 0-0)• Last time: GCU 86, UMKC 69, 1/20/18 (Kansas City, Mo.) • Streak: Grand Canyon, Won 2

GAME 23

• Since the 2014-15 season, the Lopes are 20-1 when returning to GCU Arena following a road or neutral site game.

• The Lopes rank number one in the nation in 3-point defense, allowing only 4.36 threes per game. Additionally, GCU ranks second nationally in holding opponents to just 27.9 percent from beyond the arc.

• GCU ranks 15th in the country in scoring defense (63.3 points per game). In the last three seasons, GCU is 30-2 when allowing 61 points or less.

• Additionally, the Lopes rank fourth in the country in effective opponent field goal percentage at 42.9 percent, trailing only Michigan State, Cincinnati, and Virginia. Effective field goal percentage factors in weighted figures for 3-point field goals.

• The Lopes rank 26th in the country in assists with 371. Casey Benson ranks 65th nationally averaging 5.0 per game.

• Josh Braun recorded his 31st 20-point game of his GCU career with 22 points vs. William Jessup, shooting 7-of-11 from the field, including four 3-pointers, and connecting on 4-of-6 free throws.

• Alessandro Lever recorded his first double-double with 24 points and 10 rebounds vs. UMKC, later earning him WAC Player of the Week honors. Lever is averaging 24.8 points and 7.5 rebounds over his last four games, shooting 64.4 percent from the field.

• Lever is one of only four freshmen in the country to be averaging at least 16.0 points while shooting greater than 55 percent from the field in conference play, joining Duke’s Marvin Bagley III, Arizona’s DeAndre Ayton and Austin Peay’s Terry Taylor.

• Casey Benson recorded his first career double-double against William Jessup, recording 12 points and a career-best 10 assists.

• Over his last four games, Benson has 30 assists to just four turnovers.• GCU leads the WAC in field goal percentage defense (.394),

three-point field goal percentage defense (.279), and offensive rebounding (12.5).

15-7 W/L 6-17

74.3 PTSPER GAME 69.9

+11.0 SCORINGMARGIN -7.0

.436 FG% .398

.326 3FG% .339

.694 FT% .693

39.2 REBPER GAME 31.8

16.9 ASTPER GAME 11.4

14.2 TOPER GAME 13.0

6.6 STLPER GAME 6.8

4.0 BLKPER GAME 2.8

LAST GAME’S STARTERS

NO. PLAYER POS. G PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% FT% 3PT% 11 Casey Benson G 22 9.5 3.8 5.0 0.7 0.1 35.7 75.6 31.5 2 Joshua Braun G 22 13.8 4.0 1.6 1.0 0.4 41.5 71.7 39.4 4 Oscar Frayer F 21 8.8 4.9 1.1 1.2 0.6 45.9 48.7 31.3 24 Keonta Vernon F 22 8.0 7.5 1.3 0.6 1.5 49.0 57.9 0.0 25 Alessandro Lever C 22 9.8 4.0 1.2 0.3 0.3 49.1 67.7 27.5

GAME INFORMATION

Charles Hampton, Associate AD, Strategic Communications and PR · Office: (602) 639-7738 · Cell: (480) 628-1754 · E-mail: charles.hampton@gcu.edu

MEN’S BASKETBALL GAME NOTES

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2017-18 GRAND CANYON NUMERIC ROSTER

No. Name Pos. HT WT YR Hometown (Previous School) 0 . . .Shaq Carr . . . . . . . . . . .G . . . . 6-2 . . . . 172 . . . . . Sr. . . . North Las Vegas, Nev. (College of Southern Idaho) 1 . . .Fiifi Aidoo . . . . . . . . . . .G . . . . 6-2 . . . 200 . . . . . So. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Helsinki, Finland (HBA - Marksy) 2 . . .Joshua Braun . . . . . . . .G . . . . 6-4 . . . 220 . . . . . R-Sr. . . . . . . . . Anthem, Ariz. (Westwind Prep Academy) 3 . . .Parker Dale . . . . . . . . . .G . . . . 6-4 . . . 205 . . . . . Fr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Sydney, Australia (Scots College) 4 . . .Oscar Frayer . . . . . . . . .G . . . . 6-7 . . . . 191 . . . . . So. . . . . . . . . . . . . Oakland, Calif. (Moreau Catholic HS) 5 . . .Matt Jackson . . . . . . . . . F . . . . 6-8 . . . 230 . . . . . R-Jr. . . . . . . . . . . Melbourne, Australia (Diamond Valley) 10 . . .Damari Milstead . . . . . . .G . . . . 6-2 . . . 160 . . . . . Fr. . . . . . . . . . . . . Hayward, Calif. (Moreau Catholic HS) 11 . . .Casey Benson . . . . . . . .G . . . . 6-3 . . . 185 . . . . . Sr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tempe, Ariz. (Oregon) 12 . . .Roberts Blumbergs . . . . F . . . .6-10 . . . 220 . . . . . Fr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ventspils, Latvia (GBA - Prague) 13 . . .Ibrahima Sankare. . . . . .G . . . . 6-7 . . . 200 . . . . . R-Fr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Thiès, Senegal (SEED Academy) 15 . . .Cheick Sy-Savane . . . . . .G . . . . 6-3 . . . 180 . . . . . Sr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . New York, N.Y. (Suffolk County CC) 21 . . .Kerwin Smith. . . . . . . . . F . . . . 6-9 . . . 222 . . . . . R-Jr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dallas, Texas (Woodow Wilson HS) 22 . . .Nehemiah Allen . . . . . G/F . . . . 6-5 . . . .170 . . . . . So. . . . . . . . . . . . .Lake Oswego, Ore. (Lake Oswego HS) 24 . . .Keonta Vernon . . . . . . . . F . . . . 6-6 . . . .242 . . . . . Sr. . . . . . . . . . Tulare, Calif. (College of Southern Idaho) 25 . . .Alessandro Lever . . . . . .C . . . .6-10 . . . 230 . . . . . Fr. . . . . . . . . . Bolzano, Italy (Grissin Bon Reggio Emilia) 42 . . .Gerard Martin . . . . . . . .G . . . . 6-7 . . . 223 . . . . . R-Jr. . . . . . Manly, Australia (Australian Institute of Sport)

2017-18 GRAND CANYON ALPHABETICAL ROSTER

No. Name Pos. HT WT YR Hometown (Previous School) 1 . . .Aidoo, Fiifi . . . . . . . . . . .G . . . . 6-2 . . . 200 . . . . . So. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Helsinki, Finland (HBA - Marksy) 22 . . .Allen, Nehemiah . . . . . G/F . . . . 6-5 . . . .170 . . . . . So. . . . . . . . . . . . .Lake Oswego, Ore. (Lake Oswego HS) 11 . . .Benson, Casey . . . . . . . .G . . . . 6-3 . . . 185 . . . . . Sr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tempe, Ariz. (Oregon) 12 . . .Blumbergs, Roberts . . . . F . . . .6-10 . . . 220 . . . . . Fr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ventspils, Latvia (GBA (Prague)) 2 . . .Braun, Joshua . . . . . . . .G . . . . 6-4 . . . 220 . . . . . R-Sr. . . . . . . . . Anthem, Ariz. (Westwind Prep Academy) 0 . . .Carr, Shaq . . . . . . . . . . .G . . . . 6-2 . . . . 172 . . . . . Sr. . . . North Las Vegas, Nev. (College of Southern Idaho) 3 . . .Dale, Parker . . . . . . . . .G . . . . 6-4 . . . 205 . . . . . Fr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Sydney, Australia (Scots College) 4 . . .Frayer, Oscar . . . . . . . . .G . . . . 6-7 . . . . 191 . . . . . So. . . . . . . . . . . . . Oakland, Calif. (Moreau Catholic HS) 5 . . .Jackson, Matt . . . . . . . . F . . . . 6-8 . . . 230 . . . . . R-Jr. . . . . . . . . . . Melbourne, Australia (Diamond Valley) 25 . . .Lever, Alessandro . . . . . .C . . . .6-10 . . . 230 . . . . . Fr. . . . . . . . . . Bolzano, Italy (Grissin Bon Reggio Emilia) 42 . . .Martin, Gerard . . . . . . . .G . . . . 6-7 . . . 223 . . . . . R-Jr. . . . . . Manly, Australia (Australian Institute of Sport) 10 . . .Milstead, Damari . . . . . .G . . . . 6-2 . . . 160 . . . . . Fr. . . . . . . . . . . . . Hayward, Calif. (Moreau Catholic HS) 13 . . .Sankare, Ibrahima . . . . .G . . . . 6-7 . . . 200 . . . . . R-Fr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Thiès, Senegal (SEED Academy) 21 . . .Smith, Kerwin . . . . . . . . F . . . . 6-9 . . . 222 . . . . . R-Jr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dallas, Texas (Woodow Wilson HS) 15 . . .Sy-Savane, Cheick . . . . .G . . . . 6-3 . . . 180 . . . . . Sr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . New York, N.Y. (Suffolk County CC) 24 . . .Vernon, Keonta . . . . . . . F . . . . 6-6 . . . .242 . . . . . Sr. . . . . . . . . . Tulare, Calif. (College of Southern Idaho)

TABLE OF CONTENTS 2017-18 Quick Facts / Rosters ...............................2 Media Contact Information .....................................2 TV / Radio Roster ...........................................................3 Game Notes (Team / Player) .....................................4 Grand Canyon University Arena ............................ 9 Schedule Notes ........................................................... 10 Broadcast Schedule / Mid-Major Rankings ...... 11 Head Coach Dan Majerle ..........................................12 Grand Canyon Record When ...................................12 Grand Canyon Season Stats ................................. 13 The Last Time ............................................................... 27 2017-18 Game Recaps ..............................................29 Grand Canyon Broadcast Bios .............................50

MBB COMMUNICATIONS CONTACTS

Charles HamptonAssociate AD, Strategic Communications / PROffice Phone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 602-639-7738Cell Phone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 480-628-1754Email . . . . . . . . . . . . charles.hampton@gcu.edu

Josh HauserAssistant Director, Athletic CommunicationsOffice Phone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 602-639-6126Cell Phone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 503-734-8587Email . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .josh.hauser@gcu.edu

GCU ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS

The Grand Canyon Athletics Department is served by a communications office staff that works diligently to promote the individual and team accomplishments of student-athletes, coaches and staff. Our staff will fulfill all reasonable requests.

CREDENTIALS

All members of the office follow the guidelines set forth by the NCAA and the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) in governing the issuance of credentials. All credential requests should be submitted to the sport contacts.

INTERVIEW REQUESTS

When making interview requests through the communications office, please allow at least 24 hours notice. If the time requested with a student-athlete or coach is longer than normal (for photography or videography purposes), more advance notice will help ensure that your request will be handled efficiently. Home and cell phone numbers for players will not be provided. Please do not contact a player or coach without scheduling the interview through the communications office.

E-MAIL

Releases, game notes and advisories are e-mailed to media that cover GCU on a regular basis. Media wishing to be added to the e-mail list for a particular sport should contact the sport contact.

ONLINE

Updated bios, notes, rosters, schedules, statistics and more will be available throughout the season for every sport on GCULopes.com. Specific information not readily available on the website may be available through the communications office. Please contact the sport representative with your request.

INJURY INFORMATION

Grand Canyon University athletics will abide by HIPAA - a federal privacy act with regard to the release of injury information. GCU athletes will be required to sign a waiver before their injury information is released to the media. If the athlete chooses to withhold that information, GCU officials will be restricted to informing the media members of their playing status only.

GRAND CANYON INFORMATIONSchool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Grand Canyon UniversityLocation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Phoenix, Ariz.Founded . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1949Enrollment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19,500President . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Brian MuellerVice President of Athletics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mike VaughtFaculty Representative . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Claude Pensis Affiliation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .NCAA Division INickname . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .LopesMascot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ThunderColors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Purple, Black & WhiteConference . . . . . . . . Western Athletic Conference (WAC)

GRAND CANYON UNIVERSITY ARENA

Opened . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sept. 1, 2011Capacity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7,000Grand Canyon Record at GCU Arena . . . . . . . . 95-20 (.826)

PROGRAM HISTORY

First Year of Basketball at GCU . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1949-50All-Time Record . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,156-721 (.616)All-Time Division I Record . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .96-53(.644)All-Time WAC Record . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44-20 (.688)

COACHING STAFF

Head Coach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dan Majerle (5th season) Alma Mater . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Central Michigan Grand Canyon Record . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96-53 (.644) WAC Record . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44-20 (.688) Overall Record . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96-53 (.644) Assistant Coach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Todd Lee (South Dakota)Assistant Coach . . . . . . . . . Chris Crevelone (Adams State)Assistant Coach . . . . . . . . . . . . . T.J. Benson (Weber State)Director of Basketball Operations . .Luke DallaRiva (San Diego)Special Assistant . . . . . . . . . . . Brendan Sabean (Gonzaga)Graduate Assistant . . . . . . . . . . .Johnny Hill (UT-Arlington) Director of Sports Performance . . . . . . . . . Gabe BourlandDirector of Sports Medicine . . . . . . . . . . . . Geordie Hackett

MAILING ADDRESS: Grand Canyon UniversityDepartment of Athletics3300 West Camelback RoadPhoenix, Ariz. 85017

MEN’S BASKETBALL GAME NOTES

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2017-18 TV / RADIO ROSTER

0 SHAQ CARR 1 FIIFI

AIDOO 2 JOSHUA BRAUN 3 PARKER

DALE 4 OSCAR FRAYER 5 MATT

JACKSONG • 6-2 • 170SeniorNorth Las Vegas, Nev.

G • 6-2 • 200SophomoreHelsinki, Finland

G • 6-4 • 205RS SeniorAnthem, Ariz.

G • 6-4 • 205FreshmanSydney, Australia

F • 6-6 • 190SophomoreOakland, Calif.

F • 6-8 • 230RS JuniorMelbourne, Australia

10 DAMARI MILSTEAD 11 CASEY

BENSON 12 ROBERTS BLUMBERGS 13 IBRAHIMA

SANKARE 15 CHEICK SY-SAVANE 21 KERWIN

SMITHG • 6-2 • 160FreshmanHayward, Calif.

G • 6-3 • 185SeniorTempe, Ariz.

F • 6-10 • 220FreshmanVentspils, Latvia

G • 6-7 • 200FreshmanThiès, Senegal

G • 6-3 • 180SeniorHarlem , N.Y.

F • 6-9 • 222RS JuniorDallas, Texas

22 NEHEMIAH ALLEN 24 KEONTA

VERNON 25 ALESSANDRO LEVER 42 GERARD

MARTINF • 6-5 • 170 SophomoreLake Oswego, Ore.

F • 6-6 • 242 SeniorTulare, Calif.

C • 6-10 • 230FreshmanBolzano, Italy

G • 6-6 • 223RS JuniorManly, Australia

HEAD COACH

DAN MAJERLEASSOCIATE HEAD COACH

TODD LEEASSISTANT COACH

CHRIS CREVELONEASSISTANT COACH

T.J. BENSONDIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS

LUKE DALLARIVASPECIAL ASSISTANT

BRENDAN SABEAN5th Season at GCU

(96-53, 44-20) 5th Season at GCU 5th Season at GCU 6th Season at GCU 4th Season at GCU 3rd Season at GCU

PRONUNCIATION GUIDE

Fiifi Aidoo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FEE-fee ay-DUENehemiah Allen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NEE-uh-my-uhRobert Blumbergs . . . . . . . . . . . . . BLUM-bergsJoshua Braun . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . brawnAlessandro Lever . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . LAY-verGerard Martin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . jared Dan Majerle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . mar-LEEIbrahima Sankare . . . E-bruh-he-muh sawn-CAR-ayKeonta Vernon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . KEY-on-tay

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HOME SWEET HOME

The Lopes have enjoyed playing their home games at Grand Canyon University Arena. Since the arena opened prior to the 2011-12 season, GCU has recorded a 93-20 (.823) record, proving to be quite the home-court advantage.

GCU continued its dominance at home last season, where the Lopes compiled a 15-3 record at GCU Arena for the 2016-17 season, including wins over San Diego State and New Mexico State. Including the 2015-16 season where GCU went 18-2 at home, the Lopes have won 43 home games over the last two-plus seasons, tied for the fourth best total in the country.

An intimidating factor for opponents, the large Havocs student section has proven to be one of the best in the Western Athletic Conference. The Havocs create an imposing backdrop for visiting teams as they fill the arena with energy and enthusiasm.

“It’s unbelievable,” head coach Dan Majerle said. “We love our crowd, our student section, our overall crowd, our atmosphere here. We have a true home-court advantage and it’s a pleasure to play here every night and our guys don’t take it for granted.”

MOST HOME WINS IN NCAA DIVISION I (SINCE 2015-16)Rk. Institution Conference Wins1 Saint Mary’s (CA) West Coast 482 Louisville Atlantic Coast 47 Southern Methodist American Athletic 474 Oregon Pac-12 465 Kentucky Southeastern 45 Purdue Big Ten 457 GRAND CANYON WESTERN ATHLETIC 44 Arizona Pac-12 44 Florida Gulf Coast Atlantic Sun 4410 Cincinnati American Athletic 43 Texas Tech Big 12 43

LEVER HITS GROUND RUNNING IN CONFERENCE

Freshman Alessandro Lever has featured solid play throughout his first season in a GCU uniform. But his level of play took a big step forward during the Lopes’ Midwest swing at Chicago State and UMKC and has continued.

LEVER’S LAST FOUR GAMES PPG RPG FG 3PT FT 24.8 7.5 38-59 (.644) 4-10 (.400) 19-29 (.655)

Since the beginning of WAC play, very few freshmen across college basketball are producing at the same efficient level as Lever. The 6-10 big man is one of just a handful of freshmen nationally that are scoring at least 15 points while maintaining a 60.0 percent field goal rate.

FRESHMEN WITH 16.0+ PPG WHILE SHOOTING 55.0+% FG (CONFERENCE)Rk. Player School G FG% PPG 1 Marvin Bagley III Duke 10 .571 21.52 DeAndre Ayton Arizona 9 .623 19.43 Terry Taylor Austin Peay 10 .561 17.04 Alessandro Lever Grand Canyon 6 .597 16.0

A NIGHT FOR THE RECORD BOOKS

A record crowd of 7,521 convened for the latest edition of the Grand Canyon - New Mexico State matchup, a pairing that has turned into quite the rivalry and only continues to heat up.

A star-studded crowd featured D-backs fiery reliever Archie Bradley, Suns legend Tom Chambers, Ann Meyers Drysdale, Jerry Colangelo as well as Dick and Tom Van Arsdale.

Jan. 11’s game with New Mexico State topped the previous GCU Arena record set in last year’s regular season finale, a senior night matchup with UMKC on Feb. 25. On that night, 7,503 fans filled the arena to see the final game in the career of DeWayne Russell.

Attendance numbers continue to skyrocket for the fifth-year Division I program. As of Jan. 20, Grand Canyon ranks 13th nationally in percent of venue capacity filled (99.9%). GCU is averaging 6,990 fans, just a tick under GCU Arena’s 7,000-seat capacity. And that’s despite five games with the student body, which accounts for approximately 3,000 fans, out on break. The nearest WAC team, New Mexico State, averages 4,735 fans per game, 37.7% of its capacity.

2017-18 GAME NOTES

A TOP PERIMETER DEFENSE

Majerle’s emphasis on defense has been constant during his tenure leading the program. Through 20 games this season, his message has successfully translated to on-court results.

As of Jan. 30, Grand Canyon’s scoring defense ranks 15th nationally. GCU is limiting its opponents to 39.4 percent shooting, a No. 15 mark nationally. The Lopes are second in the nation in limiting opponents’ success beyond the arc.

“We’re going to hang our hats on the defensive end,” senior forward Keonta Vernon said. “The plays that Coach Majerle has are unbelievable. We’re going to get a shot if we run them the right way. It comes down to getting stops. Coach Majerle told us we need to worry about being one of the best defenses in the country. That’s a lot of our mindsets and Coach Majerle is getting other guys to worry about defense first and the offense will come.”

GCU’s gaudy defensive numbers lead the WAC as it currently stands including an advantage of 1.8 fewer points per game allowed than the conference’s second-best defense in New Mexico State. The Lopes’ defensive prowess has led to a +11.6 scoring margin which is second.

HAPPY TO BE BACK HOME

GCU’s wild homecourt advantage has been well documented. The team’s on-court success has proven it by the way the Lopes play when they return home from games away from GCU.

In the first home game following a road or neutral-site contest, GCU is 24-4 since making the transition to D-I. They are 20-1 in such games since the 2014-15 season.

2013-14 2014-15 2015-16 2016-17 2017-18 D1 Era4-3 6-0 6-0 6-0 2-1 24-4

J.B. FOR THREE

Joshua Braun has steadily climbed up the ranks in the GCU record books. After draining 56 3-pointers his freshman season, Braun followed that up with 73 treys as a sophomore and 64 more in an injury-plagued junior season last year.

With his third 3-pointer against Robert Morris on Nov. 13, Braun passed Richard Davis as the school’s all-time leading outside shooter across all divisions of play with 198 career 3-pointers. Davis hit 197 career 3-pointers for the Lopes from 2005-07, including a school-record 107 3-pointers during the 2005-06 season. With 48 3-pointers so far this season, Braun’s record total is up to 241 for his illustrious GCU career.

WAC CAREER 3-POINT FIELD GOAL MAKESRk. Player School Years 3PM1 Jaycee Carroll Utah State 2004-08 2902 Raymond Dudley Air Force 1986-90 285 Clayton Sheidls New Mexico 1995-98 2854 Dominick Young Fresno State 1995-97 2795 Stephen Woods SMU 1997-00 2736 Terrance Roberson Fresno State 1997-00 2717 Tony Ross San Diego State 1987-89 2708 Coby Karl Boise State 2003-07 2669 Rob Robbins New Mexico 1988-91 26410 Jonathan Gibson NM State 2006-10 25911 Dante Swanson Tulsa 1999-03 24812 JOSH BRAUN GRAND CANYON 2015-18 241

SCORING DEFENSERk. School PPG1 Virginia 52.12 Cincinnati 56.23 UCF 60.24 New Mexico State 61.95 SMU 62.06 Texas Tech 62.17 Loyola Chicago 62.58 Northern Iowa 62.69 Bradley 62.710 Texas State 62.911 Old Dominion 62.912 Michigan 63.113 Rutgers 63.214 Syracuse 63.215 GRAND CANYON 63.3

3-POINT DEFENSERk. School 3FG%1 San Diego 27.52 GRAND CANYON 27.93 Duquesne 28.24 Kentucky 28.85 Virginia 29.16 Nevada 30.27 Missouri State 30.38 Northern Kentucky 30.39 Sam Houston State 30.310 Penn 30.311 Jacksonville 30.412 New Mexico State 30.413 Georgia Southern 30.414 Louisville 30.515 Boise State 30.5

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2017-18 GAME NOTES

LOPES PICKED FIRST IN BOTH PRESEASON POLLS

Following their third consecutive second-place finish, the Lopes were picked to finish first in both the coaches’ and media WAC Preseason Polls for the 2017-18 season, their first being eligible for the conference and any NCAA postseason tournaments.

2017-18 PRESEASON MEN’S BASKETBALL COACHES POLLRank Team (First-place votes) Points1. GRAND CANYON (6) 462. New Mexico State (1) 403. CSU Bakersfield 384. Utah Valley (1) 365. Seattle U 256. UTRGV 167. UMKC 148. Chicago State 9

2017-18 PRESEASON MEN’S BASKETBALL MEDIA POLLRank Team (First-place votes) Points1. GRAND CANYON (14) 1892. New Mexico State (7) 1813. Utah Valley (3) 1534. Seattle U (1) 1485. Utah Valley (2) 916. UMKC (2) 727. UTRGV 718. Chicago State 31

BRAUN EARNS TOP PRESEASON ALL-WAC HONORS

Following a 2016-17 season that saw him average 17.5 points per game, Joshua Braun was named the WAC Preseason Player of the Year by both the coaches and the media for the second consecutive season. Braun, a two-time All-WAC First Team selection, led the WAC last season in three-pointers made, was top-10 in free-throw percentage, three-point percentage and minutes played.

2017-18 PRESEASON ALL-WAC TEAM (COACHES POLL) First Team (Player, School) Second Team (Player, School) JOSHUA BRAUN, GRAND CANYON Shon Briggs, CSU Bakersfield Eli Chuha, NM State Matej Kavas, Seattle U Nick Dixon, UTRGV Sidy N’Dir, NM State Damiyne Durham, CSU Bakersfield Isaac Neilson, Utah Valley Fred Sims, Jr., Chicago State Brent Wrapp, CSU Bakersfield Player of the Year: JOSHUA BRAUN, GRAND CANYON

2017-18 PRESEASON ALL-WAC TEAM (MEDIA POLL) First Team (Player, School) Second Team (Player, School) JOSHUA BRAUN, GRAND CANYON CASEY BENSON, GRAND CANYON Eli Chuha, NM State Damiyne Durham, CSU Bakersfield Nick Dixon, UTRGV Jemerrio Jones, NM State Isaac Neilson, Utah Valley Matej Kavas, Seattle U Fred Sims, Jr., Chicago State Brent Wrapp, CSU Bakersfield Player of the Year: JOSHUA BRAUN, GRAND CANYON

SEASON TICKETS GO POOF!

Six weeks before the Grand Canyon men’s basketball season started, they had already sold out its season tickets for the 2017-18 season, displaying the anticipation for the program’s first season of Division I postseason eligibility after two consecutive 20-win seasons.

Well before the Lopes’ season began in early November, 7,205 seats were claimed between public season tickets and student season tickets. Last season, GCU ranked 23rd nationally for home attendance capacity (97.3 percent) and averaged 6,817 fans per home game.

“One thing I don’t worry about is our crowd, but it’s obviously great to have a season-ticket sellout,” head coach Dan Majerle said. “The students always come out in force, but to get that backing from the season-ticket holders is awesome.”

GCU Arena will play host to 19 games for the 2017-18 men’s basketball season. Given the sold-out season tickets, a GCU home game will be the Valley’s toughest sports ticket.

“We’ve always had crowds and we continue to build them,” Majerle said. “It’s just going to add to one of the best atmospheres in all of college basketball. The interest is great, and hopefully we’ll keep it going and have a terrific year.”

THE LIGHTER SIDE OF BRAUN

There is only one case in which less of Josh Braun can lead to good things for Grand Canyon men’s basketball: his weight.

Braun dropped 25 pounds since the start of last season, going from 230 pounds to 205 pounds through a revised weightlifting program and a change in eating habits. With less Braun brawn, the 6-foot-4 guard is feeling healthier and more athletic as the Lopes start the 2017-18 season.

“I was really heavy up top,” Braun said. “A lot of muscle I didn’t need. I looked like a football player. I slimmed down. I look more like a basketball player. I feel more like a basketball player. I’m quicker and my body feels good.”

Braun changed how he lifted weights, went to spin classes twice a week (“Those things will kick your butt,” Braun said), stopped eating after 8 p.m., cut back on carbohydrates and added more lean meats, vegetables and smoothies. It also meant asking his mother to stop giving him sweets.

BRAINS AND BRAUN

Joshua Braun was named to the 2016-17 CoSIDA first-team Academic All-America Division I men’s basketball team by the College Sports Information Directors of American (CoSIDA).

Braun joined Florida’s Canyon Barry as the only repeat first-team selection from 2016-16. He has a 4.0 GPA in his masters of business administration program after completing his undergraduate degree in business management last spring. In 2015-16, Braun became GCU’s first-ever first team selection in men’s basketball and the first since Kevin Warren earned second team honors in 1986.

The redshirt junior from Anthem, Ariz., was joined on the first team by Barry, junior A.J. Jacobson of North Dakota State, graduate student Alec Peters of Valparaiso and junior Nigel Williams-Goss of Gonzaga. The five members of the first team have an average GPA of 3.83.

Grand Canyon now has 29 Academic All-Americans® in school history, including eight in the Division I era, and Braun is the 11th student-athlete to be named to the first team. Additionally, he becomes just the eighth two-time first team Academic All-American® in WAC history and the first since UTEP’s Brandon Wolfram in 2001.

WATCH PARTY (PART III)

Following a 2015-16 season that saw him named to the Lou Henson All-America Team, Joshua Braun was again named to the Lou Henson Preseason Watch List last season, an award given to the nation’s top Division I mid-major player. The third time might be the charm as Braun has been once again, named to the Preseason Watch List.

Lou Henson coached for 41 years. When he left the game in 2005, he was sixth all-time in career Division I wins with 779. He is the winningest coach at both Illinois and NM State and is one of only 12 coaches in the history of the game to take two schools to the Final Four.

The recipient of the 2018 Lou Henson Award will be announced at the CollegeInsider.com awards banquet on March 31 , 2018 at the CollegeInsider.com Awards Event in San Antonio, Texas, site of the men’s NCAA Division I Basketball Championship. No other WAC players made it on to the list.

VIVA #WACVEGAS

The 2018 WAC Basketball Tournament returns to the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas for the eighth year in a row. The tournament will be held March 8-10, and will include all eight men’s and women’s teams.

This will be the first season that the Lopes will be able to participate in the conference tournament, following a four-year transition from Division II play prior to the 2013-14 season.

GCU got an early sneak peek of the venue when they hosted a neutral-site contest against Morgan State on Dec. 27 with the intention of familiarizing themselves with the venue. Without that early look, the Lopes prevented themselves from being the only WAC school playing in Orleans Arena for the first time.

ESPN will once again broadcast the WAC men’s tournament championship game on March 10. The men’s championship game will be broadcast by ESPNU at 7 p.m. (PT).

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CASEY CAME HOME

Casey Benson already lived a basketball dream with a hometown Final Four appearance last year, but his storybook finish is still to come.

Early in the 2017-18 season, Benson’s role at GCU has taken on a new look compared to his duties at Oregon. Tasked with looking for his shot more often, Benson has already set career highs in points (18 vs. St. John’s on Dec. 5), rebounds (10 vs. San Diego on Nov. 25) and minutes (38 at Boise State on Dec. 13). He also had the first three-game stretch of double-figure scoring in his career in mid-November.

After the Tempe, Ariz., product helped Oregon to the NCAA semifinals at University of Phoenix Stadium, Benson’s thoughts quickly turned 9 miles east to the Grand Canyon campus where he now resides and plays.

Benson graduated in three years, enabling a transfer with immediate eligibility. His older brother, T.J., is a GCU assistant coach.

“It’s amazing how all the stars aligned,” Casey said.

The stars are lining up in the Lopes’ backcourt, where Benson takes over the point alongside his former youth recreation league teammate, GCU shooting guard Josh Braun. Benson won three consecutive Arizona state championships at Corona del Sol High School and tallied the second-most wins in Ducks history (90).

The addition of Benson continues a tradition of impact graduate transfers under Majerle, following Grandy Glaze in 2015-16 and Darion Clark in 2016-17. Glaze won the Riley Wallace award, given to the top transfer in Division I college basketball.

HANDLE WITH CARE

Casey Benson has always had a solid assist-to-turnover ratio in his career, but that was taken to extremes in 2015-16 when the senior was a sophomore at Oregon. He had just 24 turnovers in 1,091 minutes played, compared to 117 assists, to lead the nation with a 4.9-to-1 assist to turnover ratio. At one point during the season, Benson’s ATO was 15.5-to-1.

Benson left Oregon as the school’s all-time leader in assist-to-turnover ratio and his career mark of 3.30-to-1 ranks him second all-time in Pac-12 history, trailing only UCLA’s Darren Collison, who recorded a mark of 3.56 from 2005-09.

NCAA LEADERS, ASSIST-TO-TURNOVER RATIO (2015-16)Rk. Player School G Ast TO Ratio1 CASEY BENSON OREGON 38 117 24 4.882 Trey Pinkney SFA 34 125 28 4.463 Monté Morris Iowa St. 35 241 57 4.234 James Robinson Pittsburgh 33 166 42 3.955 Jabril Durham Arkansas 32 204 57 3.586 Tyler Ulis Kentucky 35 246 69 3.577 Lourawls Nairn Jr. Michigan St. 29 92 26 3.548 Josh Brown Temple 33 161 46 3.508 Haiishen McIntyre High Point 32 105 30 3.5010 Eric Garcia Wofford 32 153 47 3.26

MIDNIGHT MADNESS: TAKE WHAT’S YOURS

Grand Canyon basketball players got their first win without needing to do much more than wave on Friday, Oct. 6. Midnight Madness was a team victory earned by the GCU campus. The sweat came from students, who started forming a line over 48 hours prior, stretched it more than a half-mile by Friday night and dashed for GCU Arena seats.

“Congratulations, because you’re not just one of the best sections in all of college basketball; you are the best,” said Majerle. “Here’s what I say: I promise you every night when we come to this arena, our guys and the gals will give everything they have to make you guys proud.

“With the reputation you guys have made for yourselves, let’s do this. And then let’s win the WAC. And then let’s win the WAC Tournament. And then President (Brian) Mueller will fly you all to wherever we’re playing in the NCAA Tournament.”

Benson

MAJERLE ENTERS AZ SPORTS HALL OF FAME

In an event honoring Arizona sports legends, Grand Canyon men’s basketball coach Dan Majerle still stood out on Nov. 1. The 47th Arizona Sports Hall of Fame class included iconic and pioneering sports figures but no inductee approached the popularity of Majerle, from the red carpet to his induction’s cheers and standing ovation to the post-ceremony photo requests.

Majerle joined Arizona Cardinals owner Bill Bidwill, Arizona State professor and former sports columnist Paola Boivin, Arizona Coyotes great Shane Doan and ASU wrestling great Anthony Robles as this year’s inductees. Majerle’s Phoenix Suns playing career earned the nod and his successful five-year run as GCU coach cemented the honor, putting him in the Hall of Fame with Lopes baseball luminary Tim Salmon.

“The marriage between Dan Majerle and Grand Canyon has been incredible,” former Suns owner and GCU key figure Jerry Colangelo said in Majerle’s induction video. “He is gaining more and more respect around the country for the job he’s done at Grand Canyon and I couldn’t be happier for him.”

NEUTRAL-SITE NOTABLES

As GCU Arena has developed a staunch reputation for the homecourt advantage it provides, neutral-site games may be, for now, the way GCU lines up quality competition on its schedule. St. John’s head coach Chris Mullin said as much following his team’s narrow win at Talking Stick Resort Arena in the Valley of the Sun Showcase on Dec. 5, 2017: “I’ve seen some of their games on campus, and I was just glad that we didn’t play there. I have a lot of respect for Dan [Majerle] and Jerry [Colangelo] ... they’ve done a great job. Everything that Jerry Colangelo touches turns to gold, so it was just a matter of time.” The Lopes have made some noise during Majerle’s tenure in neutral-site competition. A Division I unknown at the time, the Lopes took part in the Global Sports Classic on Dec. 21 and 22, 2015 in Las Vegas. In the semifinals, the Lopes erased a nine-point second-half deficit to defeat the Houston Cougars 78-69 behind DeWayne Russell’s 20 points and 6 assists. The following day, the Lopes once again came from behind to win their fourth game in a row. Braun was named the tournament MVP after scoring 20 points in the championship game. The Lopes participated in another tournament, the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off Tournament in Uncasville, Ct., to start the 2016-17 season. After two tough campus games at Duke and Penn State, the Lopes turned things around vs. Albany and Marist in the neutral site games on Nov. 19 and 20 to win the Springfield Bracket championship. Russell and Braun were both named to the All-Tournament team. Over the past two seasons, the Lopes are now 5-1 in games played at a neutral site. Since Majerle took the reigns of the program in 2013-14, the Lopes are 7-3 on neutral courts.

FEELING AT HOME ON THE ROAD

Already recognized as college basketball’s biggest party, the GCU Havocs frequently extend their antics far beyond the walls of GCU Arena. The Havocs take their show on the road when possible and transform opposing and neutral-site venues into a decidedly pro-purple party. Things were no different on Dec. 5 when GCU played in Talking Stick Resort Arena against St. John’s. An excess of 1,500 GCU students made their collective voice heard in front of a national TV audience in the BBVA Compass Valley of the Sun Showcase. While the Havocs were certainly there for GCU’s matchup with St. John’s, they were in their seats early enough to cheer in-state ally, Arizona, to a big win over No. 7 Texas A&M. Arizona players took to Twitter following their win to compliment the Havocs on their antics to force key missed free throws down the stretch. In a 2016 road contest against No. 19 Arizona in Tucson, Wildcats head coach Sean Miller noted he witnessed a McKale Center first. “In my eight years, I’ve never seen a student section in McKale filled with the visitors. They had a whole section. You could hear them cheering. You could just tell they’ve got a great spirit about what they’re doing, and that’s to Grand Canyon’s credit.” “I always hear the Havocs, they’re my guys, they’re the best.” Majerle said after the narrow loss. “They travel well. We’re lucky to have them.” A yearly road trip tradition has quickly developed with bus loads of Havocs making the 12-hour round trip journey to Las Cruces, N.M. for the program’s budding rivalry with WAC foe New Mexico State. And with a conference tournament finally in play for the Lopes, the Havocs have already begun making preparations for a March trip to Las Vegas for the WAC Tournament.

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INTERNATIONAL FLAVOR

Head coach Dan Majerle and his staff have covered the country looking for the best talent to recruit to play for the Lopes. For the 2017-18 season, they’ve extended into international borders as well. Seven of the 16 players on the roster hail from countries outside of the United States.

LOPES EN ESPAÑA

GCU coaches and players were able to get an early jump on the 2017-18 season with the NCAA allowance for 10 practices on campus before an international trip, which a program can schedule once per four years. The 2017 edition took the Lopes to Barcelona, Spain, where the team was scheduled to play three exhibition games as well as partaking in cultural events throughout the city.

As it ended up, the Lopes practiced twice and played only one exhibition game, a 96-58 victory, on the trip (which included two cultural tours of Barcelona) prior to a terrorist attack, which killed 13 people and injured dozens at a crowded Las Ramblas pedestrian boulevard.

GCU was one of five NCAA Division I men’s basketball teams touring Barcelona for practices and exhibition games at the time of the attack. GCU, Arizona, Clemson, Oregon State and Tulane all returned to the U.S. immediately following the attack.

“The safety and well-being of our student-athletes and staff are our top priorities,” GCU Vice President of Athletics Mike Vaught said. “With that in mind, the university decided to make the safest decision possible following the attack on Barcelona.”

RUSSELL’S STOCK RISING

Following his 2016-17 season that saw him lead the WAC in scoring and assists, GCU Alumnus DeWayne Russell was initially signed as an injury replacement with SLUC Nancy Basket, a professional club in France. His stay became much more than temporary last week as his contract was extended through the end of the season.

Through 14 games played on the regular season slate, Russell ranks third in the Ligue Nationale de Basket Pro B League with 6.6 assists per game to go along with 14.1 points and 2.9 rebounds.

“He has already erased a number of his mistakes and is progressing quickly and well,” head coach Grego Beugnot said during a press conference. “He will have more pressure on his shoulders, but we will be there to help and support him. He already has the characteristics of a leader. DeWayne wanted to keep growing with us... it’s done now.”

“That’s exactly what you want to do overseas – be able to perform, show how you play and then other teams get to look at you,” GCU head coach Dan Majerle said. “That’s how you build your resume. I’m real happy for him. I have no doubt that Dewayne will be extremely successful over there. With how much he loves playing basketball, how good he is and how hard he works, he’ll become an instant favorite over there.”

FIIFI AIDOOHelsinki, Finland

GERARD MARTINManly, Australia

MATT JACKSONMelbourne, Australia

ALESSANDRO LEVERBolzano, Italy

PARKER DALESydney, Australia

IBRAHIMA SANKAREThiès, Senegal

ROBERTS BLUMBERGSVentspils, Latvia

GCU VISITS NEVADA FOR RELIEF EXHIBITION

GCU added a last-minute road exhibition to its 2017-18 schedule, traveling to Reno, Nev. to take on Nevada, who is now ranked in the AP Top-25, in a game that raised money for North Bay Fire Relief. The NCAA allows teams to play a third exhibition game for charitable purposes.

“GCU is all about outreach and helping doing as much as they can,” Majerle said. “That’s something we really thrive on as a university. Anything that we can do to help people that need help is a great opportunity. We’re very happy to do that, and this is an awesome event for us.”

Despite missing Joshua Braun, the Lopes led 40-39 until Nevada ended the first-half scoring with two free throws and continued a 16-0 stretch with the second half’s first 14 points. The Pack would hold the lead until the end, coming away with a 81-72 win.

Sophomore Oscar Frayer led the Lopes in scoring with 15 points on 7-of-18 shooting.

AIDOO REPRESENTS HOMELAND

Grand Canyon’s players carry more than a GCU flag when they play.

In August, Lopes sophomore guard Fiifi Aidoo helped his Finnish national team to a seventh-place finish at the World University Games. The GCU sophomore tallied nine points, four rebounds, three assists, three steals and a blocked shot in 21 minutes of Finland’s 79-70 win against Argentina in Taipei.

Finland reached the World University Games quarterfinals before losing 85-84 in double overtime to Serbia. Over eight games, Aidoo, a Ghana native who was raised in Finland from age 5, shot 50.9 percent from the field and averaged 9.0 points, 2.5 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.5 steals in 19.6 minutes per game. He scored 17 points in 16 minutes of play in a win against Hong Kong. Last year, Aidoo also played for Finland’s entry in the FIBA U20 European Championship. As a freshman, he averaged 4.6 points for the Lopes last season.

LOPES SIGN THREE FOR 2017-18

GCU announced the addition of Roberts Blumbergs, Alessandro Lever, and Damari Milstead to their 2017 signing class late last April.

Blumbergs, regarded as the top available center prospect in the 2017 recruiting class by Scout.com, is a 6-10 forward from Ventspils, Latvia, and played under Julian Betko at Get Better Academy (GBA) in Prague, Czech Republic. Blumbergs had a strong showing in the FIBA U18 European Championships in Samsun, Turkey, where he averaged 16.5 points and 9.8 rebounds, while also converting 10-for-22 from behind the three-point line and was rated as the top performer in terms of player efficiency in the tournament.

Lever, a 6-10 big man from Bolzano, Italy, also drew attention at the U18 European Championships. In six games with the Italian team, Lever averaged 13.2 points and 5.8 rebounds in the tournament, including 25 points against eventual champion France in the semifinals. Lever will also represent Italy in July at the FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup in Cairo, Egypt.

During the fall signing period, the Lopes signed decorated point guard Damari Milstead out of Moreau Catholic HS in Hayward, Calif. Milstead, the San Francisco Chronicle’s Metro Player of the Year, led the Mariners to a 100-21 record in four seasons. He amassed 2,353 points, 577 assists, 434 rebounds and 375 steals, winning two Northern California championships. During his senior campaign, Milstead averaged 25.8 points, 5.1 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 2.7 steals.

COLANGELO MUSEUM OPENS ON CAMPUS

About 2,200 square feet of GCU contains the life work of a Phoenix icon, who emerged from humble Chicago roots to change the sports and civic landscape for Arizona and beyond. The Jerry Colangelo Museum is a tribute and a treasury. It is a celebration and a destination.

For no admission cost, the public can visit a collection of Colangelo’s championship rings, gold medals, awards and trophies amid a display of his life through memorable photos.

“I am humbled by what they chose to do and how they did it,” Colangelo said. “This is world class. Everything (GCU President) Brian (Mueller) has done here is first class.”

The Jerry Colangelo Museum, located between GCU Arena and the main campus entrance, was a two-year project to honor a leader known for the rise of the Phoenix Suns and Arizona Diamondbacks and the restoration of USA Basketball before becoming affiliated with GCU in 2009.

Aidoo

MilsteadLeverBlumbergs

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2017-18 GCU SUPERLATIVES

STATISTICAL CATEGORY GRAND CANYON HIGH Points 100 Morgan State (12/27/17)Field Goals Made 34 2x, last vs . William Jessup (1/23/18)Field Goal Attempts 79 at Boise State, 2OT (12/13/17)Field Goal Percentage .654 (34-52) William Jessup (1/23/18)3 PT Field Goals Made 14 Norfolk State (11/20/17)3 PT Field Goals Attempted 36 UC Riverside (12/02/17)3 PT Field Goal Percentage .538 (14-26) Norfolk State (11/20/17)Free Throws Made 27 UTRGV (1/13/18)Free Throws Attempts 36 2x, last at UMKC (1/20/18)Free Throw Percentage .826 (19-23) Morgan State (12/27/17)Rebounds 49 Mississippi Valley State (12/18/17)Assists 29 William Jessup (1/23/18)Steals 12 UC Riverside (12/02/17)Blocked Shots 8 2x, last Mississippi Valley State (12/18/17)Turnovers 21 Robert Morris (11/13/17)Fouls 29 at Boise State, 2OT (12/13/17)

STATISTICAL CATEGORY GRAND CANYON LOW Points 56 2x, last at Utah Valley (1/27/18)Field Goals Made 20 vs St . John’s (12/05/17)Field Goal Attempts 43 Robert Morris (11/13/17)Field Goal Percentage .303 (20-66) vs St . John’s (12/05/17)3 PT Field Goals Made 3 at Illinois (12/30/17)3 PT Field Goals Attempted 15 at Utah Valley (1/27/18)3 PT Field Goal Percentage .111 (4-36) UC Riverside (12/02/17)Free Throws Made 6 at Louisville (12/23/17)Free Throws Attempts 12 at Louisville (12/23/17)Free Throw Percentage .500 (6-12) at Louisville (12/23/17)Rebounds 25 New Mexico State (1/11/18)Assists 9 vs St . John’s (12/05/17)Steals 2 2x, last at Utah Valley (1/27/18)Blocked Shots 1 3x, last at Chicago State (1/18/18)Turnovers 6 North Carolina Central (12/11/17)Fouls 15 2x, last vs . William Jessup (1/23/18)

STATISTICAL CATEGORY OPPONENT HIGH Points 85 at Boise State, 2OT (12/13/17)Field Goals Made 30 William Jessup (1/23/18)Field Goal Attempts 70 Morgan State (12/27/17)Field Goal Percentage .492 (29-59) San Diego (11/25/17)3 PT Field Goals Made 7 2x, vs . William Jessup (1/23/18)3 PT Field Goals Attempted 24 2x, last at UMKC (1/20/18)3 PT Field Goal Percentage .500 (2-4) Mississippi Valley State (12/18/17)Free Throws Made 29 UTRGV (1/13/18)Free Throws Attempts 37 at Boise State, 2OT (12/13/17)Free Throw Percentage .929 (13-14) William Jessup (1/23/18)Rebounds 50 New Mexico State (1/11/18)Assists 19 William Jessup (1/23/18)Steals 13 Robert Morris (11/13/17)Blocked Shots 6 at Louisville (12/23/17)Turnovers 24 UC Riverside (12/02/17)Fouls 29 2x, last at UMKC (1/20/18)

STATISTICAL CATEGORY OPPONENT LOW Points 38 Mississippi Valley State (12/18/17)Field Goals Made 14 Mississippi Valley State (12/18/17)Field Goal Attempts 46 North Carolina Central (12/11/17)Field Goal Percentage .273 (15-55) Little Rock (11/18/17)3 PT Field Goals Made 2 Grambling State (12/09/17)3 PT Field Goals Attempted 4 Mississippi Valley State (12/18/17)3 PT Field Goal Percentage .167 2x, last Grambling State (12/09/17)Free Throws Made 7 at Illinois (12/30/17)Free Throws Attempts 14 4x, last at William Jessup (1/23/18)Free Throw Percentage .533 (8-15) Mississippi Valley State (12/18/17)Rebounds 22 at UMKC (1/20/18)Assists 4 Little Rock (11/18/17)Steals 2 2x, last at Seattle U (1/6/18)Blocked Shots 0 2x, last at UMKC (1/20/18)Turnovers 7 at Utah Valley (1/27/18)Fouls 15 at Louisville (12/23/17)

FINKE INKS NLI TO JOIN LOPES

GCU’s recruiting efforts took a step into the national spotlight on Nov. 16, 2017, when four-star Illinois shooting guard Tim Finke signed his letter of intent with the Lopes. ESPN.com regarded Finke as Illinois’ No. 2 high school player and No. 27 shooting guard in the nation.

“I always wanted to be a part of something special,” Finke wrote in a Nov. 14 Instagram post announcing his commitment. “I found it here. To God be the glory. I’m home.”

According to 247Sports.com, Finke received offers from 22 programs including the likes of Oregon, Illinois, Notre Dame, Ohio State and Indiana.

Lopes assistant TJ Benson made five trips to visit Finke in Illinois. Feeling good about where he was leaving things on the final visit, Benson told Finke, “I have a feeling you know what you want to do. You just need to make sure everybody is on board with it.”

Benson had barely traveled a mile before he got word that Majerle had received a phone call from Finke with a commitment. “You just made my night,” Majerle quipped.

As a junior in 2016-17, Finke averaged 19.5 points, 7.8 rebounds and 3.8 assists for Champaign Central High School. His older brother, Michael, is a junior starting power forward for the University of Illinois.

Finke didn’t mince his words when he communicated his excitement to Lopes Insider Paul Coro in an interview on GCULopes.com: “I felt like if any school in the country walked in and said, ‘I want you,’ I wouldn’t even care. I want to go to Grand Canyon. I don’t even care if anybody else walked in here.”

LOPES DEFINING DEPTH

Increased depth for GCU in 2017-18 has given Majerle the option to develop a deeper rotation. At times this season, Majerle has gone five or six players deep on the bench, something which he rarely had the ability to do in previous seasons. In GCU’s win over Grambling State on Dec. 9, the Lopes used 16 players which was the most used in a single game in the Division I era.

Entering the year, Majerle had planned on tightening up the rotation to seven or eight players. Instead, he’s chosen to take advantage of depth on the bench with players like Gerard Martin, Matt Jackson, Alessandro Lever and Shaq Carr.

Despite the new potential of looking deeper down the bench, Majerle’s philosophy on playing time has stayed the same.

“If they’re not going to give an effort then they’re not going to play,” Majerle said. “I’ll play five guys if I have to. I told them, ‘You guys are digging for your own playing time.’ I’ll go with a six-, seven-man rotation, whoever is playing hard.”

His sentiments have proven true thus far. Depending on the flow of the game, he’ll stick with the unit that’s giving him the effort and producing the results.

SCHEDULE TOUGHENS

Grand Canyon’s schedule certainly ramped up to end the 2017 calendar year. The Lopes made their first venture out of Phoenix on Dec. 13 for a matchup with Boise State. GCU also has had road dates with Illinois and Louisville, as well as a neutral-site game against Morgan State who has faced a tough schedule to date.

NOTABLE RPIs (2017-18 OPPONENTS, TOP 150) GAMES THROUGH JAN. 30

Opponent RPI Record Game Date Nevada 15 18-4 (Exhib) . Oct . 22, L 81-72 Louisville 20 16-5 Dec . 23, L 74-56Boise St . 41 18-4 Dec . 13, L 85-80 (2OT)New Mexico State 45 19-3 Jan . 11, L 70-59; Feb . 10, awayUtah Valley 73 16-6 Jan . 27, away; Feb . 24, homeSt . John’s (NY) 103 10-13 Dec . 5, L 68-60San Diego 138 15-7 Nov . 25, L 72-62

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GRAND CANYON UNIVERSITY ARENA

Grand Canyon University Arena has provided the Lopes a definitive home-court advantage since opening its doors before the 2011-12 basketball season. With a seating capacity of 7,000 and a prime location on campus, the venue is regularly packed to the rafters with students and fans, providing an electric atmosphere ripe for success.

During the past seven seasons, the GCU men’s team has been dominant in the arena, post-ing an overall record of 95-20, including a pair of 15-1 seasons before starting the transition to Division I. The Lopes’ record playing a regular complement of Division I guests has been impressive as well, as GCU owns a 65-18 mark since 2013-14. The success on the court helped GCU to a pair of postseason tournament appearances in its first two years transitioning to the NCAA’s highest level.

An intimidating factor for opponents, the large Havocs student section has proven to be one of the best in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC). The Havocs create an imposing back-drop for visiting teams as they fill the bleachers with energy and enthusiasm.

With a push from the Havocs, a packed house is becoming a regular occurrence and has led to an incredible rise in attendance for the men’s team in the first four years since the GCU Are-na opened. Home attendance has more than doubled since the arrival of the arena, with a per-game average of nearly 5,500 fans coming through the doors last year. Among that mark were three contests with raucous crowds of more than 7,000 fans while another upstart crowd of more than 6,500 witnessed the top highlight reel moment in the arena to date: a 68-65 upset of New Mexico on Dec. 23, 2014.

Student-athletes love the atmosphere while also enjoying first-class amenities. The facil-ities on the GCU campus are among the best in the conference and feature everything stu-dent-athletes need to be successful right at their fingertips. From an on-site medical facility to the strength and conditioning area and locker room with a players’ lounge and study area, the Lopes have all the comforts of home just a short walk from student housing.

The facility originally broke ground in the summer of 2010 and was completed before the start of the following basketball season. It is owned and operated by the university.

TOP

10 C

ROW

DS

AT G

CU A

RENA

7,521 Jan. 11, 2018 vs. New Mexico State7,502 Feb. 25, 2017 vs. UMKC7,493 Dec. 3, 2016 vs. Louisville7,479 Feb. 11, 2017 vs. New Mexico State7,413 Jan. 9, 2016 vs. New Mexico State7,412 Dec. 30, 2014 vs. Harvard7,397 Nov. 25, 2017 vs. San Diego7,394 Nov. 18, 2017 vs. Little Rock7,376 Feb. 24, 2017 vs. Chicago State7,320 Jan. 21, 2017 vs. Seattle U

““GCU Arena has become one of college basketball’s rowdiest environments.”

New York Times

”“The Havocs are the biggest party in college basketball.” SB Nation

““Thunder Dan has that place rocking.”Jeff Goodman, ESPN.com

”“The best basketball environment in the valley is at GCU. Cameron Cox, KPNX-TV

““I can’t remember a more electric pregame atmosphere.” Vince Marotta, AZ Sports 98.7 FM

”“In college basketball, in my 40-plus years, this was the toughest crowd I’ve ever faced. Awesome... You’ve got something special here. Really special.” Rick Pitino

THE HAVOCS

The Havocs are some of the most dedicated and rowdy fans in all of collegiate sports. Over 3,000 stu-dents strong, they turn GCU athletic venues into some of the rowdiest and hostile environments in all of college sports. They use their unified group to help the com-munity and volunteer with various non-profits and charitable organizations. Havocs strive to create a spirited community and sense of camaraderie for all students.

Known for their constant energy, support and pride, the Havocs support and encourage all GCU athletic teams, promote school spirit and build Lope pride and tradition – while upholding the four pillars and values of GCU. With positive sportsmanship and respect in mind, Havocs create an energetic environment for our fans and an intimidating atmosphere for opponents.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING

‹ 10 ›

GRAND CANYON SCHEDULE NOTES

This sign denotes an officialLopes on the Road gameFor more information, visitGCULopes.com/LopesOnTheRoad

2017-18 SCHEDULE: BY THE NUMBERS

17,055 Approximate number of miles set to be traveled this season

60.0 Percentage of schedule played at home at GCU Arena

30 Games available via television broadcast*

19 NCAA Division I Final Fours appeared in by 2017-18 opponents

3 Opponents that participated in NCAA Tournament in 2017

.477 2016-17 winning percentage of 2017-18 opponents

*tentatively (broadcast schedule subject to change)

OVERALLTotal Games 30 Non-Conference 16 Conference 14 Exhibition 2BY CONFERENCE Western Athletic 14 Atlantic Coast 1 Big East 1 Big Ten 1 Mid-Eastern Athletic 4 Mountain West 1 Northeast 1 Sun Belt 1 Southwestern Athletic 2 Big South 1 Big West 1 West Coast 1

BY MONTH November 5 December 10 January 7 February 7 March 1BY LOCATION Home 18 Away 10 Neutral 2BY DAY Friday 1 Saturday 15 Sunday 0 Tuesday 2 Wednesday 2 Thursday 6 Monday 4

BY STATE Arizona 19 California 1 New Mexico 1 Idaho 1 Illinois 2 Kentucky 1 Missouri 1 Nevada `1 Texas 1 Utah 1 Washington 1

WHERE ARE THE LOPES?

LOPES ON THE ROAD RETURNS

Introduced to Grand Canyon fans two years ago, Lopes on the Road is back with more events in more cities than ever be-fore.

As part of a successful first two years, many GCU alumni, students, faculty and fans had the chance to cheer on the Lopes at multiple men’s basketball games. The events featured pregame tailgates and reception, allowing op-portunities for attendees to meet and mingle with fellow Lopes.

This year, Lopes on the Road will showcase four sports, with the addition of women’s basketball and men’s soccer, in 11 cities across the nation. This extraordinary opportunity features two games in California and multiple trips to the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, where the Lopes will be competing in their first-ever

WAC conference tournament this season in quest of an NCAA birth in their first year of elgibility.

With one of the best home-court advantages in the nation and a 49-16 overall record over the past two seasons. head coach Dan Majerle and the men’s basketball team hope to have a sea of purple support on the road when the Lopes travel to play four WAC opponents. Attendees will have the chance to catch games against Boise State (Dec.13), Morgan State (Dec. 27) and conference rivals Seattle U (Jan. 6), Chicago State (Jan. 18), UMKC (Jan. 20) and New Mexico State (Feb. 10).

Each registered attendee receives a complimentary ticket, concessions stand voucher and free GCU swag at check-in. To register, visit GCULopes.com/LopesOnTheRoad.

2016-17 LOPES ON THE ROAD SCHEDULE:Date Sport Opponent LocationOct. 8, 2017 Soccer (M) San Jose State San Jose, Calif.Oct. 22, 2017 Soccer (M) Air Force Colorado Springs, Colo.Dec. 10, 2017 Basketball (W) Washington Seattle, Wash.Dec. 13, 2017 Basketball (M) Boise State Boise, IdahoDec. 14, 2017 Basketball (W) Northern Arizona Flagstaff, Ariz.Dec. 27, 2017 Basketball (M) Morgan State Las Vegas, Nev.Jan. 6, 2018 Basketball (M) Seattle U Seattle, Wash.Jan. 18, 2018 Basketball (M) Chicago State Chicago, Ill.Jan. 20, 2018 Basketball (M) UMKC Kansas City, Mo.Feb. 10, 2018 Basketball (M) New Mexico State Las Cruces, N.M.Mar. 15-18, 2018 Baseball Cal State Fullerton Fullerton, Calif.

SEATTLE USeattle, Wash.

BOISE STATE Boise, Idaho

WAC TOURNAMENT Las Vegas, Nev.

CSU BAKERSFIELD Bakersfield, Calif.

MORGAN STATE Las Vegas, Nev.

HOME GAMES Phoenix, Ariz.

UTAH VALLEY Orem, Utah

ST. JOHN’S Talking Stick Resort Arena

NM STATE Las Cruces, N.M.

UTRGV Edinburg, Texas

KANSAS CITY Kansas City, Mo.

I

ILLINOIS Champaign, Ill.

CHICAGO STATE Chicago, Ill.

LOUISVILLE Louisville, Ky.

‹ 11 ›

BROADCAST SCHEDULE / MID-MAJOR RANKINGS

COLLEGE INSIDER MID-MAJOR TOP 25The CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 Poll is made up of teams from the following conferences: America East, Atlan-tic Sun, Big Sky, Big South, Big West, Colonial, Horizon, Inde-pendents, Ivy, Metro Atlantic, Mid-American, Mid-Eastern, Missouri Valley, Northeast, Ohio Valley, Patriot, Southern, Southland, Southwestern, Summit, Sun Belt, West Coast, Western Athletic.

The CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 is now in its 19th season of existence.

Rk. Team Record Pts. Prev. Conference 1. Saint Mary’s (28) 19-2 772 2 West Coast2. Gonzaga 17-4 746 1 West Coast3. New Mexico State 17-3 712 3 Western Athletic4. Louisiana 17-3 664 4 Sun Belt5. ETSU 16-4 640 5 Southern6. South Dakota State 17-5 601 6 Summit7. BYU 17-4 582 7 West Coast8. Loyola Chicago 16-4 526 9 Missouri Valley9. South Dakota 17-5 481 11 Summit10. Stephen F. Austin 16-3 453 10 Southland11. Buffalo 14-5 380 19 Mid-American12. Furman 14-6 376 8 Southern13. Wofford 14-5 366 13 Southern14. Vermont 16-5 359 16 America East15. Charleston 14-6 286 15 Colonial16. Missouri State 15-6 251 12 Missouri Valley17. UC Santa Barbara 14-5 221 18 Big West18. UNC Greensboro 14-5 191 20 Southern19. Georgia Southern 14-6 159 14 Sun Belt20. Albany 16-6 155 21 America East21. Montana 14-5 153 24 Big Sky22. Belmont 15-6 152 NR Ohio Valley23. Northern Kentucky 14-6 106 NR Horizon24. Northeastern 13-7 103 NR Colonial25. Wright State 15-6 67 25 HorizonUPDATED: January 22, 2018

OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES: Georgia State 63, Murray State 59, Toledo 46, Drake 48, Bucknell 42, Towson 41, Grand Canyon 37, Utah Valley 30, San Diego 20, William & Mary 20, Penn 19, Ha-waii 16, FGCU 15, Idaho 15, Seattle 15, Akron 14, UT Arlington 13, Canisius 11, Lamar 10, Portland State 10, Jacksonville State 9, Bethune Cookman 7, Evansville 6, Cal State Fullerton 3, North Car-olina A&T, Radford 1, Nichols State 1, Wagner 1.

VOTING PANEL: Casey Alexander (Lipscomb), Roman Banks (Southern), Randy Bennett (St. Mary’s), Will Brown (Albany), Jamion Christian (Mount St. Mary’s), Jon Coffman (Fort Wayne), Jim Engles (Columbia), James Fox (Appalachian State), Derrin Hansen (Omaha), Steve Hawkins (Western Michigan), Jason Hooten (Sam Houston State), Brian Jones (North Dakota), James Jones (Yale), Mike Jones (Radford), Robert Jones (Norfolk State), Greg Kampe (Oakland), Danny Kaspar (Texas State), Tod Kowalczyk (Toledo), Greg Lansing (Indiana State), Jim Les (UC Davis), Dan Majerle (Grand Canyon), Bob Marlin (Louisiana), Ritchie McKay (Liberty), Rob O’Driscoll (Drexel), Jimmy Patsos (Siena), Kyle Perry (USC Upstate), G.G. Smith (Loyola), Damon Stoudamire (Pacific), Jay Spoonhour (Eastern Illinois), Willis Wilson (Texas A&M Corpus Chris-ti), Mike Young (Wofford).

* Liberty University head coach Ritchie McKay is the chairman of the Top 25 voting panel for the 2017-18 season.

BROADCAST NOTESLopes fans will have the opportunity to follow their team every game of the 2017-18 season as GCU men’s basketball game will be able to listen to all 30 games on 1580 AM The Fanatic or the Fanatic App and watch all 30 games on a variety of networks including all home games on YurView (Ch. 4 Phoenix, Ch. 7 Tucson).

Date Opponent Time Radio TV

Nov. 10 vs. Florida A&M 7:00 p.m.

Nov. 13 vs. Robert Morris 7:00 p.m.

Nov. 18 vs. Little Rock 7:00 p.m.

Nov. 20 vs. Norfolk State 7:00 p.m.

Nov. 25 vs. San Diego 7:00 p.m.

Dec. 2 vs. UC Riverside 7:00 p.m.

Dec. 5 vs. St. John's 9:30 p.m.

Dec. 9 vs. Grambling 7:00 p.m.

Dec. 11 vs. North Carolina Central 7:00 p.m.

Dec. 13 at Boise State 7:00 p.m.

Dec. 18 vs. Mississippi Valley State 7:00 p.m.

Dec. 21 vs. Longwood 6:00 p.m.

Dec. 23 at Louisville 11:00 a.m.

Dec. 27 vs. Morgan State 7:00 p.m.

Dec. 30 at Illinois 3:00 p.m.

Jan. 6 at Seattle 8:00 p.m.

Jan. 11 vs. New Mexico State 7:00 p.m.

Jan. 13 vs. UT Rio Grande Valley 7:00 p.m.

Jan. 18 at Chicago State 6:05 p.m.

Jan. 20 at UMKC 6:00 p.m.

Jan. 23 vs. William Jessup 7:00 p.m.

Jan. 27 at Utah Valley 7:00 p.m.

Feb. 1 vs. UMKC 7:00 p.m.

Feb. 3 vs. Chicago State 7:00 p.m.

Feb. 8 at UT Rio Grande Valley 7:00 p.m.

Feb. 10 at New Mexico State 7:00 p.m.

Feb. 17 at CSU Bakersfield 8:00 p.m.

Feb. 22 vs. Seattle 7:00 p.m.

Feb. 24 vs. Utah Valley 7:00 p.m.

Mar. 3 vs. CSU Bakersfield 7:00 p.m.

Mar. 8-10 WAC Tournament TBD

‹ 12 ›

HEAD COACH / GCU RECORD WHEN...

HEAD COACH DAN MAJERLEFormer NBA All-Star, Olympian and World Team member Dan Majerle

enters his fifth season in 2017-18 after he took over the Grand Canyon men’s basketball program on March 18, 2013 when he was named the 13th head coach in school history.

It’s been quite an impressive run in the Valley for the former Phoenix Suns star. In four short years, he has amassed 81 wins and three postseason berths on the sideline.

Majerle has certainly made his mark, guiding the Lopes back-to-back 20+ win seasons over the last two years and four top three finishes in the Western Athletic Conference since 2013-14. Three of the last four years under Majerle, the CollegeInsider.com postseason tournament picked the Lopes to play in the postseason. Majerle has also attracted many high profile opponents during his tenure including, Kentucky, Duke, Arizona and a home-and-home series with Louisville.

Behind Majerle’s presence and a rising team, GCU averaged 6,817 fans over 18 home games in 2016-17. The average attendance has increased every season as a Division I program with the peak coming last season. The increase was noticeable right away as the average in 2013-14 was 4,373; an increase in average attendance from the previous season of 1,030 fans per game, the 24th-highest increase in the NCAA that year. In 2016-17 GCU ranked in the Top-10 in attendance among schools with less than 10,000 arena capacity. In addition to ranking 23rd in the NCAA for average attendance capacity with 97.39%.

Majerle completed his first year at GCU in 2013-14 by being named a finalist for the Joe B. Hall award, which is given to the most outstanding first-year Division I head coach. Being nominated for such an honor came after guiding the team to a 15-15 overall record in its first year of reclassification to Division I. The Lopes, originally tabbed to finish eighth in the Western Athletic Conference, used a 10-6 conference mark to claim third place among the nine teams. GCU also received a bid to the CollegeInsider.com postseason tournament, its first at the Division I level.

Before starting his tenure at Grand Canyon, Majerle spent five years as an assistant coach with the NBA’s Phoenix Suns from 2008-13. He is one of the most popular figures in Suns history, having also played eight seasons with the team from 1988 to 1995 and 2001-02.

In all, Majerle played 14 seasons in the NBA and averaged 11.4 points over 955 career games. He made three All-Star appearances and also was named to the 1990-91 and 1992-93 NBA All-Defensive second team. He led the league in 3-pointers made (192) in 1993-94.

Majerle, the 14th overall selection in the 1988 NBA Draft by the Suns, was runner-up by one vote to the Indiana Pacers’ Detlef Schrempf for the league’s Sixth Man Award in 1990-91 with averages of 13.6 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. He averaged a career-best 17.3 points during the 1991-92 season, the same year that he was selected for his first NBA All-Star Game.

Majerle made his second consecutive trip to the All-Star Game in 1992-93 and finished tied for the league lead in 3-point field goals with 167. He set a Suns record with eight 3-pointers made on Jan. 30, 1993, and did it once more in Game 5 of the Western Conference finals against the Seattle SuperSonics.

Following the 1993-94 season, Majerle was named one of the members of Dream Team II, the U.S. basketball squad that won gold at the 1994 World Championship of Basketball in Ontario, Canada. This was Majerle’s second time representing his country, the first coming with the U.S. Olympic basketball team that won the bronze medal at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, South Korea, where he played under iconic basketball coach John Thompson. That same year, he was named the Olympic Athlete of the Year.

He was chosen as a starter for his third All-Star Game in 1994-95 as he averaged 17.4 points in the first half of the season, becoming the first reserve to be voted an All-Star starter since fan balloting began in 1975.

Majerle, originally from Traverse City, Mich., played college basketball at Central Michigan, where he averaged more than 20 points in three of his four seasons and was an All-Mid-American Conference selection each year of his career. During his senior season, he averaged 23.7 points and 10.8 rebounds while hitting 52.2 percent from the field. He completed his career at CMU ranked second all-time in scoring, steals and field-goal percentage.

In 2003, Majerle’s outstanding playing career was recognized by the Phoenix Sun when they placed him in the prestigious Ring of Honor. Each year since then, the Suns organization has handed out the Dan Majerle Hustle Award, given to the player who most personifies the same hustle and determination displayed by Majerle in his playing career.

GCU RECORD WHEN... 2017- Majerle 2018 Era Grand Canyon University Arena 11-2 65-18Home 12-2 66-19Road 3-4 24-29Neutral Site 0-1 7-3Overtime games 0-1 0-2 Leading at the half 15-3 79-19Behind at the half 0-3 12-33Tied at the half 0-1 6-1 Scoring 0-59 points 0-4 2-19Scoring 60-69 points 3-1 18-21Scoring 70-79 points 4-0 34-9Scoring 80-89 points 6-1 31-3Scoring 90-99 points 1-0 10-0Scoring 100-plus points 1-0 1-1 Game decided by 1-5 points 1-2 22-6Game decided by 6-9 points 0-1 18-7Game decided by 10-15 points 3-3 23-11Game decided by 16 points or more 11-1 33-15 GCU out-rebounds the opponent 10-5 65-14GCU is out-rebounded by the opponent 4-2 25-34Same number of rebounds 1-0 7-4 Recording 50-plus rebounds 0-0 3-0Recording 40-plus rebounds 7-3 24-4Recording 35-39 rebounds 4-2 27-10Recording 30-34 rebounds 4-1 26-14Recording 25-29 rebounds 0-1 13-13Recording 20-24 rebounds 0-0 1-10Recording less than 20 rebounds 0-0 2-2 GCU with better shooting percentage 13-0 79-7GCU with worse shooting percentage 2-7 17-46Same shooting percentage 0-0 0-0GCU shooting .500-plus FG pct. 6-0 32-4GCU shooting .450-.499 FG pct. 4-0 29-5GCU shooting .400-.449 FG pct. 3-1 23-15GCU shooting less than .400 FG pct. 2-6 12-29 GCU with fewer TOs than opponent 8-2 58-16GCU with more TOs than opponent 6-4 30-33GCU with same number of TOs 0-0 7-3 GCU with fewer fouls than opponent 9-2 70-14GCU with more fouls than opponent 2-3 17-32Same number of fouls 4-2 9-5 Record coming off a win 8-7 61-34Record coming after a loss 6-0 32-17

In November 4-1 18-11In December 6-4 26-18In January 4-2 26-10In February 0-0 18-9In March 0-0 7-5 vs. AP Poll ranked teams 0-0 0-5

THE MAJERLE FILEHEAD COACH Fifth Season at Grand Canyon Alma Mater: Central Michigan, ‘88Coaching Overall ConferenceRecord W L W L2017-18 - GCU 15 7 4 2 2016-17 - GCU 22 9 11 32015-16 - GCU 27 7 11 32014-15 - GCU 17 15 8 62013-14 - GCU 15 15 10 6Career Totals 96 53 44 20

COACHING LEDGER2013-18 ............ Grand Canyon (Head Coach)2008-13 ......Phoenix Suns (Assistant Coach)

MEN’S BASKETBALL GAME NOTES

‹ 13 ›

RECORD: OVERALL HOME AWAY NEUTRAL

2017-18 Grand Canyon BasketballGrand Canyon Combined Team Statistics

All Games

All Games 11-2 3-4 1-115-7Conference 1-1 3-1 0-04-2Non-conference 10-1 0-3 1-111-5

## Player gp-gs min avg fg-fga fg% 3fg-fga 3fg% ft-fta ft% off def tot avg pf dq a to blk stl pts avgTotal 3-Point F-Throw Rebounds

02 Joshua Braun 22-22 659 30.0 93-224 .415 52-132 .394 66-92 .717 34 53 87 4.0 45 2 35 40 9 21 304 13.825 Alessandro Lever 22-15 407 18.5 81-165 .491 11-40 .275 42-62 .677 22 67 89 4.0 55 1 26 37 7 6 215 9.811 Casey Benson 22-22 635 28.9 60-168 .357 23-73 .315 65-86 .756 17 67 84 3.8 44 1 110 44 2 16 208 9.504 Oscar Frayer 21-16 519 24.7 73-159 .459 20-64 .313 19-39 .487 38 64 102 4.9 52 1 23 32 13 26 185 8.824 Keonta Vernon 22-22 509 23.1 72-147 .490 0-2 .000 33-57 .579 55 109 164 7.5 70 5 29 24 32 14 177 8.012 Roberts Blumbergs 22-7 329 15.0 44-112 .393 15-60 .250 38-48 .792 24 50 74 3.4 33 1 20 27 7 10 141 6.401 Fiifi Aidoo 22-4 319 14.5 41-95 .432 16-55 .291 12-17 .706 14 21 35 1.6 29 0 30 16 5 13 110 5.000 Shaq Carr 18-2 286 15.9 27-53 .509 3-8 .375 22-24 .917 7 24 31 1.7 27 0 48 33 4 5 79 4.442 Gerard Martin 22-0 362 16.5 28-71 .394 15-49 .306 6-13 .462 13 48 61 2.8 41 2 22 13 3 14 77 3.510 Damari Milstead 14-0 102 7.3 13-22 .591 4-6 .667 25-29 .862 2 7 9 0.6 8 0 10 13 0 5 55 3.905 Matt Jackson 20-0 221 11.1 19-56 .339 8-29 .276 2-5 .400 8 38 46 2.3 20 0 15 18 1 12 48 2.421 Kerwin Smith 14-0 62 4.4 8-13 .615 0-0 .000 3-7 .429 7 10 17 1.2 14 0 3 7 4 1 19 1.415 Cheick Sy-Savane 4-0 11 2.8 3-6 .500 3-3 1.000 0-0 .000 1 0 1 0.3 2 0 0 0 0 0 9 2.313 Ibrahima Sankare 6-0 16 2.7 2-3 .667 0-0 .000 2-4 .500 0 3 3 0.5 2 0 0 2 1 2 6 1.022 Nehemiah Allen 4-0 10 2.5 1-2 .500 0-1 .000 0-0 .000 0 0 0 0.0 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 0.503 Parker Dale 2-0 3 1.5 0-1 .000 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0.0TM TEAM 33 26 59 6

Grand Canyon 22 4450 565-1297 .436 170-522 .326 335-483 .694 275 587 862 39.2 444 12 371 313 88 145 1635 74.3Opponents 22 4450 481-1222 .394 96-344 .279 335-474 .707 233 553 786 35.7 470 7 218 351 54 142 1393 63.3

Team Statistics GCU OPPSCORING 1635 1393

Points per game 74.3 63.3Scoring margin +11.0 -

FIELD GOALS-ATT 565-1297 481-1222Field goal pct .436 .394

3 POINT FG-ATT 170-522 96-3443-point FG pct .326 .2793-pt FG made per game 7.7 4.4

FREE THROW-ATT 335-483 335-474Free throw pct .694 .707F-Throws made per game 15.2 15.2

REBOUNDS 862 786Rebounds per game 39.2 35.7Rebounding margin +3.5 -

ASSISTS 371 218Assists per game 16.9 9.9

TURNOVERS 313 351Turnovers per game 14.2 16.0Turnover margin +1.7 -Assist/turnover ratio 1.2 0.6

STEALS 145 142Steals per game 6.6 6.5

BLOCKS 88 54Blocks per game 4.0 2.5

Attendance 90829 54622Home game-Avg/Game 13-6987 7-6310Neutral site-Avg/game 2-5226

Date Opponent Att.Score11/10/17 FLORIDA A&M W 67-51 720211/13/17 ROBERT MORRIS W 75-61 6833#11/18/17 LITTLE ROCK W 76-51 739411/20/17 NORFOLK STATE W 85-60 688911/25/17 UNIVERSITY OF SAN DIEGO L 62-72 739712/02/17 UC RIVERSIDE W 68-56 684412/05/17 vs Saint John's (NY) L 60-68 890712/09/17 GRAMBLING STATE W 87-53 682912/11/17 NORTH CAROLINA CENTRAL UNIVERSITY W 64-59 627612/13/17 at Boise State Lo2 80-85 462812/18/17 MISSISSIPPI VALLEY STATE W 71-38 646412/21/17 LONGWOOD W 86-56 700612/23/17 at Louisville L 56-74 1684112/27/17 vs Morgan State W 100-74 154412/30/17 at Illinois L 58-62 1376201/06/18 at Seattle University W 73-57 2156*01/11/18 NEW MEXICO STATE L 59-70 7521*01/13/18 UT RIO GRANDE VALLEY W 84-71 7222*01/18/18 at Chicago State W 86-58 463*01/20/18 at UMKC W 86-69 1440*01/23/18 WILLIAM JESSUP W 96-80 695201/27/18 at Utah Valley L 56-68 4881*

* Conference game

Score by periods 1st 2nd OT OT2 Total

Grand Canyon 819 799 6 11 1635

Opponents 615 756 6 16 1393

MEN’S BASKETBALL GAME NOTES

‹ 14 ›

RECORD: OVERALL HOME AWAY NEUTRAL

Last Five GamesGrand Canyon Combined Team Statistics (as of Jan 31, 2018)

All Games 2-0 2-1 0-04-1Conference 1-0 2-1 0-03-1Non-conference 1-0 0-0 0-01-0

## Player gp-gs min avg fg-fga fg% 3fg-fga 3fg% ft-fta ft% off def tot avg pf dq a to blk stl pts avgTotal 3-Point F-Throw Rebounds

25 Alessandro Lever 5-5 137 27.4 40-65 .615 4-12 .333 21-31 .677 8 24 32 6.4 14 0 10 11 2 2 105 21.002 Joshua Braun 5-5 130 26.0 22-40 .550 11-21 .524 20-26 .769 10 11 21 4.2 18 2 10 9 1 7 75 15.012 Roberts Blumbergs 5-0 68 13.6 17-27 .630 4-10 .400 13-18 .722 10 14 24 4.8 10 0 6 4 1 0 51 10.211 Casey Benson 5-5 150 30.0 13-31 .419 5-12 .417 14-21 .667 3 13 16 3.2 8 0 32 7 0 0 45 9.004 Oscar Frayer 5-5 128 25.6 16-36 .444 5-13 .385 2-8 .250 14 19 33 6.6 10 0 4 10 6 4 39 7.824 Keonta Vernon 5-5 119 23.8 12-32 .375 0-0 .000 5-8 .625 9 32 41 8.2 16 0 10 9 6 1 29 5.801 Fiifi Aidoo 5-0 88 17.6 11-23 .478 3-10 .300 0-1 .000 4 2 6 1.2 8 0 6 6 1 4 25 5.010 Damari Milstead 5-0 43 8.6 3-7 .429 0-2 .000 14-14 1.000 2 1 3 0.6 3 0 3 7 0 4 20 4.042 Gerard Martin 5-0 61 12.2 5-15 .333 2-10 .200 1-2 .500 3 10 13 2.6 10 1 4 5 0 1 13 2.600 Shaq Carr 2-0 37 18.5 2-2 1.000 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 1 2 3 1.5 4 0 7 4 0 0 4 2.005 Matt Jackson 4-0 37 9.3 1-7 .143 0-3 .000 0-0 .000 0 6 6 1.5 4 0 4 4 0 3 2 0.521 Kerwin Smith 2-0 1 0.5 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 0 1 1 0.5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.013 Ibrahima Sankare 1-0 1 1.0 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0.0TM TEAM 8 5 13 3

Grand Canyon 5 1000 142-285 .498 34-93 .366 90-129 .698 72 140 212 42.4 105 2 96 80 17 26 408 81.6Opponents 5 1000 112-282 .397 28-86 .326 94-119 .790 43 98 141 28.2 118 2 59 62 10 33 346 69.2

Team Statistics GCU OPPSCORING 408 346

Points per game 81.6 69.2Scoring margin +12.4 -

FIELD GOALS-ATT 142-285 112-282Field goal pct .498 .397

3 POINT FG-ATT 34-93 28-863-point FG pct .366 .3263-pt FG made per game 6.8 5.6

FREE THROW-ATT 90-129 94-119Free throw pct .698 .790F-Throws made per game 18.0 18.8

REBOUNDS 212 141Rebounds per game 42.4 28.2Rebounding margin +14.2 -

ASSISTS 96 59Assists per game 19.2 11.8

TURNOVERS 80 62Turnovers per game 16.0 12.4Turnover margin -3.6 -Assist/turnover ratio 1.2 1.0

STEALS 26 33Steals per game 5.2 6.6

BLOCKS 17 10Blocks per game 3.4 2.0

Attendance 14174 6784Home game-Avg/Game 2-7087 3-2261Neutral site-Avg/game 0-0

Date Opponent Att.Score01/13/18 UT RIO GRANDE VALLEY W 84-71 7222*01/18/18 at Chicago State W 86-58 463*01/20/18 at UMKC W 86-69 1440*01/23/18 WILLIAM JESSUP W 96-80 695201/27/18 at Utah Valley L 56-68 4881*

* Conference game

Score by periods 1st 2nd Total

Grand Canyon 196 212 408

Opponents 155 191 346

MEN’S BASKETBALL GAME NOTES

‹ 15 ›

RECORD: OVERALL HOME AWAY NEUTRAL

Last Five GamesGrand Canyon Combined Team Statistics (as of Jan 31, 2018)

All Games 2-0 2-1 0-04-1Conference 1-0 2-1 0-03-1Non-conference 1-0 0-0 0-01-0

## Player gp-gs min avg fg-fga fg% 3fg-fga 3fg% ft-fta ft% off def tot avg pf dq a to blk stl pts avgTotal 3-Point F-Throw Rebounds

25 Alessandro Lever 5-5 137 27.4 40-65 .615 4-12 .333 21-31 .677 8 24 32 6.4 14 0 10 11 2 2 105 21.002 Joshua Braun 5-5 130 26.0 22-40 .550 11-21 .524 20-26 .769 10 11 21 4.2 18 2 10 9 1 7 75 15.012 Roberts Blumbergs 5-0 68 13.6 17-27 .630 4-10 .400 13-18 .722 10 14 24 4.8 10 0 6 4 1 0 51 10.211 Casey Benson 5-5 150 30.0 13-31 .419 5-12 .417 14-21 .667 3 13 16 3.2 8 0 32 7 0 0 45 9.004 Oscar Frayer 5-5 128 25.6 16-36 .444 5-13 .385 2-8 .250 14 19 33 6.6 10 0 4 10 6 4 39 7.824 Keonta Vernon 5-5 119 23.8 12-32 .375 0-0 .000 5-8 .625 9 32 41 8.2 16 0 10 9 6 1 29 5.801 Fiifi Aidoo 5-0 88 17.6 11-23 .478 3-10 .300 0-1 .000 4 2 6 1.2 8 0 6 6 1 4 25 5.010 Damari Milstead 5-0 43 8.6 3-7 .429 0-2 .000 14-14 1.000 2 1 3 0.6 3 0 3 7 0 4 20 4.042 Gerard Martin 5-0 61 12.2 5-15 .333 2-10 .200 1-2 .500 3 10 13 2.6 10 1 4 5 0 1 13 2.600 Shaq Carr 2-0 37 18.5 2-2 1.000 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 1 2 3 1.5 4 0 7 4 0 0 4 2.005 Matt Jackson 4-0 37 9.3 1-7 .143 0-3 .000 0-0 .000 0 6 6 1.5 4 0 4 4 0 3 2 0.521 Kerwin Smith 2-0 1 0.5 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 0 1 1 0.5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.013 Ibrahima Sankare 1-0 1 1.0 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0.0TM TEAM 8 5 13 3

Grand Canyon 5 1000 142-285 .498 34-93 .366 90-129 .698 72 140 212 42.4 105 2 96 80 17 26 408 81.6Opponents 5 1000 112-282 .397 28-86 .326 94-119 .790 43 98 141 28.2 118 2 59 62 10 33 346 69.2

Team Statistics GCU OPPSCORING 408 346

Points per game 81.6 69.2Scoring margin +12.4 -

FIELD GOALS-ATT 142-285 112-282Field goal pct .498 .397

3 POINT FG-ATT 34-93 28-863-point FG pct .366 .3263-pt FG made per game 6.8 5.6

FREE THROW-ATT 90-129 94-119Free throw pct .698 .790F-Throws made per game 18.0 18.8

REBOUNDS 212 141Rebounds per game 42.4 28.2Rebounding margin +14.2 -

ASSISTS 96 59Assists per game 19.2 11.8

TURNOVERS 80 62Turnovers per game 16.0 12.4Turnover margin -3.6 -Assist/turnover ratio 1.2 1.0

STEALS 26 33Steals per game 5.2 6.6

BLOCKS 17 10Blocks per game 3.4 2.0

Attendance 14174 6784Home game-Avg/Game 2-7087 3-2261Neutral site-Avg/game 0-0

Date Opponent Att.Score01/13/18 UT RIO GRANDE VALLEY W 84-71 7222*01/18/18 at Chicago State W 86-58 463*01/20/18 at UMKC W 86-69 1440*01/23/18 WILLIAM JESSUP W 96-80 695201/27/18 at Utah Valley L 56-68 4881*

* Conference game

Score by periods 1st 2nd Total

Grand Canyon 196 212 408

Opponents 155 191 346

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2017-18 Grand Canyon Basketball Team Game-by-Game

All Games

Team Statistics

Opponent fg-fga fg% 3fg-fga 3fg% ft-fta ft% off def tot avg pf a to blk stl pts avgTotal 3-Point F-Throw Rebounds

Date ScoreFLORIDA A&M 11/10/17 67-51 26-59 .441 7-22 .318 8-16 .500 15 24 39 39.0 15 12 17 4 9 67 67.0WROBERT MORRIS 11/13/17 75-61 21-43 .488 7-16 .438 26-36 .722 8 29 37 38.0 21 13 21 6 5 75 71.0WLITTLE ROCK 11/18/17 76-51 24-47 .511 8-20 .400 20-28 .714 6 33 39 38.3 24 20 18 8 7 76 72.7WNORFOLK STATE 11/20/17 85-60 27-55 .491 14-26 .538 17-23 .739 8 25 33 37.0 18 21 11 3 6 85 75.8WUNIVERSITY OF SAN DIEGO 11/25/17 62-72 21-57 .368 4-23 .174 16-24 .667 13 24 37 37.0 18 14 15 3 4 62 73.0LUC RIVERSIDE 12/02/17 68-56 24-69 .348 4-36 .111 16-23 .696 16 24 40 37.5 23 20 8 5 12 68 72.2Wvs Saint John's (NY) 12/05/17 60-68 20-66 .303 8-32 .250 12-22 .545 18 28 46 38.7 22 9 21 2 11 60 70.4LGRAMBLING STATE 12/09/17 87-53 32-58 .552 11-27 .407 12-19 .632 10 23 33 38.0 19 23 12 3 9 87 72.5WNORTH CAROLINA CENTRAL UNIVERSITY 12/11/17 64-59 22-59 .373 7-26 .269 13-16 .813 13 20 33 37.4 16 16 6 1 2 64 71.6Wat Boise State 12/13/17 80-85 28-79 .354 9-32 .281 15-19 .789 14 32 46 38.3 29 16 14 3 6 80 72.4Lo2MISSISSIPPI VALLEY STATE 12/18/17 71-38 22-54 .407 11-27 .407 16-24 .667 16 33 49 39.3 19 14 12 8 5 71 72.3WLONGWOOD 12/21/17 86-56 31-63 .492 13-34 .382 11-16 .688 16 26 42 39.5 16 22 11 7 8 86 73.4Wat Louisville 12/23/17 56-74 22-55 .400 6-19 .316 6-12 .500 12 23 35 39.2 20 13 19 3 7 56 72.1Lvs Morgan State 12/27/17 100-74 34-66 .515 13-29 .448 19-23 .826 12 33 45 39.6 28 24 15 6 5 100 74.1Wat Illinois 12/30/17 58-62 23-64 .359 3-20 .150 9-14 .643 13 20 33 39.1 16 13 14 4 8 58 73.0Lat Seattle University 01/06/18 73-57 24-54 .444 6-16 .375 19-26 .731 6 32 38 39.1 18 12 12 1 7 73 73.0WNEW MEXICO STATE 01/11/18 59-70 22-64 .344 5-24 .208 10-13 .769 7 18 25 38.2 17 13 7 4 8 59 72.2LUT RIO GRANDE VALLEY 01/13/18 84-71 25-55 .455 7-21 .333 27-34 .794 15 30 45 38.6 28 16 18 5 6 84 72.8Wat Chicago State 01/18/18 86-58 33-64 .516 7-20 .350 13-20 .650 16 28 44 38.9 20 20 17 1 8 86 73.5Wat UMKC 01/20/18 86-69 28-55 .509 6-18 .333 24-36 .667 17 30 47 39.3 17 15 17 2 5 86 74.2WWILLIAM JESSUP 01/23/18 96-80 34-52 .654 10-19 .526 18-26 .692 6 26 32 39.0 15 29 12 7 5 96 75.2Wat Utah Valley 01/27/18 56-68 22-59 .373 4-15 .267 8-13 .615 18 26 44 39.2 25 16 16 2 2 56 74.3LGrand Canyon 1635 565-1297 .436 170-522 .326 335-483 .694 275 587 862 39.2 444 371 313 88 145 1635 74.3Opponents 1393 481-1222 .394 96-344 .279 335-474 .707 233 553 786 35.7 470 218 351 54 142 1393 63.3

Games played: 22Points per Game: 74.3FG Percent: 43.63FG Percent: 32.6FT Percent: 69.4

Rebounds Per Game: 39.2Assists Per Game: 16.9Turnovers Per Game: 14.2Assist/Turnover Ratio: 1.2Steals Per Game: 6.6Blocks Per Game: 4.0

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2017-18 Grand Canyon Basketball Opponent Game-by-Game

All Games

Opponent Statistics

Opponent fg-fga fg% 3fg-fga 3fg% ft-fta ft% off def tot avg pf a to blk stl pts avgTotal 3-Point F-Throw Rebounds

Date ScoreFLORIDA A&M 11/10/17 67-51 19-49 .388 4-13 .308 9-14 .643 8 24 32 32.0 19 8 22 5 8 51 51.0WROBERT MORRIS 11/13/17 75-61 21-62 .339 4-20 .200 15-22 .682 16 23 39 35.5 29 9 19 3 13 61 56.0WLITTLE ROCK 11/18/17 76-51 15-55 .273 3-18 .167 18-26 .692 12 22 34 35.0 25 4 16 2 8 51 54.3WNORFOLK STATE 11/20/17 85-60 21-50 .420 4-12 .333 14-21 .667 6 24 30 33.8 19 14 17 2 3 60 55.8WUNIVERSITY OF SAN DIEGO11/25/17 62-72 29-59 .492 5-17 .294 9-14 .643 10 26 36 34.2 23 14 12 5 6 72 59.0LUC RIVERSIDE 12/02/17 68-56 19-50 .380 4-11 .364 14-19 .737 10 35 45 36.0 23 12 24 1 2 56 58.5Wvs Saint John's (NY) 12/05/17 60-68 21-53 .396 6-18 .333 20-27 .741 8 34 42 36.9 22 8 18 3 10 68 59.9LGRAMBLING STATE 12/09/17 87-53 19-53 .358 2-12 .167 13-19 .684 13 21 34 36.5 19 9 21 2 10 53 59.0WNORTH CAROLINA CENTRAL UNIVERSITY12/11/17 64-59 22-46 .478 3-8 .375 12-16 .750 8 25 33 36.1 16 11 13 0 3 59 59.0Wat Boise State 12/13/17 80-85 28-59 .475 5-24 .208 24-37 .649 7 38 45 37.0 20 10 18 3 3 85 61.6Lo2MISSISSIPPI VALLEY STATE12/18/17 71-38 14-51 .275 2-4 .500 8-15 .533 9 21 30 36.4 23 4 14 4 5 38 59.5WLONGWOOD 12/21/17 86-56 21-50 .420 3-15 .200 11-18 .611 7 19 26 35.5 20 5 16 1 7 56 59.2Wat Louisville 12/23/17 56-74 26-59 .441 4-19 .211 18-27 .667 15 26 41 35.9 15 14 12 6 10 74 60.3Lvs Morgan State 12/27/17 100-74 21-70 .300 4-13 .308 28-36 .778 19 21 40 36.2 19 11 13 1 10 74 61.3Wat Illinois 12/30/17 58-62 25-57 .439 5-19 .263 7-11 .636 15 29 44 36.7 18 9 20 4 6 62 61.3Lat Seattle University 01/06/18 73-57 22-61 .361 5-20 .250 8-14 .571 13 31 44 37.2 25 6 16 1 2 57 61.1WNEW MEXICO STATE 01/11/18 59-70 26-56 .464 5-15 .333 13-19 .684 14 36 50 37.9 17 11 18 1 3 70 61.6LUT RIO GRANDE VALLEY01/13/18 84-71 19-57 .333 4-15 .267 29-36 .806 10 21 31 37.6 28 8 10 2 5 71 62.1Wat Chicago State 01/18/18 86-58 19-55 .345 4-16 .250 16-21 .762 11 21 32 37.3 22 12 22 4 8 58 61.9Wat UMKC 01/20/18 86-69 24-56 .429 7-24 .292 14-18 .778 5 17 22 36.5 29 6 14 0 5 69 62.3WWILLIAM JESSUP 01/23/18 96-80 30-67 .448 7-20 .350 13-14 .929 11 17 28 36.1 23 19 9 1 8 80 63.1Wat Utah Valley 01/27/18 56-68 20-47 .426 6-11 .545 22-30 .733 6 22 28 35.7 16 14 7 3 7 68 63.3LOpponents 1393 481-1222 .394 96-344 .279 335-474 .707 233 553 786 35.7 470 218 351 54 142 1393 63.3Grand Canyon 1635 565-1297 .436 170-522 .326 335-483 .694 275 587 862 39.2 444 371 313 88 145 1635 74.3

Games played: 22Points per Game: 63.3

FG Percent: 39.43FG Percent: 27.9

FT Percent: 70.7Rebounds Per Game: 35.7

Assists Per Game: 9.9Turnovers Per Game: 16.0Assist/Turnover Ratio: 1.2

Steals Per Game: 6.5Blocks per Game: 2.5

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2017-18 Grand Canyon BasketballGrand Canyon Game-by-Game Highs (as of Jan 25, 2018)

All Games

Score Points ReboundsOpponent Date Assists Steals Blocked ShotsFLORIDA A&M 67-51 (11)Fiifi Aidoo11/10/17 (9)Keonta Vernon (4)Joshua Braun (2)Oscar Frayer (2)Keonta Vernon

(11)Joshua Braun (4)Casey Benson (2)Keonta Vernon(2)Roberts Blumbergs

ROBERT MORRIS 75-61 (20)Joshua Braun11/13/17 (9)Oscar Frayer (5)Casey Benson (2)Gerard Martin (2)Joshua Braun(2)Oscar Frayer (2)Keonta Vernon

(2)Oscar FrayerLITTLE ROCK 76-51 (29)Joshua Braun11/18/17 (6)Oscar Frayer (3)Fiifi Aidoo (2)Oscar Frayer (2)Gerard Martin

(6)Keonta Vernon (3)Shaq Carr (2)Matt Jackson (2)Keonta Vernon(3)Keonta Vernon(3)Oscar Frayer(3)Joshua Braun

NORFOLK STATE 85-60 (19)Oscar Frayer11/20/17 (8)Keonta Vernon (8)Casey Benson (2)Casey Benson (1)Joshua Braun(8)Roberts Blumbergs (2)Oscar Frayer (1)Kerwin Smith

(1)Keonta VernonSAN DIEGO 62-72 (20)Joshua Braun11/25/17 (10)Casey Benson (6)Casey Benson (1)Oscar Frayer (1)Fiifi Aidoo

(1)Keonta Vernon (1)Alessandro Lever(1)Kerwin Smith (1)Roberts Blumbergs(1)Roberts Blumbergs

UC RIVERSIDE 68-56 (14)Roberts Blumbergs12/02/17 (7)Roberts Blumbergs (7)Casey Benson (4)Casey Benson (4)Keonta Vernon(7)Keonta Vernon(7)Joshua Braun

vs Saint John's (NY) 60-68 (18)Casey Benson12/05/17 (15)Keonta Vernon (3)Fiifi Aidoo (3)Joshua Braun (1)Keonta Vernon(3)Oscar Frayer (1)Casey Benson

GRAMBLING STATE 87-53 (19)Keonta Vernon12/09/17 (6)Gerard Martin (8)Casey Benson (3)Roberts Blumbergs (1)Joshua Braun(6)Keonta Vernon (1)Matt Jackson

(1)Roberts BlumbergsN.C. CENTRAL 64-59 (20)Joshua Braun12/11/17 (7)Joshua Braun (7)Casey Benson (1)Fiifi Aidoo (1)Keonta Vernon

(7)Casey Benson (1)Shaq Carrat Boise State 80-85 (16)Casey Benson12/13/17 (12)Keonta Vernon (5)Shaq Carr (2)Joshua Braun (2)Keonta Vernon

(2)Gerard MartinMISSISSIPPI VALLEY STATE 71-38 (16)Joshua Braun12/18/17 (6)Joshua Braun (6)Casey Benson (2)Keonta Vernon (4)Keonta Vernon

(6)Alessandro LeverLONGWOOD 86-56 (14)Fiifi Aidoo12/21/17 (10)Alessandro Lever (5)Casey Benson (2)Shaq Carr (2)Alessandro Lever

(5)Shaq Carr (2)Casey Benson (2)Shaq Carr(2)Kerwin Smith

at Louisville 56-74 (14)Oscar Frayer12/23/17 (9)Keonta Vernon (7)Casey Benson (2)Joshua Braun (2)Keonta Vernon(2)Casey Benson

vs Morgan State 100-74 (18)Joshua Braun12/27/17 (9)Alessandro Lever (6)Shaq Carr (3)Joshua Braun (2)Shaq Carr(2)Roberts Blumbergs

at Illinois 58-62 (14)Keonta Vernon12/30/17 (5)Joshua Braun (3)Shaq Carr (2)Gerard Martin (2)Keonta Vernon(5)Alessandro Lever (3)Joshua Braun (2)Oscar Frayer(5)Keonta Vernon

at SeattleU 73-57 (18)Oscar Frayer01/06/18 (7)Gerard Martin (3)Shaq Carr (1)Fiifi Aidoo (1)Keonta Vernon(7)Oscar Frayer (3)Keonta Vernon (1)Matt Jackson

(1)Keonta Vernon(1)Joshua Braun(1)Oscar Frayer(1)Alessandro Lever(1)Roberts Blumbergs

NEW MEXICO STATE 59-70 (15)Joshua Braun01/11/18 (12)Keonta Vernon (2)Keonta Vernon (3)Oscar Frayer (2)Keonta Vernon(2)Matt Jackson(2)Oscar Frayer(2)Casey Benson(2)Joshua Braun

UT RIO GRANDE VALLEY 84-71 (25)Roberts Blumbergs01/13/18 (15)Keonta Vernon (3)Shaq Carr (2)Joshua Braun (2)Keonta Vernon(3)Joshua Braun

at Chicago State 86-58 (28)Alessandro Lever01/18/18 (8)Alessandro Lever (6)Casey Benson (2)Fiifi Aidoo (1)Keonta Vernon(2)Matt Jackson(2)Joshua Braun(2)Damari Milstead

at UMKC 86-69 (24)Alessandro Lever01/20/18 (10)Alessandro Lever (9)Casey Benson (1)Gerard Martin (1)Keonta Vernon(1)Keonta Vernon (1)Oscar Frayer(1)Joshua Braun

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Score Points ReboundsOpponent Date Assists Steals Blocked Shots(1)Gerard Martin(1)Damari Milstead

WILLIAM JESSUP 96-80 (25)Alessandro Lever01/23/18 (8)Keonta Vernon (10)Casey Benson (1)Joshua Braun (4)Oscar Frayer(8)Roberts Blumbergs (1)Oscar Frayer

(1)Fiifi Aidoo(1)Matt Jackson(1)Alessandro Lever

at Utah Valley 56-68 (22)Alessandro Lever01/27/18 (9)Oscar Frayer (5)Casey Benson (1)Oscar Frayer (1)Fiifi Aidoo(1)Joshua Braun (1)Alessandro Lever

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2017-18 Grand Canyon Basketball Category Leaders

All Games

Points G Pts/GPtsJoshua Braun 22 304 13.8Alessandro Lever 22 215 9.8Casey Benson 22 208 9.5Oscar Frayer 21 185 8.8Keonta Vernon 22 177 8.0Roberts Blumbergs 22 141 6.4Fiifi Aidoo 22 110 5.0

FG Percentage FG PctAttIbrahima Sankare 2 3 .667Kerwin Smith 8 13 .615Damari Milstead 13 22 .591Shaq Carr 27 53 .509Cheick Sy-Savane 3 6 .500Nehemiah Allen 1 2 .500Alessandro Lever 81 165 .491

3-Point Percentage 3FG PctAttCheick Sy-Savane 3 3 1.000Damari Milstead 4 6 .667Joshua Braun 52 132 .394Shaq Carr 3 8 .375Casey Benson 23 73 .315Oscar Frayer 20 64 .313Gerard Martin 15 49 .306

Free Throw Percentage FG PctAttShaq Carr 22 24 .917Damari Milstead 25 29 .862Roberts Blumbergs 38 48 .792Casey Benson 65 86 .756Joshua Braun 66 92 .717Fiifi Aidoo 12 17 .706Alessandro Lever 42 62 .677

Free Throw Attempts G Att/GAttJoshua Braun 22 92 4.2Casey Benson 22 86 3.9Alessandro Lever 22 62 2.8Keonta Vernon 22 57 2.6Roberts Blumbergs 22 48 2.2Oscar Frayer 21 39 1.9Damari Milstead 14 29 2.1

Rebounds Average G Avg/GRebKeonta Vernon 22 164 7.5Oscar Frayer 21 102 4.9Alessandro Lever 22 89 4.0Joshua Braun 22 87 4.0Casey Benson 22 84 3.8Roberts Blumbergs 22 74 3.4Gerard Martin 22 61 2.8

Scoring Average G Avg/GPtsJoshua Braun 22 304 13.8Alessandro Lever 22 215 9.8Casey Benson 22 208 9.5Oscar Frayer 21 185 8.8Keonta Vernon 22 177 8.0Roberts Blumbergs 22 141 6.4Fiifi Aidoo 22 110 5.0

Field Goal Attempts G Att/GAttJoshua Braun 22 224 10.2Casey Benson 22 168 7.6Alessandro Lever 22 165 7.5Oscar Frayer 21 159 7.6Keonta Vernon 22 147 6.7Roberts Blumbergs 22 112 5.1Fiifi Aidoo 22 95 4.3

Field Goals Made G Made/GMadeJoshua Braun 22 93 4.2Alessandro Lever 22 81 3.7Oscar Frayer 21 73 3.5Keonta Vernon 22 72 3.3Casey Benson 22 60 2.7Roberts Blumbergs 22 44 2.0Fiifi Aidoo 22 41 1.9

3-Point FG Attempts G Att/GAttJoshua Braun 22 132 6.0Casey Benson 22 73 3.3Oscar Frayer 21 64 3.0Roberts Blumbergs 22 60 2.7Fiifi Aidoo 22 55 2.5Gerard Martin 22 49 2.2Alessandro Lever 22 40 1.8

3-Point FG Made G Made/GMadeJoshua Braun 22 52 2.4Casey Benson 22 23 1.0Oscar Frayer 21 20 1.0Fiifi Aidoo 22 16 0.7Roberts Blumbergs 22 15 0.7Gerard Martin 22 15 0.7Alessandro Lever 22 11 0.5

Rebounds G Reb/GRebKeonta Vernon 22 164 7.5Oscar Frayer 21 102 4.9Alessandro Lever 22 89 4.0Joshua Braun 22 87 4.0Casey Benson 22 84 3.8Roberts Blumbergs 22 74 3.4Gerard Martin 22 61 2.8

MEN’S BASKETBALL GAME NOTES

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Fouls G Per/GNO.Keonta Vernon 22 70 3.2Alessandro Lever 22 55 2.5Oscar Frayer 21 52 2.5Joshua Braun 22 45 2.0Casey Benson 22 44 2.0Gerard Martin 22 41 1.9

Foulouts G NO.Keonta Vernon 22 4Joshua Braun 22 2Gerard Martin 22 2Alessandro Lever 22 1Casey Benson 22 1Roberts Blumbergs 22 1Oscar Frayer 21 1

Blocked Shots G Blk/GNO.Keonta Vernon 22 32 1.5Oscar Frayer 21 13 0.6Joshua Braun 22 9 0.4Alessandro Lever 22 7 0.3Roberts Blumbergs 22 7 0.3Fiifi Aidoo 22 5 0.2Kerwin Smith 14 4 0.3

Minutes G Min/GNO.Joshua Braun 22 659 30.0Casey Benson 22 635 28.9Oscar Frayer 21 519 24.7Keonta Vernon 22 509 23.1Alessandro Lever 22 407 18.5Gerard Martin 22 362 16.5Roberts Blumbergs 22 329 15.0

Offensive Rebounds G Avg/GNO.Keonta Vernon 22 55 2.5Oscar Frayer 21 38 1.8Joshua Braun 22 34 1.5Roberts Blumbergs 22 24 1.1Alessandro Lever 22 22 1.0Casey Benson 22 17 0.8Fiifi Aidoo 22 14 0.6

Defensive Rebounds G Avg/GNO.Keonta Vernon 22 109 5.0Casey Benson 22 67 3.0Alessandro Lever 22 67 3.0Oscar Frayer 21 64 3.0Joshua Braun 22 53 2.4Roberts Blumbergs 22 50 2.3Gerard Martin 22 48 2.2

Assists G Ast/GNO.Casey Benson 22 110 5.0Shaq Carr 18 48 2.7Joshua Braun 22 35 1.6Fiifi Aidoo 22 30 1.4Keonta Vernon 22 29 1.3Alessandro Lever 22 26 1.2Oscar Frayer 21 23 1.1

Steals G Stl/GNO.Oscar Frayer 21 26 1.2Joshua Braun 22 21 1.0Casey Benson 22 16 0.7Gerard Martin 22 14 0.6Keonta Vernon 22 14 0.6Fiifi Aidoo 22 13 0.6Matt Jackson 20 12 0.6

Turnovers G To/GNO.Casey Benson 22 44 2.0Joshua Braun 22 40 1.8Alessandro Lever 22 37 1.7Shaq Carr 18 33 1.8Oscar Frayer 21 32 1.5Roberts Blumbergs 22 27 1.2Keonta Vernon 22 24 1.1

MEN’S BASKETBALL GAME NOTES

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Individual Season Records

Points593 - Russell, DeWayne (28 games) - 2016-171.564 - Braun, Joshua (34 games) - 2015-162.516 - Larson, Killian (30 games) - 2013-143.495 - Garrison, Jerome (30 games) - 2013-144.461 - Glaze, Grandy (33 games) - 2015-165.384 - Braun, Joshua (22 games) - 2016-176.379 - Braun, Joshua (32 games) - 2014-157.330 - Russell, DeWayne (34 games) - 2015-169.326 - Russell, DeWayne (23 games) - 2014-1510.

Scoring average (min. 1 games)21.2 - Russell, DeWayne (28 games) - 2016-171.17.5 - Braun, Joshua (22 games) - 2016-172.17.2 - Larson, Killian (30 games) - 2013-143.16.9 - Walker, Demetrius (9 games) - 2013-144.16.6 - Braun, Joshua (34 games) - 2015-165.16.5 - Garrison, Jerome (30 games) - 2013-146.14.2 - Russell, DeWayne (23 games) - 2014-157.13.4 - Braun, Joshua (21 games) - 2017-189.12.7 - Alexander, Daniel (22 games) - 2013-1410.

Field goals made198 - Glaze, Grandy (33 games) - 2015-161.197 - Russell, DeWayne (28 games) - 2016-172.180 - Larson, Killian (30 games) - 2013-143.144 - Braun, Joshua (34 games) - 2015-164.134 - Braun, Joshua (32 games) - 2014-155.128 - Garrison, Jerome (30 games) - 2013-146.119 - Vernon, Keonta (31 games) - 2016-177.110 - Woolridge, Royce (32 games) - 2014-159.109 - Braun, Joshua (22 games) - 2016-1710.

Field goals attempted492 - Russell, DeWayne (28 games) - 2016-171.333 - Larson, Killian (30 games) - 2013-142.332 - Glaze, Grandy (33 games) - 2015-163.329 - Braun, Joshua (34 games) - 2015-164.306 - Garrison, Jerome (30 games) - 2013-145.291 - Braun, Joshua (32 games) - 2014-156.281 - Russell, DeWayne (34 games) - 2015-167.245 - Braun, Joshua (22 games) - 2016-179.241 - Woolridge, Royce (32 games) - 2014-1510.

Field goals percentage (min. 10 made).671 - Smith, Kerwin (55-82) - 2016-171..596 - Glaze, Grandy (198-332) - 2015-162..571 - Milstead, Damari (12-21) - 2017-183..564 - Vernon, Keonta (119-211) - 2016-174..550 - Zuilhof, Jake (11-20) - 2013-145..541 - Larson, Killian (180-333) - 2013-146..522 - Clark, Darion (60-115) - 2016-177..517 - Jaksic, Miroslav (15-29) - 2014-159..509 - Carr, Shaq (27-53) - 2017-1810.

3-Point field goals made73 - Braun, Joshua (34 games) - 2015-161.64 - Braun, Joshua (22 games) - 2016-172.58 - Alexander, Daniel (22 games) - 2013-143.56 - Braun, Joshua (32 games) - 2014-154.52 - Russell, DeWayne (28 games) - 2016-175.52 - Garrison, Jerome (30 games) - 2013-1448 - Braun, Joshua (21 games) - 2017-187.45 - Davis, Blake (30 games) - 2013-149.42 - Majerle, Ryan (34 games) - 2015-1610.

3-Point field goals attempted186 - Braun, Joshua - (34 games) - 2015-161.154 - Braun, Joshua - (22 games) - 2016-172.147 - Braun, Joshua - (32 games) - 2014-153.142 - Alexander, Daniel - (22 games) - 2013-144.131 - Russell, DeWayne - (28 games) - 2016-175.130 - Garrison, Jerome - (30 games) - 2013-146.127 - Davis, Blake - (30 games) - 2013-147.121 - Majerle, Ryan - (32 games) - 2014-159.116 - Martin, Gerard - (31 games) - 2016-1710.

3-Point field goal percentages (min. 10 made).417 - Russell, DeWayne (15-36) - 2015-161..416 - Braun, Joshua (64-154) - 2016-172..408 - Alexander, Daniel (58-142) - 2013-143..402 - Martin, Gerard (33-82) - 2015-164..400 - Majerle, Ryan (42-105) - 2015-165..400 - Garrison, Jerome (52-130) - 2013-14.397 - Russell, DeWayne (52-131) - 2016-177..387 - Braun, Joshua (48-124) - 2017-189..381 - Braun, Joshua (56-147) - 2014-1510.

Free throws made203 - Braun, Joshua (34 games) - 2015-161.187 - Garrison, Jerome (30 games) - 2013-142.155 - Larson, Killian (30 games) - 2013-143.147 - Russell, DeWayne (28 games) - 2016-174.106 - Russell, DeWayne (23 games) - 2014-155.102 - Braun, Joshua (22 games) - 2016-176.98 - Woolridge, Royce (32 games) - 2014-157.65 - Glaze, Grandy (33 games) - 2015-169.62 - Benson, Casey (21 games) - 2017-1810.

Free throws attempted236 - Garrison, Jerome (30 games) - 2013-141.234 - Braun, Joshua (34 games) - 2015-162.210 - Larson, Killian (30 games) - 2013-143.194 - Russell, DeWayne (28 games) - 2016-174.140 - Russell, DeWayne (23 games) - 2014-155.132 - Woolridge, Royce (32 games) - 2014-156.127 - Braun, Joshua (22 games) - 2016-177.106 - Glaze, Grandy (33 games) - 2015-169.95 - Vernon, Keonta (31 games) - 2016-1710.

MEN’S BASKETBALL GAME NOTES

‹ 23 ›

Individual Season Records

Free throw percentages (min. 10 made).917 - Carr, Shaq (22-24) - 2017-181..891 - Alexander, Daniel (41-46) - 2014-152..886 - Alexander, Daniel (31-35) - 2013-143..868 - Braun, Joshua (203-234) - 2015-164..830 - Carr, Shaq (39-47) - 2016-175..826 - Milstead, Damari (19-23) - 2017-186..818 - Davis, Blake (36-44) - 2013-147..816 - Majerle, Ryan (31-38) - 2014-159..810 - Majerle, Ryan (17-21) - 2015-1610.

Rebounds348 - Larson, Killian (115o-233d) - 2013-141.290 - Glaze, Grandy (76o-214d) - 2015-162.217 - Vernon, Keonta (75o-142d) - 2016-173.187 - Vernon, Keonta (77o-110d) - 2015-164.177 - Braun, Joshua (56o-121d) - 2015-165.157 - Braun, Joshua (38o-119d) - 2014-156.156 - Vernon, Keonta (55o-101d) - 2017-187.139 - Frayer, Oscar (42o-97d) - 2016-179.132 - Clark, Darion (39o-93d) - 2016-1710.

Rebounding average (min. 1 games)11.6 - Larson, Killian (30 games) - 2013-141.8.8 - Glaze, Grandy (33 games) - 2015-162.7.4 - Vernon, Keonta (21 games) - 2017-183.7.0 - Vernon, Keonta (31 games) - 2016-174.6.6 - Clark, Darion (20 games) - 2016-175.5.6 - Alexander, Daniel (22 games) - 2013-146.5.6 - Walker, Demetrius (9 games) - 2013-147.5.2 - Braun, Joshua (34 games) - 2015-169.5.0 - Frayer, Oscar (20 games) - 2017-1810.

Defensive rebounds233 - Larson, Killian (115o-233d) - 2013-141.214 - Glaze, Grandy (76o-214d) - 2015-162.142 - Vernon, Keonta (75o-142d) - 2016-173.121 - Braun, Joshua (56o-121d) - 2015-164.119 - Braun, Joshua (38o-119d) - 2014-155.113 - Alexander, Daniel (28o-113d) - 2014-156.112 - Alexander, Daniel (12o-112d) - 2013-147.105 - Martin, Gerard (22o-105d) - 2016-179.101 - Vernon, Keonta (55o-101d) - 2017-1810.

Defensive rebound avg (min. 1 games)7.8 - Larson, Killian (30 games) - 2013-141.6.5 - Glaze, Grandy (33 games) - 2015-162.5.4 - Walker, Demetrius (9 games) - 2013-143.5.1 - Alexander, Daniel (22 games) - 2013-144.4.8 - Vernon, Keonta (21 games) - 2017-185.4.7 - Clark, Darion (20 games) - 2016-176.4.6 - Vernon, Keonta (31 games) - 2016-177.3.7 - Braun, Joshua (32 games) - 2014-159.3.6 - Braun, Joshua (34 games) - 2015-1610.

Offensive rebounds115 - Larson, Killian (115o-233d) - 2013-141.77 - Vernon, Keonta (77o-110d) - 2015-162.76 - Glaze, Grandy (76o-214d) - 2015-163.75 - Vernon, Keonta (75o-142d) - 2016-174.56 - Braun, Joshua (56o-121d) - 2015-165.55 - Vernon, Keonta (55o-101d) - 2017-186.42 - Frayer, Oscar (42o-97d) - 2016-177.39 - Clark, Darion (39o-93d) - 2016-179.38 - Majerle, Ryan (38o-62d) - 2014-1510.

Offensive rebound avg (min. 1 games)3.8 - Larson, Killian (30 games) - 2013-141.2.6 - Vernon, Keonta (21 games) - 2017-182.2.4 - Vernon, Keonta (31 games) - 2016-173.2.3 - Glaze, Grandy (33 games) - 2015-164.2.3 - Vernon, Keonta (34 games) - 2015-165.2.0 - Clark, Darion (20 games) - 2016-176.1.9 - Frayer, Oscar (20 games) - 2017-187.1.6 - Braun, Joshua (21 games) - 2017-189.1.4 - Frayer, Oscar (31 games) - 2016-1710.

Assists182 - Russell, DeWayne - 2015-161.151 - Russell, DeWayne - 2016-172.100 - Benson, Casey - 2017-183.90 - Russell, DeWayne - 2014-154.86 - Martin, Gerard - 2015-165.78 - Martin, Gerard - 2016-176.73 - Carr, Shaq - 2016-177.64 - Alexander, Daniel - 2013-149.64 - Garrison, Jerome - 2013-14

Assists average (min. 1 games)5.4 - Russell, DeWayne (28 games) - 2016-171.5.4 - Russell, DeWayne (34 games) - 2015-162.4.8 - Benson, Casey (21 games) - 2017-183.4.2 - Daly, Sam (13 games) - 2013-144.3.9 - Russell, DeWayne (23 games) - 2014-155.2.9 - Alexander, Daniel (22 games) - 2013-146.2.7 - Carr, Shaq (18 games) - 2017-187.2.5 - Martin, Gerard (31 games) - 2016-179.2.5 - Lowery, Jeff (4 games) - 2013-1410.

Blocked shots34 - Alexander, Daniel - 2013-141.30 - Vernon, Keonta - 2017-182.26 - Braun, Joshua - 2014-153.24 - Alexander, Daniel - 2014-154.24 - Frayer, Oscar - 2016-1723 - Braun, Joshua - 2015-166.19 - Davis, Blake - 2013-147.15 - Smith, Kerwin - 2014-159.15 - Vernon, Keonta - 2016-17

MEN’S BASKETBALL GAME NOTES

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Individual Season Records

Blocked shots average (min. 1 games)1.5 - Alexander, Daniel (22 games) - 2013-141.1.4 - Vernon, Keonta (21 games) - 2017-182.0.8 - Alexander, Daniel (29 games) - 2014-153.0.8 - Braun, Joshua (32 games) - 2014-154.0.8 - Frayer, Oscar (31 games) - 2016-175.0.7 - Braun, Joshua (34 games) - 2015-166.0.6 - Davis, Blake (30 games) - 2013-147.0.6 - Okafor, Tobe (5 games) - 2014-158.0.5 - Vernon, Keonta (34 games) - 2015-16

Steals46 - Russell, DeWayne - 2015-161.42 - Martin, Gerard - 2016-172.41 - Russell, DeWayne - 2016-173.35 - Vernon, Keonta - 2016-174.34 - Martin, Gerard - 2015-165.33 - Frayer, Oscar - 2016-176.32 - Russell, DeWayne - 2014-157.27 - Braun, Joshua - 2014-159.26 - Braun, Joshua - 2015-1610.

Steals average (min. 1 games)1.5 - Russell, DeWayne (28 games) - 2016-171.1.4 - Russell, DeWayne (23 games) - 2014-152.1.4 - Martin, Gerard (31 games) - 2016-173.1.4 - Russell, DeWayne (34 games) - 2015-164.1.3 - Frayer, Oscar (20 games) - 2017-185.1.1 - Vernon, Keonta (31 games) - 2016-176.1.1 - Frayer, Oscar (31 games) - 2016-177.1.0 - Martin, Gerard (34 games) - 2015-161.0 - Braun, Joshua (21 games) - 2017-1810.

Games started33 - Martin, Gerard - 2015-161.33 - Russell, DeWayne - 2015-1633 - Braun, Joshua - 2015-1632 - Garrison, Jerome - 2014-154.30 - Larson, Killian - 2013-145.30 - Garrison, Jerome - 2013-1430 - Woolridge, Royce - 2014-1528 - Russell, DeWayne - 2016-179.28 - Davis, Blake - 2013-14

Minutes1134 - Garrison, Jerome - 2013-141.1072 - Russell, DeWayne - 2016-172.1054 - Russell, DeWayne - 2015-163.1045 - Braun, Joshua - 2015-164.980 - Larson, Killian - 2013-145.906 - Martin, Gerard - 2016-176.895 - Davis, Blake - 2013-147.857 - Braun, Joshua - 2014-159.848 - Garrison, Jerome - 2014-1510.

Minutes average (min. 1 games)38.3 - Russell, DeWayne (28 games) - 2016-171.37.8 - Garrison, Jerome (30 games) - 2013-142.33.6 - Braun, Joshua (22 games) - 2016-173.33.4 - Russell, DeWayne (23 games) - 2014-154.33.0 - Alexander, Daniel (22 games) - 2013-145.32.7 - Larson, Killian (30 games) - 2013-146.31.0 - Russell, DeWayne (34 games) - 2015-167.30.7 - Braun, Joshua (34 games) - 2015-169.30.0 - Braun, Joshua (21 games) - 2017-1810.

Games played34 - Majerle, Ryan - 2015-161.34 - Vernon, Keonta - 2015-1634 - Braun, Joshua - 2015-1634 - Martin, Gerard - 2015-1634 - Russell, DeWayne - 2015-1633 - Glaze, Grandy - 2015-166.33 - Jackson, Matt - 2015-1632 - Woolridge, Royce - 2014-1532 - Majerle, Ryan - 2014-15

MEN’S BASKETBALL GAME NOTES

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Most Points1. 2581 (34 games) - 2015-162. 2282 (31 games) - 2016-173. 2198 (32 games) - 2014-154. 2163 (30 games) - 2013-145. 1635 (22 games) - 2017-18

Field Goals Attempted1. 1978 (34 games) - 2015-162. 1812 (31 games) - 2016-173. 1683 (32 games) - 2014-154. 1549 (30 games) - 2013-145. 1297 (22 games) - 2017-18

3-Point Field Goals Made1. 210 (34 games) - 2015-162. 206 (30 games) - 2013-143. 205 (31 games) - 2016-174. 198 (32 games) - 2014-155. 170 (22 games) - 2017-18

3-Point Field Goal Percentages1. .361 (210 - 582) - 2015-162. .350 (206 - 588) - 2013-143. .333 (198 - 594) - 2014-154. .331 (205 - 619) - 2016-175. .326 (170 - 522) - 2017-18

Free Throws Attempted1. 835 (34 games) - 2015-162. 831 (30 games) - 2013-143. 747 (31 games) - 2016-174. 674 (32 games) - 2014-155. 483 (22 games) - 2017-18

Most Assists1. 504 (34 games) - 2015-162. 423 (31 games) - 2016-173. 388 (32 games) - 2014-154. 386 (30 games) - 2013-145. 371 (22 games) - 2017-18

Average Assists1. 16.864 (22 games) - 2017-182. 14.824 (34 games) - 2015-163. 13.645 (31 games) - 2016-174. 12.867 (30 games) - 2013-145. 12.125 (32 games) - 2014-15

Most Blocked Shots1. 99 (32 games) - 2014-152. 90 (34 games) - 2015-163. 88 (22 games) - 2017-184. 83 (30 games) - 2013-145. 79 (31 games) - 2016-17

Scoring Average1. 75.912 (34 games) - 2015-162. 74.318 (22 games) - 2017-183. 73.613 (31 games) - 2016-174. 72.100 (30 games) - 2013-145. 68.688 (32 games) - 2014-15

Field Goals Made1. 896 (34 games) - 2015-162. 790 (31 games) - 2016-173. 759 (32 games) - 2014-154. 671 (30 games) - 2013-145. 565 (22 games) - 2017-18

Field Goals Percentage1. .453 (896 - 1978) - 2015-162. .451 (759 - 1683) - 2014-153. .436 (790 - 1812) - 2016-174. .436 (565 - 1297) - 2017-185. .433 (671 - 1549) - 2013-14

3-Point Field Goals Attempted1. 619 (31 games) - 2016-172. 594 (32 games) - 2014-153. 588 (30 games) - 2013-144. 582 (34 games) - 2015-165. 522 (22 games) - 2017-18

Free Throws Made1. 615 (30 games) - 2013-142. 579 (34 games) - 2015-163. 497 (31 games) - 2016-174. 482 (32 games) - 2014-155. 335 (22 games) - 2017-18

Free Throw Percentages1. .740 (615 - 831) - 2013-142. .715 (482 - 674) - 2014-153. .694 (335 - 483) - 2017-184. .693 (579 - 835) - 2015-165. .665 (497 - 747) - 2016-17

Most Steals1. 233 (31 games) - 2016-172. 209 (34 games) - 2015-163. 171 (32 games) - 2014-154. 145 (22 games) - 2017-185. 121 (30 games) - 2013-14

Average Steals1. 7.516 (31 games) - 2016-172. 6.591 (22 games) - 2017-183. 6.147 (34 games) - 2015-164. 5.344 (32 games) - 2014-155. 4.033 (30 games) - 2013-14

Team Season Records

MEN’S BASKETBALL GAME NOTES

‹ 26 ›

Average Blocks1. 4.000 (22 games) - 2017-182. 3.094 (32 games) - 2014-153. 2.767 (30 games) - 2013-144. 2.647 (34 games) - 2015-165. 2.548 (31 games) - 2016-17

Games Played1. 34 (34 games) - 2015-162. 32 (32 games) - 2014-153. 31 (31 games) - 2016-174. 30 (30 games) - 2013-145. 22 (22 games) - 2017-18

Offensive Rebounds1. 399 (34 games) - 2015-162. 335 (31 games) - 2016-173. 289 (30 games) - 2013-144. 281 (32 games) - 2014-155. 275 (22 games) - 2017-18

Defensive Rebounds1. 902 (34 games) - 2015-162. 831 (31 games) - 2016-173. 775 (30 games) - 2013-144. 734 (32 games) - 2014-155. 587 (22 games) - 2017-18

Minutes1. 6824 (34 games) - 2015-162. 6402 (32 games) - 2014-153. 6250 (31 games) - 2016-174. 6025 (30 games) - 2013-145. 4450 (22 games) - 2017-18

Most Rebounds1. 1301 (34 games) 2015-162. 1166 (31 games) 2016-173. 1064 (30 games) 2013-144. 1015 (32 games) 2014-155. 862 (22 games) 2017-18

Average Rebounds1. 39.182 (22 Games) - 2017-182. 38.265 (34 Games) - 2015-163. 37.613 (31 Games) - 2016-174. 35.467 (30 Games) - 2013-145. 31.719 (32 Games) - 2014-15

Offensive Rebound Average1. 12.500 (22 games) - 2017-182. 11.735 (34 games) - 2015-163. 10.806 (31 games) - 2016-174. 9.633 (30 games) - 2013-145. 8.781 (32 games) - 2014-15

Defensive Rebound Average1. 26.806 (31 games) - 2016-172. 26.682 (22 games) - 2017-183. 26.529 (34 games) - 2015-164. 25.833 (30 games) - 2013-145. 22.938 (32 games) - 2014-15

Average Minutes1. 202.273 (22 games) - 2017-182. 201.613 (31 games) - 2016-173. 200.833 (30 games) - 2013-144. 200.706 (34 games) - 2015-165. 200.063 (32 games) - 2014-15

‹ 27 ›

THE LAST TIME...

INDIVIDUALScored 25 Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Alessandro Lever, 25, 1/23/18, vs William JessupScored 30 Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DeWayne Russell, 31, 2/11/17, vs. New Mexico St.Scored 35 Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DeWayne Russell, 42, 12/3/16, vs. LouisvilleScored 40 Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DeWayne Russell, 42, 12/3/16, vs. Louisville Two players had 20 points . .Alessandro Levers (25) and Josh Braun (22), 1/23/18, vs William JessupTwo players had 25 points . . . . . . .Grandy Glaze (29) and Dominic Magee (29), 12/13/15 vs. OmahaThree players had 20 points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happened Scored 20 points in two straight games . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Alessandro Lever (3), 1/18/18 - 1/23/18Scored 20 points in three straight games. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Alessandro Lever (3), 1/18/18 - 1/23/18Scored 20 points in four straight games . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Alessandro Lever(4), 1/18/18 - 1/27/18Scored 20 points in five straight games . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happenedScored 30 points in two straight games . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happened Scored double figures in 10 straight games . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DeWayne Russell (33), 3/1/16 - 3/4/17 Scored double figures in 15 straight games . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DeWayne Russell (33), 3/1/16 - 3/4/17 Scored double figures in 20 straight games . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DeWayne Russell (33), 3/1/16 - 3/4/17

Five players scored in double figures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs Morgan State, 12/27/17Six players scored in double figures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happenedFour players scored 15 or more points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happened Double-double . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Casey Benson, 1/23/18, 12 pts, 10asts, vs William JessupDouble-double with points / assists . . . . . Casey Benson, 1/23/18, 12 pts, 10asts, vs William JessupDouble-double in two straight games . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Keonta Vernon, 1/11/18 - 1/13/18Double-double in three straight games . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Grandy Glaze (4), 2/6/16 – 2/18/16Double-double in four straight games . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Grandy Glaze (4), 2/6/16 – 2/18/16Two players with double-double . . . Vernon (24p/15r) & Frayer (12p/12r), 1/28/17 at Chicago StateTriple-double . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happened 20 points, 10 rebounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Alessandro Lever, 1/20/18, 24 pts, 10rebs, at UMKC20 points, 10 assists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DeWayne Russell, 21pts, 11 ast, 1/7/17 vs. Utah Valley Made 10 FG in a game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Alessandro Lever (10), 1/23/18 vs William JessupMade 12 FG in a game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DeWayne Russell (14), 12/3/16, vs. LouisvilleMade 15 FG in a game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happened Attempted 15 FG in a game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Alessandro Level (16) 1/23/18, vs William JessupAttempted 17 FG in a game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Alessandro Lever (17) 1/27/18, at Utah Valley Attempted 20 FG in a game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Joshua Braun (21) 2/23/17, vs. Chicago St. Made five 3-pointers in a game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Joshua Braun (5) 12/23/17, vs. Morgan StateMade six 3-pointers in a game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Joshua Braun (9) 2/23/17, vs. Chicago St.Made seven 3-pointers in a game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Joshua Braun (9) 2/23/17, vs. Chicago St.Made eight 3-pointers in a game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Joshua Braun (9) 2/23/17, vs. Chicago St.Made nine 3-pointers in a game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Joshua Braun (9) 2/23/17, vs. Chicago St.

Attempted 10 3-pointers in a game. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Joshua Braun (10) 12/5/17, vs. St. John’sAttempted 12 3-pointers in a game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Joshua Braun (19) 2/23/17, vs. Chicago St.Made a 3-pointer in 10 straight games. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Josh Braun (21), 1/7/17 – 11/25/17Made a 3-pointer in 15 straight games . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Josh Braun (21), 1/7/17 – 11/25/17Made a 3-pointer in 20 straight games . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Josh Braun (21), 1/7/17 – 11/25/17 Made 10 free throws in a game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DeWayne Russell (11), 2/11/17, vs. New Mexico St.Made 15 free throws in a game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Josh Braun (17), 1/16/16 vs. Utah ValleyMade 16 free throws in a game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Josh Braun (17), 1/16/16 vs. Utah ValleyMade 17 free throws in a game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Josh Braun (17), 1/16/16 vs. Utah ValleyAttempted 15 free throws in a game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DeWayne Russell (17), 12/28/16, vs. Cal PolyAttempted 18 free throws in a game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Josh Braun (19), 1/16/16 vs. Utah ValleyAttempted 19 free throws in a game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Josh Braun (19), 1/16/16 vs. Utah ValleyAttempted 20 free throws in a game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jerome Garrison (20), 1/23/14 vs. Idaho 12 rebounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Keonta Vernon (12), 1/11/18 vs New Mexico State13 rebounds. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Keonta Vernon (15), 1/13/18 vs UTRGV14 rebounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Keonta Vernon (15), 1/13/18 vs UTRGV15 rebounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Keonta Vernon (15), 1/13/18 vs UTRGV16 rebounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Killian Larson (20), 2/22/14 at Idaho20 rebounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Killian Larson (20), 2/22/14 at Idaho 10+ rebounds in two straight games . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Keonta Vernon (2), 1/11/18 – 1/13/1810+ rebounds in three straight games . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Grandy Glaze (3), 3/14/16 – 3/23/1610+ rebounds in four straight games . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Grandy Glaze (4), 2/6/16 – 2/18/16Two players had 10 rebounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Vernon (15) & Frayer (12), 1/28/17 at Chicago St.Three players had 10 rebounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happened 6 assists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Casey Benson (6), 1/18/18, at Chicago State7 assists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Casey Benson (7), 12/13/17, at Louisville8 assists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Casey Benson (8), 12/9/17, vs. Grambling St.9 assists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Casey Benson (9), 1/20/18, at UMKC10 assists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Casey Benson (10), 1/23/18, vs. William Jessup 11 assists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DeWayne Russell (11), 1/7/17, vs. Utah Valley12 assists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DeWayne Russell (12), 12/13/15 vs. Nebraska-Omaha 4 blocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Oscar Frayer (4), 1/23/18 vs William Jessup 5 blocks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Daniel Alexander (5), 2/8/14 vs. CSU Bakersfield6 blocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happened 4 steals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Casey Benson (4), 12/2/17 vs UC Riverside5 steals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Gerard Martin (5), 12/31/16, at UC Riverside6 steals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Gerard Martin (7), 11/28/16, vs. SIUE Played every minute . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DeWayne Russell / Josh Braun (40), 3/4/17 at CSU BakersfieldFouled out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Josh Braun 1/18/18 at Chicago StateTwo players fouled out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Keonta Vernon & Alessandro Lever, 12/23/17, at Louisville

‹ 28 ›

THE LAST TIME...

Scored 90+ points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs. William Jessup (96), 1/23/18Scored 90+ points (WAC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . at Chicago State (90), 1/21/16Scored 100+ points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .vs. Morgan State (100), 12/23/17Scored 100+ points (WAC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happened Scored 110+ points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happenedScored 110+ points (WAC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happened Scored less than 50 points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . at Kentucky (45), 11/14/14Scored less than 50 points (WAC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happened Allowed 90+ points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs. Nebraska-Omaha (108), 12/13/15Allowed 90+ points (WAC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happenedAllowed 100+ points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs. Nebraska-Omaha (108), 12/13/15Allowed 100+ points (WAC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happened Shot 60% from the field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs. William Jessup (65.4%), 1/23/18Shot 65% from the field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs. William Jessup (65.4%), 1/23/18Shot 70% from the field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happenedShot less than 30% from the field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . at CSU Bakersfield (28.8%), 3/4/17 Allowed 60% shooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happenedAllowed 65% shooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happenedAllowed 30% or less shooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs Morgan State (30.0%), 12/23/17Allowed 25% or less shooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs. Coppin St. (24.5%), 11/25/16 Shot 90% or better from free throw line (min. 10 attempts) . . . vs. Northern Arizona (100%, 11-for-11), 3/28/15Shot 100% from free throw line (min. 10 attempts). . . . . . . . . . . . vs. Northern Arizona (100%, 11-for-11), 3/28/15Shot 50% or less from free throw line (min. 10 attempts) . . . at Louisville (50%, 6-for-12), 12/23/17

Attempted 40 free throws . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs. Nebraska-Omaha (40), 12/13/15Attempted five or less free throws . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs. Jackson State (5), 3/17/16Made 30 free throws . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs. Nebraska-Omaha (31), 12/13/15 Made 10 3-pointers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .vs. Morgan State (13), 12/27/17Made 12 3-pointers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs. Morgan State (13), 12/27/17Made 15 3-pointers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happenedMade 16 3-pointers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happenedMade 17 3-pointers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happened Scored 90+ points in consecutive games . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happened Scored 90+ points in three consecutive games . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happenedScored 100+ points in consecutive games . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happened

Won game by 30 points or more . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs. Longwood (30), 12/21/17Won game by 35 points or more . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs. UAPB (40), 12/22/16Won game by 40 points or more. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs. UAPB (40), 12/22/16Won game by 45 points or more . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs. Western New Mexico (50), 11/16/13Won game by 50 points or more . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs. Western New Mexico (50), 11/16/13Lost game by 30 points or more . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . at Duke (35), 11/12/16Lost game by 40 points or more . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . at Louisville (48), 12/5/15 Won game decided by one point . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . at Texas-Pan American (W 79-78, OT), 3/8/14Lost game decided by one point . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs. Chicago State (L 56-55), 1/31/15Two consecutive games decided by one point . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happened Two consecutive games decided by five points or less . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 games, 12/7/16 - 12/10/16Three consecutive games decided by five points or less . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 games, 1/31/15 – 2/7/15 Came back from 15-point deficit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs Seattle (15), 2/16/17Came back from 18-point deficit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . at UTRGV (19), 2/6/16Came back from 20-point deficit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs. CSU Bakersfield (20), 2/8/14 Pulled down 45 rebounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .at UMKC (47), 1/20/18Pulled down 50 rebounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs. Bethesda (50), 1/31/17Pulled down 55 rebounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happened Out-rebounded opponent by 15+… . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . at Utah Valley (+16), 1/27/18Out-rebounded opponent by 20+ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .at Seattle (+20), 2/16/17Out-rebounded opponent by 25+ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . at UMKC (+25), 1/20/18 Won an overtime game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . at Chicago State (2OT), 1/28/17Lost an overtime game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . at Boise State (2OT), 12/13/17Won an overtime game (WAC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . at Chicago State (2OT), 1/28/17Lost an overtime game (WAC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happenedPlayed two overtimes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . at Boise State (2OT), 12/13/17Played consecutive overtime games . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Never happened Committed 20+ turnovers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . at Louisville (21), 12/23/17Committed less than 10 turnovers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs. North Carolina Central (6), 12/11/17Committed less than 8 turnovers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs. North Carolina Central (6), 12/11/17Committed less than 5 turnovers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs. New Mexico State (4), 1/9/16 Scored 40+ in a half . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . at Chicago State (40, 1st), 1/18/18Scored 45+ in a half . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs William Jessup (46, 1st), 1/23/18Scored 50+ in a half . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vs William Jessup (50, 2nd), 1/23/18

TEAM

‹ 29 ›

2017-18 GAME RECAPS

GAME 1: GCU 67, FLORIDA A&M 51

RAPID RECAP:

Josh Braun returned and all was right with Grand Canyon’s offense again.

Braun missed GCU’s exhibition games but did not look like he missed a beat when he made the Lopes’ first four shots in a season-opening 67 -51 victory Friday night against Florida A&M at sold-out GCU Arena.

Braun, who scored 11 points in 27 minutes, opened the game with a 3-pointer, scored three points the old-fashioned way on a drive with a foul and hit another 3-pointer in the first five minutes but it was GCU’s defense that pulled away from the Rattlers later in the half.

The Lopes shut out Florida A&M for nearly six minutes, stretching a four-point game to a 31-14 lead with 13 unanswered points. By that point, GCU head coach Dan Majerle had gone 11 players deep and was tightening the defensive pressure by adding guards Fiifi Aidoo and Damari Milstead to a lineup with Keonta Vernon, Matt Jackson and Oscar Frayer.

It was not just that unit that locked up the Rattlers, who only shot 38.8 percent from the field for the game. An early second-half lineup of mostly starters, bolstered by freshman Alessandro Lever’s substitution, shut out the Rattlers again for five minutes to extend GCU’s lead to 45-21 with 12:20 remaining.

GCU kept Florida A&M at a distance with the help of three Aidoo 3-pointers in a four-minute span of the second half. Aidoo scored 11 to shared the team scoring lead with Braun. Vernon grabbed a team-high nine rebounds while scoring eight points.

DAN MAJERLE POSTGAME QUOTES:

(opening statement) “Not bad for the first game. I thought the first half was very good defensively, everybody went in and played hard and did a good job. Second half not so much, they shot 27 percent in the first half and 48 percent in the second half, we actually got beat in the second half 34-32. I was a little concerned about the turnovers and our free throws, we’ve got to be able to shoot better free throws, but a win is a win. That’s a team that had a hard travel coming here from Florida, I think half of them made it today. So I’ll take a win that’s fine, but we’ve got a lot of work to do.”

(on the different lineups locking down Florida A&M) “Yeah I’ve got a lineup with Fiifi (Aidoo), Gerard (Martin), Matt (Jackson), Keonta (Vernon) was in there, Oscar (Frayer), and Damari (Milstead), all those guys can really defend and really get after it for a period of time and they did a good job. All those guys are pretty athletic, Gerard and Matt together are extremely smart out there, and with Fiifi’s athleticism, the way he flies around, Damari gets into guys, and Keonta uses his size and his strength. Those are guys that can really cause some havoc defensively.

(on what stood out from Fiifi Aidoo’s play especially in the second half) “I see glimpses every day in practice with Fiifi, when he’s aggressive, looks to score, and is focused, he is about as talented as they come. His thing is that he just has to stay focused, in the second half some of his shots were questionable. But I’ll take it, because when he is focused like that and gets going downhill, and making shots he is about as they get. He is really strong, athletic, he’s got a really good shot. Half the battle with him, is in his head, he’s just got to be more confident in himself. I expect a lot out of him, sometimes I don’t think he expects anything out of himself. So I tell him every day in practice, ‘You’re one of our best players in practice, you’ve got to believe in yourself as much as I believe in you.’ So it was good to see him really step up and be confident and aggressive.”

(on the reason for the slow start and turnovers) “Yeah, we’re still trying to figure each other out, we’ve got freshman in there, Roberts (Blumbergs) really struggled with six turnovers, he’s just has to understand the physicality of the game. Sometimes he’s out there and he wants the nickname ‘Big Smooth’, well he can’t be ‘Big Smooth’ out there, he’s got to be more aggressive and handle the ball better. He learn, he’s got a lot of talent. And then Casey (Benson), we’re still trying to figure out Casey, and how he plays and how we are going to get him involved. We haven’t practiced with Josh (Braun), he had his first practice two days ago in almost three weeks. So we are still trying to figure each other out and get lineups, so that’s going to be some growing pains, but our goal is to be playing the best basketball come WAC time and that’s what these games are for, so I’ll take the win.”

(on how he felt Josh Braun looked tonight) “Josh at the beginning hit shots, had some silly turnovers there, but that’s fine. The guy hasn’t practiced in three weeks, so Josh will be fine, he’s going to be really good once he gets back into shape and works on his game with Casey (Benson), I think they’ll be good together.”

(on having taller lineups in during stretches of the game) “Kerwin (Smith) played really well, especially in the first half. When he is in there controlling the boards, and flying around being active he can be a really good player. He’s made a lot of strides since he got here as a freshman and last year. If he plays like that he’ll get some significant minutes, and just go in there and play as hard as he can, and I thought he did a really good job.”

(on the play of Gerard Martin, getting a lot of things done) “Yeah Gerard has always been that way, his problem is that he has to slow down a little bit offensively. Because he’s so smart, he’s thinking, and trying to do things really quick, he just has to slow down and take what they give him. Martin is a big defensive guy, really smart, and knows every play in the book so he helps other guys. Martin was really good, he’ll shoot some shots and made some today. Just what he does out there as far as switching, helping, and playing defense. He’s kind of a glue on our defensive end.”

November 10, 2017 - 7:09 PM Tip Phoenix, Ariz. (GCU Arena)

Florida A&M 51 (0-1) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 00 Desmond Williams * 6-16 0-1 3-4 1 7 8 1 15 1 2 1 2 3704 Elijah Mayes * 1-4 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 2 2 1 1 0 1 1720 Brendon Myles * 1-2 0-0 0-1 0 2 2 2 2 0 3 0 1 1322 Marcus Barham * 4-10 2-5 0-0 1 3 4 1 10 1 7 0 2 3134 Isaiah Martin * 2-5 0-0 0-0 1 6 7 3 4 0 0 4 0 3201 Nick Severado 0-0 0-0 3-4 0 0 0 1 3 0 0 0 0 602 Kamron Reaves 3-4 1-2 0-0 1 2 3 4 7 4 7 0 0 2303 Craig Bowman 1-2 0-1 0-1 1 0 1 0 2 1 0 0 0 705 Nasir Core 0-2 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 3 0 0 2 0 1 1011 Javonni Harrell 0-0 0-0 2-2 0 1 1 1 2 0 0 0 1 421 Justin Ravenel 1-4 1-3 1-2 0 2 2 1 4 0 0 0 0 2023 Bryce Moragne 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0+ TEAM 3 1 4 Totals 19-49 4-13 9-14 8 24 32 19 51 8 22 5 8 200

FG % 1st Half: 6-22 27 .3% 2nd Half: 13-27 48 .1% Game: 19-49 38 .8% Deadball3FG % 1st Half: 2-6 33 .3% 2nd Half: 2-7 28 .6% Game: 4-13 30 .8% ReboundsFT % 1st Half: 3-5 60 .0% 2nd Half: 6-9 66 .7% Game: 9-14 64 .3% 3

Grand Canyon 67 (1-0) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 04 Oscar Frayer F 6-10 4-6 3-4 0 6 6 4 19 1 1 0 2 3212 Roberts Blumbergs F 3-8 2-5 6-6 3 5 8 2 14 6 1 0 1 3124 Keonta Vernon F 4-8 0-0 1-2 1 7 8 5 9 2 0 1 1 2002 Joshua Braun G 2-8 2-8 1-2 1 1 2 0 7 2 2 1 0 3511 Casey Benson G 5-7 4-4 1-2 0 1 1 1 15 8 3 0 2 3100 Shaq Carr 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 2 0 1 1 0 0 901 Fiifi Aidoo 0-0 0-0 1-2 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 805 Matt Jackson 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 621 Kerwin Smith 1-3 0-0 0-1 2 2 4 1 2 0 0 1 0 825 Alessandro Lever 4-6 0-0 4-4 1 0 1 1 12 0 0 0 0 1142 Gerard Martin 2-3 2-3 0-0 0 0 0 1 6 0 1 0 0 9 TEAM 1 Totals 27-55 14-26 17-23 8 25 33 18 85 21 11 3 6 200

FG % 1st Half: 13-26 50 .0% 2nd Half: 13-33 39 .4% Game: 26-59 44 .1% Deadball3FG % 1st Half: 4-9 44 .4% 2nd Half: 3-13 23 .1% Game: 7-22 31 .8% ReboundsFT % 1st Half: 5-8 62 .5% 2nd Half: 3-8 37 .5% Game: 8-16 50 .0% 2

Officials: Dennis Flannery, Toby Doolittle, James FordTechnical Fouls: Florida A&M-None . Grand Canyon-None .GCU Arena, Phoenix, Ariz . Attendance: 7202 In Off 2nd FastScore by Period 1st 2nd Total Points Paint T/O Chance Break BenchFlorida A&M 17 34 51 FAMU 24 11 8 6 18Grand Canyon 35 32 67 GCU 36 19 14 4 34 Last FG - FAM 2nd-00:20,GCU 2nd-03:30 . Score Tied - 0 timesLargest lead - FAM None, GCU by 25 2nd-11:38 Lead Changed - 0 timesFAM led for 00:00 . GCU led for 39:51 . Game was tied for 00:09 .

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2017-18 GAME RECAPS

GAME 2: GCU 75, ROBERT MORRIS 61

RAPID RECAP:

The Grand Canyon men’s basketball team’s opponent always will have something to handle out of the Lopes’ starting backcourt with the shooting, scoring, running and playmaking from either Joshua Braun or Casey Benson.

When they both are rolling at once, watch out.

Braun and Benson combined for 27 first-half points Monday night, building a 20-point lead on the Lopes’ way to a 75-62 victory against Robert Morris in front of 6,833 fans at GCU Arena.

Braun, the Western Athletic Conference Preseason Player of the Year, was more than a scoring leader on Monday night with 20 points. He became GCU’s all-time record holder for 3-pointers made, making four of five 3-pointers in Monday’s to give him 199 for his four-season career.

The Lopes (2-0) have held each of their opponents this season to less than 40 percent shooting to extend Division I’s longest active winning streak to nine game. Robert Morris shot 33.9 percent from the field with 19 turnovers. After Matty McConnell and Koby Thomas each scored 22 points in a Friday loss to Ohio State, they were kept to 17 points combined by the Lopes on Monday.

Robert Morris hung early with GCU with the score being tied five times in the first eight minutes and the Colonials leading 19-18 at the midpoint of the first half.

From there, the Lopes went on a 26-5 run with half of those points coming from Braun. During that stretch, Braun made the 3s that tied and set the GCU career 3-pointers record (previously held by Richard Davis, 2005-07).

The Lopes kept a 20-point lead at halftime (48-28) and stretched the lead to 25 when sophomore swingman Oscar Frayer caught fire with two 3-pointers and another jumper on the 3-point line in less than two minutes.

GCU lost momentum after a Robert Morris time out at that point. The Lopes made one field goal, a Benson drive to give him 17 points, over a span of more than 12 minutes of play. Robert Morris worked the lead to 13 while GCU sustained the lead on free throws and stops.

DAN MAJERLE POSTGAME QUOTES:

(opening statement) “First let me say, it was a really good win. Great first half, unbelievable first half. 48 points, defensively we were great, flying around, everybody played well. Second half, we were just too casual. Way too many turnovers, we stopped making free throws, got to be stronger with the ball. I know I’m nitpicking but I don’t care. We have to be good if we want to win the WAC and do all of that stuff, we have to get better. But, first half was unbelievable. That’s a good team. Well coached, they play hard. I knew this was going to be a hard game but that first half was about as good as I’ve seen from our guys.”

(on if there was a reason they came out casual in the second half) “No I just think they get a little casual with the ball. They start gambling, it’s human nature. Coach (Pat) Riley always told me it’s human nature to let up when you get up. Oscar (Frayer) hits three three’s and we get up by twenty something, I don’t know what it was and it’s let up. Can’t do that, you have to step on the guy, have to keep him down. When you start gambling, I mean we gave up 25 points off our turnovers and had 21 turnovers, that’s not good enough. You have to be strong with the ball. Even at the end, Gerard (Martin) is dribbling the ball out and guys are trying to steal it, you have to be strong. Josh (Braun) hell of a player, we all know that but be strong with the ball. He has to get better, everybody does. Our goal is huge, what we are trying to do is really, really hard so we have to get better. Period. But great win, I was worried about this. Great win. That first half was unbelievable.”

(on what Gerard Martin brought off the bench) “That’s what Gerard does. He takes charges, Keonta (Vernon) took a few charges, we have a group that comes in here and plays really hard defensively when I sub them in, I can switch them out of things, they get after guys, they’re disruptive. Really good. I though Oscar was unbelievable. He rebounded the ball, steals, flying around, the way he plays defense. So Oscar had a great game. Obviously what Josh (Braun) did in the first half, but everybody was contributing. I think our defense is going to be what leads us this year. Offensively we will get there.”

(on if he wants Casey Benson to be more aggressive) “No I want Casey to do whatever it takes to win. I don’t think Casey has to be more aggressive. Casey is not an explosive athlete that is going to score…Casey just has to be smart, hit his open shots, feed guys, take care of the ball, do those kinds of things. Casey is not DeWayne Russell I don’t want him to be DeWayne Russell. He has to be Casey Benson and that’s lead our guys, make great decisions, make open shots, make passes, make his free throws. That’s all Casey has to do. He’s surrounded by some very talented guys. There’s no way Casey has to lead this team. He just has to be a real solid piece as a point guard, the guy has great experience, played on a great program, very high level. He doesn’t have to do any more than what he has to do. He just has to play basketball and be himself.”

(On what he likes that they are doing defensively) “It’s different now because we can play 10 or 11 guys and we switch a lot. We switch up our defense. We are in a man that we play traditional then we put those guys in and we can switch, take them out of their offense, get steals, be very aggressive and we have a bunch of athletes and smart guys. When you put Gerard out there and Matt (Jackson) who didn’t get to play much because of foul trouble, but Gerard and Matt and Fiifi (Aidoo), Shaq (Carr), Damari (Milstead), all of those guys can really guard and really disrupt their offensive flow for that four or five minutes. Then we get back to our normal defense which is still pretty good and hard. But with that group you can get out there and switch.”

(on Keonta Vernon going down in the first half) “He just tweaked his knee, he’s always battling something. That kid is as tough as they come. He just tweaked it but he came back in. All our guys are tough. I jumped them pretty hard in there but they are resilient and tough. They know how much I care about them but they also know that we have to get better. You just can’t have 21 turnovers. And that’s been a problem this year so far. We’ve had way too many turnovers for a team that’s pretty talented.”

November 13, 2017 - 7:09 PM Tip Phoenix, Ariz. (GCU Arena)

Robert Morris 61 (0-2) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 01 Jon Williams * 1-6 1-4 0-1 0 2 2 1 3 5 2 0 1 3102 David Cole * 1-1 0-0 2-2 1 1 2 5 4 0 2 0 1 1610 Koby Thomas * 5-11 0-3 3-4 2 2 4 4 13 0 1 0 1 2311 Dachon Burke * 4-12 1-1 6-7 2 4 6 4 15 1 5 0 6 3123 Matty McConnell * 1-6 0-4 2-4 1 1 2 3 4 2 2 1 0 2203 Leondre Washington 0-8 0-4 0-0 0 0 0 4 0 1 2 0 0 2204 Taevon Ashmeade 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 205 Malik Petteway 4-8 0-0 2-4 4 7 11 3 10 0 2 1 3 2020 Charles Bain 3-6 1-3 0-0 3 2 5 0 7 0 1 0 1 1722 Ronnie Gombe 1-1 0-0 0-0 0 2 2 3 2 0 0 1 0 424 Chris Coalmon 1-3 1-1 0-0 1 0 1 2 3 0 2 0 0 12 TEAM 2 2 4 Totals 21-62 4-20 15-22 16 23 39 29 61 9 19 3 13 200

FG % 1st Half: 9-25 36 .0% 2nd Half: 12-37 32 .4% Game: 21-62 33 .9% Deadball3FG % 1st Half: 3-10 30 .0% 2nd Half: 1-10 10 .0% Game: 4-20 20 .0% ReboundsFT % 1st Half: 7-9 77 .8% 2nd Half: 8-13 61 .5% Game: 15-22 68 .2% 5

Grand Canyon 75 (2-0) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 04 Oscar Frayer F 4-5 2-2 3-4 2 7 9 1 13 3 3 2 2 3312 Roberts Blumbergs F 0-2 0-2 2-2 0 2 2 2 2 1 1 0 0 1324 Keonta Vernon F 1-4 0-0 5-8 0 4 4 5 7 0 0 2 1 1902 Joshua Braun G 7-13 4-7 2-4 3 1 4 2 20 0 6 2 0 3711 Casey Benson G 4-10 1-2 8-10 1 5 6 2 17 5 4 0 0 3400 Shaq Carr 0-0 0-0 2-2 0 0 0 2 2 1 1 0 0 601 Fiifi Aidoo 2-2 0-0 0-2 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 1105 Matt Jackson 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 2 0 0 1 0 0 421 Kerwin Smith 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 225 Alessandro Lever 1-4 0-2 4-4 0 2 2 1 6 1 3 0 0 1742 Gerard Martin 2-3 0-1 0-0 1 6 7 3 4 2 1 0 2 24 TEAM 1 2 3 Totals 21-43 7-16 26-36 8 29 37 21 75 13 21 6 5 200

FG % 1st Half: 14-25 56 .0% 2nd Half: 7-18 38 .9% Game: 21-43 48 .8% Deadball3FG % 1st Half: 4-10 40 .0% 2nd Half: 3-6 50 .0% Game: 7-16 43 .8% ReboundsFT % 1st Half: 16-19 84 .2% 2nd Half: 10-17 58 .8% Game: 26-36 72 .2% 2

Officials: Ronnie Hernandez, Ruben Ramos, Marc A . BeasleyTechnical Fouls: Robert Morris-None . Grand Canyon-Keonta Vernon .GCU Arena, Phoenix, AZ Attendance: 6833 In Off 2nd FastScore by Period 1st 2nd Total Points Paint T/O Chance Break BenchRobert Morris 28 33 61 RMU 28 25 13 4 22Grand Canyon 48 27 75 GCU 26 19 10 15 16 Last FG - RMU 2nd-00:39,GCU 2nd-01:24 . Score Tied - 6 timesLargest lead - RMU by 3 1st-14:39, GCU by 25 2nd-14:08 Lead Changed - 7 timesRMU led for 03:13 . GCU led for 33:42 . Game was tied for 02:51 .

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2017-18 GAME RECAPS

GAME 3: GCU 76, LITTLE ROCK 51

RAPID RECAP:

Grand Canyon senior guard Joshua Braun outscored Little Rock for most of Saturday’s first half, making the Lopes’ team effort good for a 76-51 blowout victory at sold-out GCU Arena.

GCU (3-0) continued its streak of holding each opponent this season to less than 40 percent shooting but Braun’s offense spotted the Lopes a great starting point.

Braun made all eight of his first-half shots and scored 19 of GCU’s first 25 points in the game’s first 13 minutes. Little Rock did not pass 19 points until the final minutes of the first half.

Braun scored 22 of his game-high 29 points, the second-best scoring game of his career, in the first half to send GCU to a 42-23 halftime lead on 56 percent team shooting. Braun connected on five 3-pointers in the first half and picked up another 3-point score when he pump-faked at the 3-point line and scored driving as he was fouled.

There was no let-up with how the Lopes emerged for the second half. Little Rock missed five of its first six second-half shots and committed four turnovers to start the second half. The Lopes doubled up the Trojans, 60-30, eight minutes into the second half with two Braun free throws that gave him 26 points.

GCU head coach Dan Majerle has stuck with a deep rotation through three games. He used 11 Lopes players in Saturday’s first half with a strong contribution from senior backup point guard Shaq Carr. Freshman reserve power forward Alessandro Lever followed up by scoring three consecutive Lopes field goals in the second half, when he was set up inside by Braun and Gerard Martin.

Little Rock was shooting only 23.8 percent from the field with 12 minutes remaining in the game and wound up at an opponent season-low 27.3 percent for the game. Even as GCU went deep to its bench, the Lopes held Little Rock without a made field goal for nearly seven minutes.

GCU continued issues with turnovers, committing 10 in the first half and eight in the second half as the lead grew to as much as 31 points twice. Senior point guard Casey Benson added 10 points for GCU while sophomore Fiifi Aidoo scored eight points and delivered three assists in 19 minutes.

DAN MAJERLE POSTGAME QUOTES:

(opening statement) “Just a really good game again. First half, came out defensively, Josh (Braun) has got to play better in that first half. No, he was awesome. He just continues to amaze with what he is able to do, but it was great. I thought everybody played really hard and really well and I was really happy about our second half. We came out on point, put together a really good 40 minutes again. I think we have to be a little better on our turnovers still, 18 turnovers is something we need to work on. Defensively, to hold them to 27 percent, 3-for-18 from the three-point line was good. Just a great game. I didn’t see that one. That team is very athletic and long and we played hard.”

(on what stood out defensively) “Just flying around. When we put that other group in we can white, which is a switch, guys get out and deny, really impressed with our athleticism as far as blocking shots. Keonta (Vernon) is really starting to get better at that timing Oscar (Frayer), Gerard (Martin), Roberts (Blumbergs) got a block, all these guys are protecting the basket and moving their feet. Oscar defensively is really good so I just think when we play 10, 11 or 12 guys, guys don’t have any excuses, they’re not tired, we can rotate them in and they are really starting to be pressed and taking pride in their defense.”

(on if he is going to stick with a rotation) “Yeah, I will keep working with it. Shaq (Carr), Damari (Milstead), Shaq, Damari, they both deserve to play. Shaq is a senior, I want to develop Damari but Shaq came in and played really well in that first half. Damari will get his chances, Shaq will continue to work but if he plays like that it is hard to not put him in the game. Damari is good too. I am going to stick with the freshmen. Roberts is really struggling but he is going to be a big part of this program for a long time. He is very talented and will get better. Alessandro (Lever) had a better second half, he struggled that first half but we have guys like Matt (Jackson) and Gerard who can come off the bench and pick it up. I am happy with our whole team and it’s just about winning here. I told them it’s not about me, not about them, it’s about GCU and winning and that’s what we are doing.”

(on Shaq Carr progressing) “He’s just more focused. He’s taking care of the ball which is good, he’s a good athlete. He can really penetrate and make good passes, can’t be careless, you have to make good passes. And I thought he came in and was impressive about getting to the basket, made a few layups which he is able to do. Defensively when he wants to, he can guard.”

(on overall ball protection) “Not good. We are not tough enough yet. Fiifi (Aidoo) made some really bad passes, Oscar still doesn’t understand, Josh (Braun) even puts that ball in front of him and people take it. We have to do a better job of being strong with the basketball, protecting it, not making careless one-handed passes. Rob made a couple one-handed passes. We’ve been working on it, driving and kicking and getting ready to shoot so it’s just something we have to keep working on.”

(on Braun’s ability to stretch out the defense then use pump fakes) “Josh has to limit his dribbles, he’s not a big dribble guy. As they come out on him he has to pump fake. He can get to the basket which is fine but get away from a guy and score. We are going to work on his post up moves. He gets down there and he gets fouled a lot. He’s not doing as good of job this year in the post but we will keep working on that with him. When he is making that jump shot he has to be able to put it on the floor and if nobody closes out on him he can make it all the way to the basket. What can you say about Josh? The guy is amazing.”

November 18, 2017 - 7:09 PM Tip Phoenix, Ariz. (GCU Arena)

Little Rock 51 (0-3) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 05 Oliver Black * 0-3 0-0 5-6 1 4 5 4 5 1 1 0 0 2810 Jaizec Lottie * 2-8 0-2 0-1 0 2 2 2 4 0 3 0 0 2711 Camron Reedus * 3-8 1-3 1-2 1 1 2 1 8 1 2 0 2 2120 K .J . Gilmore * 0-3 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 1 0 1 2 1 1 1424 Ben Marcus * 3-4 0-0 2-4 2 3 5 3 8 0 1 0 1 1901 Andre Jones 4-15 1-4 2-2 2 0 2 3 11 0 2 0 1 2903 Cameron Corcoran 1-1 1-1 4-4 0 0 0 1 7 1 0 0 0 813 Cezanne Carson 0-1 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 714 Damir Hadzic 0-1 0-1 0-0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 315 Khari Harley 0-2 0-1 2-2 1 1 2 4 2 0 1 0 0 423 Wadly Mompremier 0-1 0-1 0-0 0 2 2 2 0 0 2 0 2 1030 Anthony Black 1-6 0-3 0-0 1 2 3 1 2 0 2 0 1 1632 Kris Bankston 1-2 0-0 2-5 2 2 4 2 4 0 0 1 0 14 TEAM 2 4 6 Totals 15-55 3-18 18-26 12 22 34 25 51 4 16 2 8 200

FG % 1st Half: 8-31 25 .8% 2nd Half: 7-24 29 .2% Game: 15-55 27 .3% Deadball3FG % 1st Half: 0-7 0 .0% 2nd Half: 3-11 27 .3% Game: 3-18 16 .7% ReboundsFT % 1st Half: 7-9 77 .8% 2nd Half: 11-17 64 .7% Game: 18-26 69 .2% 3

Grand Canyon 76 (3-0) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 04 Oscar Frayer F 1-4 1-3 2-6 1 5 6 2 5 3 1 1 2 2312 Roberts Blumbergs F 2-4 0-2 0-0 1 3 4 1 4 0 2 1 0 1224 Keonta Vernon F 2-3 0-0 1-2 0 6 6 4 5 3 0 2 0 2402 Joshua Braun G 9-11 5-7 6-7 0 2 2 1 29 3 2 1 1 3211 Casey Benson G 4-5 2-3 0-1 0 4 4 1 10 2 2 0 1 2600 Shaq Carr 2-2 0-0 2-2 0 2 2 1 6 3 2 0 0 1201 Fiifi Aidoo 1-6 0-3 6-6 0 3 3 1 8 3 3 1 0 1905 Matt Jackson 0-3 0-1 0-0 1 1 2 2 0 0 2 0 2 1410 Damari Milstead 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 313 Ibrahima Sankare 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 1 321 Kerwin Smith 0-1 0-0 3-4 1 2 3 3 3 1 2 0 0 825 Alessandro Lever 3-7 0-1 0-0 0 2 2 3 6 0 0 0 0 742 Gerard Martin 0-1 0-0 0-0 1 0 1 2 0 1 1 2 0 17 TEAM 1 3 4 Totals 24-47 8-20 20-28 6 33 39 24 76 20 18 8 7 200

FG % 1st Half: 14-25 56 .0% 2nd Half: 10-22 45 .5% Game: 24-47 51 .1% Deadball3FG % 1st Half: 6-11 54 .5% 2nd Half: 2-9 22 .2% Game: 8-20 40 .0% ReboundsFT % 1st Half: 8-12 66 .7% 2nd Half: 12-16 75 .0% Game: 20-28 71 .4% 3

Officials: Mike Reed, Mike Scyphers, Matt BashamTechnical Fouls: Little Rock-None . Grand Canyon-None .GCU Arena, Phoenix, AZ Attendance: 7394 In Off 2nd FastScore by Period 1st 2nd Total Points Paint T/O Chance Break BenchLittle Rock 23 28 51 LR 18 7 10 0 26Grand Canyon 42 34 76 GCU 32 16 9 6 23 Last FG - LR 2nd-02:29,GCU 2nd-01:04 . Score Tied - 1 timesLargest lead - LR by 4 1st-17:16, GCU by 31 2nd-11:37 Lead Changed - 1 timesLR led for 03:05 . GCU led for 35:15 . Game was tied for 01:18 .

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2017-18 GAME RECAPS

GAME 4: GCU 85, NORFOLK STATE 60

RAPID RECAP:

Having its deepest team yet gives Grand Canyon men’s basketball an abundance of options to find what works.

When the Lopes were not clicking in Monday’s first half, GCU head coach Dan Majerle kept shuffling his 11-man rotation until GCU closed the half with a 21-5 run that devastated Norfolk State for a 85-6- Lopes rout.

GCU (4-0) wore down Norfolk State (0-4) in front of 6,889 at GCU Arena to win its 11th consecutive game, the longest active Division I winning streak.

GCU won by 25 for a second consecutive game but trailed 17-16 with eight minutes remaining in the first half before Majerle went to his 11th player, junior power forward Kerwin Smith, in a lineup with four starters. The 21-5 run started then with a 3-pointer from Lopes senior guard Joshua Braun but the offense did not need much more from its leading scorer.

The Lopes came within one of a program record for 3s by making 14 of 25, even with Braun going two for eight on Monday night.

Senior point guard Casey Benson made all four of his 3-point attempts, tallying 15 points and eight assists. Benson has three consecutive games of double-digit scoring for the first time in his career.

Freshman power forward Roberts Blumbergs scored 12 of his 14 points in the first half, including the Lopes’ final seven points of the first half for a 37-22 lead. Sophomore small forward Oscar Frayer added 11 first-half points and finished with a team-high 19 points, which was also a career high for Frayer. He made four of six 3-pointers.

Norfolk State became the first opponent to shoot better than 40 percent against GCU this season, hitting 42 percent of its shots with 17 turnovers.

DAN MAJERLE POSTGAME QUOTES:(opening statement) “Well good win, 85-60, good win. Not happy with the second half, I told our guys if you want to be a good defensive team, you can’t be a good defensive team for 20 minutes, which we were for the first half. The second half, they were shooting 65% at one time, and we walked them up the last couple of minutes and got it down to 52. It was not good enough, our guys know that. The second unit which is usually pretty good for us was bad, they came out and just stopped playing. Good things was Oscar played really well, Josh struggled tonight, Casey played really well on the offensive end and Braun on the offensive end. Roberts is learning, overall good, 11 turnovers which was really big, that’s down from what we’ve been doing. Rebounding was still not very good, but a win is a win and we’ll take it. I tell the guys all the time that we are playing for something a whole lot more, trying to do something that is really hard, so we’ve got to be better than that for 40 minutes. So hopefully they will learn without having to lose a game.”(on taking a while to get the offense going in first half) “That’s a team that’s going to switch up defenses, and I think that we’re more worried about are they in a 2-3, or a 1-2-2, or man. I just tell them to move the bodies and the basketball, attack, get into our running game and we were able to do that. We committed some fouls early, and offensive rebounds. We went into our switching defense, that allowed us to get some stops and get out and run which allowed us to get hot. So again I think that is where our defense turned it on a little bit and allowed us to get going in the first half.”(on the maturation of Oscar Frayer) “I think that Oscar is really good, last year as a freshman he played a lot of minutes and had some growing pains. He shot a lot of threes early and kind of lost his way. Then at the end of the season, probably the last half of the season he became a slasher and an offensive rebounder. We told him that he had to be our best defender and he’s really bought into that. He’s worked hard this summer on his shot, he shot 4 for 6 from three, he continues to work on that and gets better with his shot he can be hard to guard. I’ve always told Oscar that he’s got to be our best defender, rebounder, he’s got to fly around. If you want to be a scorer, energy finds the ball with him. If he does the stuff he has to do with rebounding and defense, then he’s going to find a way to score and the ball is going to find him. He’s starting to buy into that which is nice, he’s got to work on his ball handling and passing. He’s not a good passer and he’s not a good ball handler, and we’ve got that to work on but I love his energy. He plays with a passion in defense and rebounds, he’s hard to stop.”(on this being Casey Benson’s best game) “Yeah Casey is a smart kid, what we are doing is a complete 180 from what he did at Oregon. Oregon is a great program but they didn’t use him that way, and I use him this way. He’s doing a good job he’s just got to figure it out, he’s got to know when to shoot it. He’s not a blow by guy, he’s got to get off the ball, and then find his shot and take it. He’s not always going to the basket and he’s starting to figure that out. He’s very smart, he’s very competitive. He’ll figure it out and I’ve got to figure it out, I’ve got to make different plays where we get him involved. And I’m not worried about it, I don’t think about how I’ve got to get Casey involved, the only guy I think about getting shots is Josh. Those guys are going to find shots, Casey will find it, he’s smart, but he’s to worry about passing, playing good defense, and taking open shots and making them. He did that tonight, I want him to be aggressive and he is.”(on what other guys learn about playing the game when Josh Braun isn’t having the best game) “Well our guys know, we’ve won games without Josh before, he was out 7 or 8 games last year, and we won a lot of games and we played Louisville to 9 here, we played Arizona to 7 or 8 there without Josh, so our guys know we can play without Josh. We don’t live or die with Josh, it makes it a lot easier when Josh is hot. The thing for Josh is that everyone is going to concentrate on him and they are not going to let him get easy shots, our guys just have to move the basketball and we have good players and when Josh is hot it makes it easier for everybody and when Josh is not, he will still draw people to him, so other guys just have to step up and score.” (on bringing turnovers down and still having good ball movement) “Yeah 21 assists, we had 20 assists last game and we went over 20 in this, and like I said, it is probably more my fault. Last year with DeWayne, the ball was in his hands all the time, DeWayne was such an explosive scorer, that he would come up with score first, then give guys the ball and like I said, Casey isn’t like that, so we have to get the ball moving, side to side, get other guys involved, then get it back to Casey when he is open, so then that creates a problem and situation for me and our guys, learning with these guys, and like I said, Roberts is going to be really good. He can shoot it, he rebounds well and he plays defense, he just needs to find his niche.”(on his teams confidence in shooting three’s) “Yeah I love threes, you know, if they are open, shoot it. I have never told a guy it’s a bad shot. I like guys shooting threes, if they are open, if it is their shot. I think it is a good shot for most of our guys, and we work on it and as long it is a good shot and they are confident about it, shoot it.”(on cutting down the rotation) “I mean I don’t know, it just depends, like I told those guys, if that second group, which has been really good, if that second group comes in again like they did in the second half and not playing defense, I’ll cut it down in a second, if they aren’t going to give an effort, then yeah they aren’t going to play. I mean they didn’t play, I mean nine-eight-eight-eight-eleven and nine, I mean, our starters, thirty two-thirty one- twenty-thirty five-thirty one, if that second group is not bringing the energy, like they have done before, then they are not going to play. I mean I’ll play five guys if I have to, I told them you guys are begging for your own playing time, if you are not going to come out with energy, then you are not going to play. If you don’t care, I don’t care. So if you are not going to play hard, then why am I going to play you. I will go with a six, seven, rotation, whoever is playing hard. That is the same thing with the starters, if they are not playing hard, I will bring in the other guys and they will play. The good thing is about those first three games is everybody played hard, that second half, we did not play hard, we did not play hard at all. So they are not going to play, that is their fault, not mine.”

November 20, 2017 - 7:09 PM Tip Phoenix, Ariz. (GCU Arena)

Norfolk State 60 (0-4) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 01 Preston Bungei * 0-4 0-0 1-4 1 4 5 3 1 3 3 0 0 3014 Nic Thomas * 5-12 1-4 3-4 0 2 2 0 14 2 3 0 1 2622 Alex Long * 2-6 0-0 1-2 1 2 3 5 5 2 1 0 0 2534 Steven Whitley * 6-10 2-3 4-4 0 2 2 2 18 2 5 0 2 3544 Dan Robinson * 2-4 0-0 0-0 1 2 3 4 4 0 2 1 0 2300 Mastadi Pitt 4-8 1-2 4-5 0 5 5 2 13 4 0 0 0 2913 Stavian Allen 1-2 0-0 1-2 1 1 2 1 3 1 1 0 0 935 Derrik Jamerson 1-4 0-3 0-0 1 5 6 2 2 0 2 1 0 23 TEAM 1 1 2 Totals 21-50 4-12 14-21 6 24 30 19 60 14 17 2 3 200

FG % 1st Half: 8-25 32 .0% 2nd Half: 13-25 52 .0% Game: 21-50 42 .0% Deadball 3FG % 1st Half: 2-7 28 .6% 2nd Half: 2-5 40 .0% Game: 4-12 33 .3% Rebounds FT % 1st Half: 4-8 50 .0% 2nd Half: 10-13 76 .9% Game: 14-21 66 .7% 5

Grand Canyon 85 (4-0) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 04 Oscar Frayer F 6-10 4-6 3-4 0 6 6 4 19 1 1 0 2 3212 Roberts Blumbergs F 3-8 2-5 6-6 3 5 8 2 14 6 1 0 1 3124 Keonta Vernon F 4-8 0-0 1-2 1 7 8 5 9 2 0 1 1 2002 Joshua Braun G 2-8 2-8 1-2 1 1 2 0 7 2 2 1 0 3511 Casey Benson G 5-7 4-4 1-2 0 1 1 1 15 8 3 0 2 3100 Shaq Carr 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 2 0 1 1 0 0 901 Fiifi Aidoo 0-0 0-0 1-2 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 805 Matt Jackson 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 621 Kerwin Smith 1-3 0-0 0-1 2 2 4 1 2 0 0 1 0 825 Alessandro Lever 4-6 0-0 4-4 1 0 1 1 12 0 0 0 0 1142 Gerard Martin 2-3 2-3 0-0 0 0 0 1 6 0 1 0 0 9 TEAM 1 Totals 27-55 14-26 17-23 8 25 33 18 85 21 11 3 6 200

FG % 1st Half: 12-28 42 .9% 2nd Half: 15-27 55 .6% Game: 27-55 49 .1% Deadball3FG % 1st Half: 7-15 46 .7% 2nd Half: 7-11 63 .6% Game: 14-26 53 .8% ReboundsFT % 1st Half: 6-9 66 .7% 2nd Half: 11-14 78 .6% Game: 17-23 73 .9% 2

Officials: Michael Greenstein, Shawn Lehigh, Rick BatsellTechnical Fouls: Norfolk State-None . Grand Canyon-Oscar Frayer .GCU Arena, Phoenix, AZ Attendance: 6889 In Off 2nd FastScore by Period 1st 2nd Total Points Paint T/O Chance Break BenchNorfolk State 22 38 60 NRK 26 10 0 10 18Grand Canyon 37 48 85 GCU 23 28 12 7 21 Last FG - NRK 2nd-06:56,GCU 2nd-01:25 . Score Tied - 1 timesLargest lead - NRK by 1 1st-08:34, GCU by 27 2nd-01:25 Lead Changed -3 timesNRK led for 00:31 . GCU led for 37:47 . Game was tied for 01:42 .

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2017-18 GAME RECAPS

GAME 5: SAN DIEGO 72, GCU 62 DAN MAJERLE POSTGAME QUOTES:

(opening statement) “That’s exactly what we needed, that team was tougher than us, made tough shots when they had to, we didn’t. We shot 28% in the second half, they end up almost shooting 50% from the floor, we shot 36%. That’s what we need, our guys aren’t tough enough, mentally or physically, so they thought they were good and I told them that’s what happens when you think you’re good. We’ve got a lot of work to do, we’ve got a week of practice to get after it. We’ll get better, our goal is to be playing the best basketball come WAC time, this is a good loss for us, that’s a good team they played hard, and we’ve got a lot of work to do.”

(on no field goals for a long period of time in second half ) “They were tougher than we were, we didn’t make shots. A lot of shots they made, especially down the stretch, were tough shots, shot clock running out, and long threes. Our weak side was as bad as I’ve ever seen, I don’t know what happened there we just weren’t focused. And on the other end they were just tougher than we were. We’re not protecting ball, we talked about putting the ball in front of you and they just took the ball from us, we’re not finishing tough shots. They played better, we didn’t, they played tougher, we didn’t.”

(on having good three point looks) “Most of them were, Rob had a lot of good looks, Oscar forced a few but him taking it to the basket, that’s fine. I thought for the most part our looks were pretty good. We’ve just got to make them, we’ve been making them, tonight wasn’t that night and that is your defense has to get better and we didn’t get stops down the stretch. When your offense isn’t going and you’re not making shots, you’ve got to get stops, we weren’t getting stops.”

(on the offense forcing shots after they weren’t going down) “Well I hope not because that is what we talk about all the time. Our offense hasn’t been that great, I don’t think, we talk about being a good defensive team, and if your offense isn’t flowing you’ve got to be able to get stops. A lot of your offense is generated off your defense, we didn’t get that at all. Just bad mistakes, we weren’t making tough shots, our weak side defense wasn’t there. If we start worrying about our offense that much, and just rebound the ball, we’re barely outrebounding and this team gets outrebounded a lot, so we did a good job there. We had 15 turnovers again, I think we had three in the first half, that’s a lot of turnovers in the second half and we’ve just got to get stronger defensively.”

(on wanting someone to step up leadership wise in the game) “I think our guys will step up, guys like Keonta and Gerard they’ll step up. I think this loss is good for us, I think our guys had a false sense of that they are pretty good, and right now we’re not very good we’ve got a long way to go. So maybe this will wake them up, good thing and bad thing is we’ve got a week to sit on this, which is bad but it should make for some very interesting practice I guarantee you that.”

(on Kenota Vernon being the most effective player when in the game) “Those first two fouls were terrible calls, sorry but they were. They were ticky-tack fouls and he gets put on the bench, and it’s tough when he’s on the bench in foul trouble. He plays really hard and he’s an emotional leader, so it’s tough when he picks up those fouls. And those fouls he got called were bad calls, they were ticky-tack fouls when there were just two guys down there battling.”

November 25, 2017 - 7:09 PM Tip Phoenix, Ariz. (GCU Arena)

San Diego 72 (5-0) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 00 Isaiah Pineiro * 7-14 0-0 3-3 2 2 4 2 17 1 2 0 2 2803 Olin Carter Iii * 5-16 3-12 2-2 0 2 2 1 15 0 2 1 0 3915 Alex Floresca * 2-3 0-0 0-0 1 3 4 4 4 0 1 0 0 1020 Cameron Neubauer * 0-2 0-2 0-0 1 4 5 4 0 3 4 0 1 3722 Isaiah Wright * 6-12 1-2 3-6 1 8 9 5 16 10 1 0 3 3012 Juwan Gray 1-1 1-1 0-0 0 1 1 4 3 0 1 1 0 2421 Hunter Summy 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 625 Yauhen Massalski 8-11 0-0 1-3 4 3 7 3 17 0 1 3 0 26 TEAM 1 3 4 Totals 29-59 5-17 9-14 10 26 36 23 72 14 12 5 6 200

FG % 1st Half: 15-29 51 .7% 2nd Half: 14-30 46 .7% Game: 29-59 49 .2% Deadball3FG % 1st Half: 3-9 33 .3% 2nd Half: 2-8 25 .0% Game: 5-17 29 .4% ReboundsFT % 1st Half: 1-2 50 .0% 2nd Half: 8-12 66 .7% Game: 9-14 64 .3% 1

Grand Canyon 62 (4-1) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 04 Oscar Frayer F 5-13 1-6 1-2 2 0 2 5 12 2 2 0 1 3412 Roberts Blumbergs F 1-6 0-4 0-0 0 6 6 1 2 1 2 1 1 2524 Keonta Vernon F 4-6 0-0 1-1 1 6 7 4 9 0 1 0 1 1502 Joshua Braun G 6-13 2-3 6-8 1 0 1 1 20 2 3 0 0 3711 Casey Benson G 2-8 0-3 4-5 4 6 10 2 8 6 2 0 0 3600 Shaq Carr 0-0 0-0 3-4 0 1 1 1 3 1 1 0 0 801 Fiifi Aidoo 0-2 0-2 0-0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 605 Matt Jackson 0-2 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 721 Kerwin Smith 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 525 Alessandro Lever 1-2 0-1 0-0 0 3 3 0 2 1 0 1 0 1242 Gerard Martin 2-4 1-3 1-4 0 1 1 2 6 1 2 0 0 15 TEAM 5 0 5 Totals 21-57 4-23 16-24 13 24 37 18 62 14 15 3 4 200

FG % 1st Half: 14-32 43 .8% 2nd Half: 7-25 28 .0% Game: 21-57 36 .8% Deadball3FG % 1st Half: 3-12 25 .0% 2nd Half: 1-11 9 .1% Game: 4-23 17 .4% ReboundsFT % 1st Half: 4-6 66 .7% 2nd Half: 12-18 66 .7% Game: 16-24 66 .7% 5

Officials: Tom Nally, Rob Rorke, Brad GastonTechnical Fouls: University of San Diego-Isaiah Pineiro TEAM . Grand Canyon-None .GCU Arena, Phoenix, AZ Attendance: 7397 In Off 2nd FastScore by Period 1st 2nd Total Points Paint T/O Chance Break BenchSan Diego 34 38 72 USD 44 18 11 4 20Grand Canyon 35 27 62 GCU 23 28 12 7 21 Last FG - USD 2nd-00:10,GCU 2nd-00:58 . Score Tied - 6 timesLargest lead - USD by 12 2nd-00:10, GCU by 7 2nd-12:28 Lead Changed - 11 timesUSD led for 21:40 . GCU led for 11:23 . Game was tied for 06:57 . .

RAPID RECAP:

Without its usual defense for one half and its usual offense for the other half, the Grand Canyon men’s basketball team suffered its first loss of the season Saturday night. San Diego remained undefeated by using a defensive crunch to erase a seven-point Lopes second-half lead and win 72-62 at sold-out GCU Arena.

After trailing by nine points in the first half, the Lopes (4-1) opened a seven-point lead in the second half by attacking San Diego’s interior off dribbles drives and senior power forward Keonta Vernon’s post-ups. The Toreros (5-0) raced back with a 9-0 run that put them ahead 51-49 with 9:13 to go.

After a Vernon backdoor slam tied the game at 51, the Lopes struggled offensively to fall into a deeper hole. That Vernon jam was GCU’s only field goal for more than 12 minutes of action. The Lopes last led at 54-53 on a Shaq Carr free throw and kept San Diego scoreless for another two minutes but were unable to capitalize. The Toreros then scored eight unanswered points for a 61-54 lead with 4:21 to go and the Lopes could not mount another threat.

San Diego shot 49.2 percent from the field with four players scoring 15 points or more. The Toreros outscored the Lopes 20-11 in bench points and 44-32 in paint. GCU shot a season-low 36.8 percent form the field and only made four of 23 3-point tries while making 15 turnovers. Senior guard Joshua Braun scored a game-high 20 points with sophomore small forward Oscar Frayer adding 12 points.

The Lopes were in their most difficult hole of the season when they trailed 29-20 with 4:55 to go in the first half. They scored 15 points in the final 4:46, catching up quickly in threes with point guard Casey Benson’s and-one drive, Braun’s 3-pointer and Frayer’s 3-pointer off Braun’s assist.

A 10-1 GCU run was capped by Frayer when he beat his man to the baseline and slammed on 6-foot-10 Toreros power forward Yauhen Massalski. The Lopes had allowed only 35.2 percent field goal shooting in their first four victories but San Diego shot 51.7 percent in the first half. GCU came out cold, missing eight of its first nine shots and also missing eight of its first nine 3-point attempts.

GCU played most of the first half without Vernon, who picked up two fouls in the game’s first three minutes and did not return to action until the second half. Vernon sparked the Lopes’ second-half start with seven of their first 10 points.

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2017-18 GAME RECAPS

GAME 6: GCU 68, UC RIVERSIDE 56

RAPID RECAP:

Grand Canyon had a long week of waiting to wash away the taste of a loss and an even longer year to make amends for last season’s loss at UC Riverside. The Lopes took care of both Saturday night, managing to win 68-56 despite a frigid shooting night in front of 6,844 fans at GCU Arena.

Coming off a four-for-23 3-point shooting game in a loss to San Diego, GCU (5-1) only made four of 36 3-point tries against Riverside but won the possession battle to give the Lopes more chances to win.

GCU has yielded 61 or fewer points in all five of its wins, doing so Saturday by holding Riverside to 38.0 percent shooting and coaxing 24 Highlanders turnovers.

In categories that give the Lopes extra shots, GCU outscored Riverside 52-11 in points off turnovers and second-chance points combined. Some of those turnovers, helped by Casey Benson’s four steals, helped GCU dominate fast break points, 14-2.

The Lopes hammered the offensive boards and held Riverside to seven points in the game’s first 10 minutes to take a lead that they were slow to expand with cold shooting. The Lopes missed their first 10 3-point attempts and went two for 20 in the first half, when Roberts Blumbergs was two for four and teammates were 0 for 16.

Blumbergs played a strong overall game, leading the team in points (14) and sharing the team lead in rebounds (seven). Benson missed all seven of his 3-point tries but still scored 12 points and dished seven assists.

Braun also missed all seven of his 3-point tries. He entered the game averaging 17.4 points per game but went one for nine from the field with four-for-seven free throw shooting for six points in 25 minutes. The Lopes only shot 34.8 percent from the field and 69.6 percent from the charity stripe.

GCU closed out the game slowly, going four minutes without scoring while its defense was enough to keep Riverside from a challenge.

The Lopes return to action Tuesday night against St. John’s at Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix.

DAN MAJERLE POSTGAME QUOTES:

(opening statement) “Good win, like I told you guys, anytime you go 4-for-36 from three and win, you did something right. I thought activity wise we were good, we forced 24 turnovers, we were aggressive, had a couple lapses, but for the most part, we played hard, you know I don’t know what to tell you, we moved the ball well, had 20 assists, all zone, just wide open threes, not making them, I don’t know. It is just something we have to keep working on. It is a good win. We will take it; then we will move on for Tuesday. Tuesday is going to be hard.”

(on what he noticed about the energy and getting rebounds) “Yeah, they were crashing the boards, I thought Keonta did well, he has got to continue to get better on the stupid fouls, I mean he makes one foul on a free throw where he reaches around a guy, undercuts another guy on a box out, he has got to stay on the floor, I mean he is too good for us to continue to get in foul trouble. Some of the communication still is bad, on our defenses, but we did play hard, we crashed the boards, but when you go 4-for-36, you better crash the boards. We had 16 offensive rebounds and we probably should have had 26 with the shots we missed, but the energy was there. I was happy with it, I thought Shaq came in and gave us some good minutes, but what can you say? We got a win. We needed it.”

(on what the team looks for when they are cold shooting) “Well that is the first time we have seen a zone and we don’t really have a post game. You know, I try to get the ball to Alessandro. Roberts is not very tough down there, so for us, our post game is nonexistent, Keonta is really not a post guy, he is more a face up and go. We try to get it in the middle, try to get some penetration. Every time we got penetration and dumped it off, Kerwin had a few finishes. Kerwin is not a post-up guy, as far as making moves down in the zone, so we have to do a better job of penetrating to the gaps, finding people and we had wide open threes, man. I mean, against a zone, that is why they play a zone. We have to do it in the gaps and we kicked it. I mean, 4-for-36, you know like I said, they were wide open, so you just have to jump up and shoot them, make them. You should fall into 10 shots out of 36, I would think.”

(on Roberts Blumbergs at the post) “Yeah he has got to get better at it, I keep telling him he has to get stronger. I called him into my office today and said, “It is time, man. You are way too talented to be playing the way you have been playing. I’ve been giving you a long leash as far as starting, it is time to get better and it is time for everyone to get better.” I thought Gerard came in, defensively and did what he usually does. He had a few mistakes early, but it is time for our guys to start playing. I mean, we started practicing early. We went to Spain. We have been together for quite a while now. Casey has got to play better. Josh has to figure it out. If he is not making shots, he might as well not be out there. He has got to do a better job. He will figure it out, but you know it is in his head now too--his free throws and his shot. These guys just have to get in the gym and work on it.”

(on getting better and how the defense has gotten better) “Well we have been pretty good defensively, you know. Last game we were not tough enough down the stretch, but I think our focus from here on in is going to be defense. If we do not play good defense tonight, we lose by 15. We can’t shoot the ball like that and not play defense, so we will have to hang our hat on defense and rebounding, causing turnovers and getting out and running and getting easy layups, cause right now, we cannot shoot the ball.”

(on how to keep the teams confidence up, but really work on shooting and making shots) “I told them to have tomorrow off, but if I was any of those guys, I wouldn’t take tomorrow off, I would be in the gym shooting, it is that simple. You know when I came into the league, I wasn’t a shooter, I worked on it. It is just old fashion work, get in the gym and work on your shot, some of these guys work on it, some of them don’t. Just have to find your confidence and work on your shot, cause you will see a lot of teams zoning us again, and giving us that three, because if they watch this game, that is what they are going to do. ”

(on what they are doing defensively to get their hands on balls) “Ah, just good job, we are switching a lot, which is really good because we are very aggressive, we have athletes out there, I think that is one of our strengths, that is why we are hanging our hat on defense, Keonta can move, Oscar is very good, Fiifi, guys can move and they are strong so they are just doing a good job getting into the passing lanes and pressuring, we do a pretty good job, for the most part protecting the rim”

(on the team’s help defense) “Yeah I mean we don’t want any layups, we gave up a few, but we want to protect the rim, have them kick it out and recover, and we worked on that all week too, it was a little better”

December 2, 2017 - 7:09 PM Tip Phoenix, Ariz. (GCU Arena)

UC Riverside 56 (2-5) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 03 Chance Murray * 2-11 0-0 4-5 0 8 8 2 8 3 4 0 0 3514 Brandon Rosser * 3-4 2-3 0-1 0 2 2 5 8 0 3 1 0 2115 Dikymbe Martin * 3-11 1-2 0-0 0 2 2 4 7 2 4 0 0 2621 Alex Larsson * 4-7 0-0 4-5 5 10 15 3 12 1 3 0 0 3532 Menno Dijkstra * 2-3 0-1 4-4 0 2 2 3 8 3 0 0 1 2001 Dj Sylvester 0-2 0-0 0-0 1 1 2 0 0 1 0 0 0 805 Jayvon Brown 2-2 1-1 2-2 0 0 0 0 7 0 3 0 0 1310 Ajani Kennedy 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 212 Idy Diallo 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 3 0 0 3 0 0 322 Dominick Pickett 0-1 0-0 0-0 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 124 Koh Flippin 0-5 0-4 0-0 0 1 1 2 0 0 0 0 1 1425 James Jackson 3-4 0-0 0-2 1 7 8 1 6 2 2 0 0 2131 Ryker Pierce 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 TEAM 2 2 4 Totals 19-50 4-11 14-19 10 35 45 23 56 12 24 1 2 200

FG % 1st Half: 9-23 39 .1% 2nd Half: 10-27 37 .0% Game: 19-50 38 .0% Deadball 3FG % 1st Half: 3-5 60 .0% 2nd Half: 1-6 16 .7% Game: 4-11 36 .4% Rebounds FT % 1st Half: 6-11 54 .5% 2nd Half: 8-8 100 .0% Game: 14-19 73 .7% 2

Grand Canyon 68 (5-1) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 04 Oscar Frayer F 5-12 1-5 0-1 0 4 4 4 11 0 1 0 3 2112 Roberts Blumbergs F 5-11 2-7 2-2 3 4 7 0 14 0 1 0 0 2524 Keonta Vernon F 2-3 0-0 1-1 4 3 7 3 5 2 0 4 1 2002 Joshua Braun G 1-9 0-7 4-7 3 4 7 0 6 2 1 0 1 2511 Casey Benson G 4-13 0-7 4-6 3 1 4 4 12 7 2 0 4 3400 Shaq Carr 1-3 0-1 0-0 0 1 1 2 2 5 1 0 1 2201 Fiifi Aidoo 2-6 0-3 2-2 0 0 0 2 6 1 0 0 1 1005 Matt Jackson 0-1 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 210 Damari Milstead 2-3 1-1 0-0 0 0 0 1 5 0 0 0 1 621 Kerwin Smith 2-2 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 3 4 1 0 1 0 625 Alessandro Lever 0-2 0-0 0-0 3 2 5 3 0 0 2 0 0 1342 Gerard Martin 0-4 0-4 3-4 0 4 4 0 3 2 0 0 0 16 TEAM 0 1 1 Totals 24-69 4-36 16-23 16 24 40 23 68 20 8 5 12 200

FG % 1st Half: 14-39 35 .9% 2nd Half: 10-30 33 .3% Game: 24-69 34 .8% Deadball3FG % 1st Half: 2-20 10 .0% 2nd Half: 2-16 12 .5% Game: 4-36 11 .1% ReboundsFT % 1st Half: 8-12 66 .7% 2nd Half: 8-11 72 .7% Game: 16-23 69 .6% 1

Officials: Jimmy Casas, Mark Cook, Jeff WootenTechnical Fouls: UC Riverside-Chance Murray . Grand Canyon-None .GCU Arena, Phoenix, AZ Attendance: 6844 In Off 2nd FastScore by Period 1st 2nd Total Points Paint T/O Chance Break BenchUC Riverside 27 29 56 UCR 26 4 7 2 13Grand Canyon 38 30 68 GCU 36 32 20 14 20

Last FG - UCR 2nd-00:55,GCU 2nd-00:37 . Score Tied - 0 timesLargest lead - UCR by 1 1st-14:37, GCU by 16 2nd-07:54 Lead Changed - 2 timesUCR led for 01:13 . GCU led for 38:10 . Game was tied for 00:37 .

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2017-18 GAME RECAPS

GAME 7: ST. JOHN’S 68, GCU 60

RAPID RECAP:

Grand Canyon grinded on defense but was grounded on offense, never getting the scoring run that could have chased down St. John’s in a 68-60 loss Tuesday night at Talking Stick Resort Arena.

The Lopes took to an ESPNU national television stage in the Phoenix Suns’ arena with NBA executives, alumni and scouts watching NBA greats Dan Majerle and Chris Mullin face off as head coaches. The Havocs filled the arena’s south end with their brand of bedlam but GCU (5-2) could not fill the basket enough to send them back to campus happy.

The Lopes trailed for the last 36 minutes of the game, trailing by as many as 15 before making one last push that trimmed the Red Storm’s lead to seven with 1:52 to go. St. John’s (8-1) did not make a field goal for more than four crunch-time minutes but eventually was able to close out the win.

Casey Benson led GCU with a career-high 18 points while Keonta Vernon matched a career high with 15 rebounds. However, the Lopes shot only 30.3 percent from the field, 25.0 percent on 3-pointers and 54.5 percent on free throws while committing 21 turnovers.

Sophomore guard Shamorie Ponds led St. John’s with a game-high 28 points to help a St. John’s offense that shot 39.6 percent and made 18 turnovers with only four bench points.

Each team entered Tuesday night as a top-10 scoring defense in Division I and the game played out as such. The effect was worse on GCU, which went without making a field goal for nearly eight minutes of the first half.

The Lopes were struggling to keep possession and missing shots when they did. With four minutes remaining in the first half, St. John’s led 27-16 with the Lopes at 25 percent shooting from the field with 11 turnovers.

GCU came alive in the final four minutes of the first half, starting with a Benson 3-pointer that keyed an 11-2 run. But when Oscar Frayer’s defense set up a Benson drive that missed, St. John’s was able to close out stronger for a 32-27 halftime lead.

Defense was giving the Lopes a chance to win again. St. John’s only was shooting 38.5 percent from the field with turnovers at the half but GCU was shooting worse (31.3 percent) with more turnovers (11).

DAN MAJERLE POSTGAME QUOTES:

(opening statement) “Not a whole lot to say, same story different night. We play extremely hard and get after it but it’s hard to win a game when you shoot 30 percent and shoot 50 percent from the free throw line, 21 turnovers a lot of them are because they are a team that forces turnovers but some of those are just us being not strong with the ball making careless passes. Our guys fought extremely hard for forty minutes, kept in the game but we have to figure it out. We can’t shoot the ball whether it’s from the free throw line, three-point line, layups, it’s not just happening right now. Playing hard is great but you have to play smart and good after a while.”

(on if he felt they were on the brink of making a run) “I was on the brink of somebody maybe making a shot. It’s ridiculous. I have never seen a college team shoot more air-balls than we do. Maybe we should schedule a team with no fans because in practice we make every shot. I don’t know what it is. It is just careless turnovers, guys not protecting the ball, missing wide open shots, missing rims, missing free throws. I have no fault in our guys, we play extremely hard and get after it for forty minutes but that’s not good enough anymore. Our guys are better than that. Oscar has to be better, Keonta has to be better, Josh has to be better, Casey has to be better. Those freshmen are freshmen, you can’t expect them to carry your team. Those seniors have to be better and right now they are not very good.”

(on the emotions coming back to this building) “It wasn’t much for me. I love this building, I’ve been to it a lot. I have a lot of great memories but this is about GCU and our team. It was a great experience for our guys to play in the Suns arena, to play against some great competition in St. John’s and Chris (Mullin) and those guys have done a really good job with that team they are very talented. It is going to be a good test for us to be on TV, to play in the Suns arena to play a quality opponent to see what we could do and it’s disappointing. Like I said, the effort is always there but there comes a time where you have to do a better job of taking care of the ball and shooting better and we are just not doing it. Josh is a fifth year senior, Casey has been around forever, Keonta has been around forever, and those guys have to do a better job.”

(on if players are pressing) “I don’t know what they are doing. We are not doing anything different than what we are doing in practice. We practice really hard, we get after it but we make shots. I don’t know, I wish I knew because if I knew I would change it. We can’t make free throws. Their guy Simon was a 50 percent free throw shooter and he was 8-for-8 tonight. Keonta is a 60 percent free throw shooter and he was 0-for-6. It just comes down to being mentally strong and making free throws and damn air-balls on threes that are wide open. That’s all there is too it. I love our guys, they play really hard. I have no complaints, our guys give everything they have but at this time it is not good enough. Our guys are more talented than they are showing. St. John’s is good, they are a good team. It is amazing that we even stayed in the game.”

(on if he felt he had home court with the Havocs here tonight) “Yeah, anytime a team comes from New York and you are playing right downtown and you have the Havocs there, you always feel like you have the home court advantage. We have the greatest crowd, everyone knows that. We have the greatest crowd in the history of crowds. I have to get our guys on the road. We are too soft. Just soft. We have to get out there and face some adversity and find our way. These guys have it so easy with what President Mueller has done at GCU, the way he packs those stands and the things that our guys get, they have to be better than this. It’s probably my fault. We schedule a lot of home games, we have to get on the road and get these guys tougher man, that’s all there is to it. They are not tough enough. They play hard but they are not tough enough”

(on having a chance to grab momentum at the end of the first half) “Yeah we were right there and then we couldn’t make a few shots. They hung in there and then we came out in the second half like we usually do, had some bad possessions, had some turnovers, and then we got it doing a little bit but we were down and we had to fight our way back. We kept on fighting, kept on fighting, didn’t convert some layups, didn’t convert some free throws, missed some wide open shots, just not good enough.”

(on there being a silver lining in the loss) “No, we are at the point that we want to be a really good team, we want to win the WAC and we want to go to the tournament. So there’s no silver lining, I told my guys I’m very proud of how hard they worked and how hard they played, that’s what they give. Every team that we play, goes ‘oh man you guys played hard,’ and that’s great but it’s not good enough anymore. It’s not what I want to be known for, oh you guys are a hard playing team. No I want to be a hard playing team that’s really good, and we can do that we have the players, it’s just whether or they want to do it or not, they have to get out of their own way and get it done. So no there’s no silver lining anymore, silver linings are for a year or two years ago. Silver linings were when we were 15-15 as a Division II team, silver linings are when we went 27-7 in our third year. This is our fifth year, we’re eligible, we have a fifth-year senior in Casey who played at Oregon, Shaq Carr he’s a senior, Keonta he’s a senior, Oscar played a lot last year, Gerard all those guys. This is the year we are supposed to be good and right now we are not playing that way.”

December 5, 2017 - 9:31 PM Tip Phoenix, Ariz. (Talking Stick Resort Arena)

St. John’s 68 (8-1) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 01 Bashir Ahmed * 3-12 1-5 0-1 1 9 10 4 7 0 1 0 2 3602 Shamorie Ponds * 10-21 2-5 6-8 4 2 6 1 28 4 5 0 5 4005 Justin Simon * 4-7 1-1 8-8 1 10 11 4 17 2 5 0 0 3611 Tariq Owens * 1-3 0-0 0-3 0 4 4 4 2 0 3 3 1 3013 Marvin Clark Ii * 2-6 2-5 4-4 0 3 3 5 10 1 4 0 0 1810 Amar Alibegovic 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 312 Bryan Trimble Jr 0-3 0-2 2-2 0 3 3 3 2 1 0 0 2 2714 Kassoum Yakwe 1-1 0-0 0-1 1 0 1 1 2 0 0 0 0 10 TEAM 1 3 4 Totals 21-53 6-18 20-27 8 34 42 22 68 8 18 3 10 200

FG % 1st Half: 10-26 38 .5% 2nd Half: 11-27 40 .7% Game: 21-53 39 .6% Deadball3FG % 1st Half: 5-12 41 .7% 2nd Half: 1-6 16 .7% Game: 6-18 33 .3% ReboundsFT % 1st Half: 7-11 63 .6% 2nd Half: 13-16 81 .3% Game: 20-27 74 .1% 3

Grand Canyon 60 (5-2) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 04 Oscar Frayer F 1-9 0-4 4-6 1 3 4 4 6 2 1 0 3 2812 Roberts Blumbergs F 3-12 2-7 2-2 0 2 2 2 10 1 2 0 1 2324 Keonta Vernon F 0-3 0-1 0-6 7 8 15 4 0 1 2 1 0 3002 Joshua Braun G 5-16 3-10 0-0 1 5 6 3 13 0 3 0 3 3011 Casey Benson G 6-11 2-2 4-5 1 1 2 3 18 1 6 1 1 3000 Shaq Carr 2-3 0-0 1-1 1 0 1 1 5 0 2 0 0 1001 Fiifi Aidoo 1-5 0-4 0-0 1 2 3 0 2 3 0 0 0 1321 Kerwin Smith 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 1 0 0 2 0 0 425 Alessandro Lever 1-5 0-2 1-2 0 2 2 2 3 0 2 0 1 1042 Gerard Martin 1-2 1-2 0-0 2 3 5 2 3 1 1 0 2 22 TEAM 4 1 5 Totals 20-66 8-32 12-22 18 28 46 22 60 9 21 2 11 200

FG % 1st Half: 10-32 31 .3% 2nd Half: 10-34 29 .4% Game: 20-66 30 .3% Deadball3FG % 1st Half: 5-17 29 .4% 2nd Half: 3-15 20 .0% Game: 8-32 25 .0% ReboundsFT % 1st Half: 2-8 25 .0% 2nd Half: 10-14 71 .4% Game: 12-22 54 .5% 4

Officials: Paul Janssen, Brooks Wells, Chance Moore Technical Fouls: Saint John’s (NY)-None . Grand Canyon-None . Phoenix, AZ Attendance: 8907 In Off 2nd FastScore by Period 1st 2nd Total Points Paint T/O Chance Break BenchSt . John’s 32 36 68 SJU 22 22 8 4 4Grand Canyon 27 33 60 GCU 21 13 16 7 13

Last FG - SJU 2nd-01:24,GCU 2nd-01:53 . Score Tied - 0 timesLargest lead - SJU by 16 2nd-06:57, GCU by 3 1st-17:50 Lead Changed - 2 timesSJU led for 36:29 . GCU led for 02:40 . Game was tied for 00:51 .

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2017-18 GAME RECAPS

GAME 8: GCU 87, GRAMBLING STATE 53

RAPID RECAP:

Surrounded by a student section in neon, GCU enjoyed its brightest basketball game of the season.

The Lopes shined Saturday night in a 87-53 blowout of Grambling State at GCU Arena. GCU posted its largest blowout of the season, thoroughly dominating the Tigers with a stellar two-way effort.

GCU (6-2) shot a season-high 55.2 percent from the field while holding Grambling to 35.8 percent, the Lopes’ sixth opponent in eight games to make less than 40 percent of its shots.

Senior power forward Keonta Vernon boosted the Lopes’ efficiency by making all eight of his field goal attempts on a 19-point, six-rebound night in 23 minutes. It was the fourth most makes without a miss in GCU program history and the most at the Division I level.

Senior guard Joshua Braun (13 points) and backup senior point guard Shaq Carr (11 points in 12 minutes) also scored in double figures, as did junior forward Matt Jackson (12 points in 14 minutes) after not playing in Tuesday’s loss to St. John’s.

From the time GCU had a 12-0 run for a 37-17 lead with 3:37 to go in the first half, the Lopes lead remained comfortable. No Lopes player logged more than 24 minutes and the entire roster played, including the debut of freshman guard Parker Dale to the Havocs’ delight.

For the first time this season, GCU head coach Dan Majerle switched the Lopes starting lineup. He inserted sophomore guard Fiifi Aidoo and freshman power forward Alessandro Lever in place of sophomore guard Oscar Frayer and freshman power forward Roberts Blumbergs.

It clicked early when the starting lineup led 9-4 before the first subs. When the starters reunited to close the half, GCU went into halftime with that unit scoring all but three points of a 14-4 run.

The Lopes handled a 2-3 zone defense better than they did against California-Riverside. Mostly, that was the work of senior point guard Casey Benson, who assisted on six of GCU’s first seven baskets. Benson finished with eight assists.

Grambling, which beat Georgia Tech this season, kept the Lopes’ lead narrow at 13-12 by capitalizing on second chances and GCU turnovers but the Lopes then went on a 24-5 run. The Lopes defense created 21 turnovers, including a team-high three steals from Blumbergs.

DAN MAJERLE POSTGAME QUOTES:

(opening statement) “Great energy from everybody. Starters came out really well, the bench guys came in and provided a spark also. Shaq was really good. Matt Jackson; Matt hadn’t played in a year, over a year. Seeing him come out there was really good. Everybody played really good, it was just a good win and we sustained it. We needed that kind of win, it was huge.”

(on if changing up the starting five helped) “I don’t know. It wasn’t because Oscar was playing bad or Roberts was playing bad, we just needed a new look. Fiifi was somebody that was practicing hard and gave us a spark defensively. Alessandro is a really hard worker as a freshman, I thought he deserved a chance. I don’t know if it provided anything. Keonta came out and played really well. 8-for-8, stayed in the game and just his physical presence around the basket was big. We shared the basketball well. I think we had 14 or 15 assists on maybe 17 baskets in the first half. Everybody played well. Then those guys came off the bench, Matt, Gerard, Oscar, Roberts, Shaq, everybody played well. All around just a good win.”

(on if he liked the balance coming off the bench) “I liked it today. I liked the other ones before we lost. Winning cures a lot of different things. That’s a dangerous team that we played in Grambling. They went to Georgia Tech and beat them, we knew they would present a problem and play zone. We did a really good job of moving the basketball early, getting in the paint, not settling for jump shots. We took the shots when they were there but we didn’t swing-swing-shooter. We had some penetration. That’s one thing that Alessandro is really good at for his size, he gets in there and finds people. He did a good job”

(on seeming more intent on getting the ball inside) “We have too. We just can’t settle for shots. It’s much better when you can get it inside then it comes outside off the penetration. A couple times we just start living by the jump shot where we just swing it on the perimeter and people are just standing around and we can’t do that. Overall a really good job by everybody.”

(on if he felt Casey Benson was more aggressive) “I think he does a good job when he takes his shot but he has to get back to assists. When he is open he can take shots. He is not a penetrator, he’s not a guy who is going to get in the lane with the big guys. We really emphasize on getting out early and running today. Even though they are going to be in zone, getting out and running and pushing the ball is what Casey does really well. Getting it up early then getting back and he can make good decisions. He was really good in the first half assists wise.”

(on if he liked the threes in transition) “I like transitions threes especially off steals or good defensive plays. You always know as a coach and even as a player a lot of your offense can come off of defense. Our defense was really good as far as getting in and being aggressive. If we get steals then let’s go, we deserve a shot.”

(on if they maintained the lead well tonight) “It was better. We came out in the second half and picked up where we left off. Our energy was really good from everybody, I was happy. Those kind of games in the beginning of the year we would get up and let them back in the game and tonight we didn’t do that.”

(on if Matt Jackson needs more minutes for confidence) “Just staying out there long and sustaining some time, maybe a stretch of seven or eight minutes. It was hard for me to do it in the beginning because I wanted to see the younger guys, I wanted to see other people but when he played two years ago he was really good. I was looking at when we were 27-7 he averaged 19 or 20 minutes a game and had some big games for us. He’s had a rash of injuries and it’s been tough for him but he’s done a good job of preparing and it tonight it showed. So hopefully he can stay healthy and it can stay like that.”

December 9, 2017 - 7:09 PM Tip Phoenix, Ariz. (GCU Arena)

Grambling State 53 (3-6) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 01 Ivy Smith, Jr . * 2-13 0-1 8-8 1 1 2 3 12 2 3 0 3 2904 Anthony Gaston * 1-6 0-3 0-0 0 2 2 3 2 0 3 1 2 2111 Axel Mpoyo * 3-7 0-3 0-0 0 0 0 3 6 0 2 0 1 2124 Diontae Jones * 1-6 0-2 0-0 1 2 3 0 2 1 1 0 2 2733 Jason Perry-Murray * 6-7 0-0 1-2 7 5 12 3 13 0 2 1 1 2402 Nigel Ribeiro 1-2 0-0 0-0 2 3 5 3 2 4 1 0 0 1603 Kareem Wright 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 205 Shirmane Thomas 3-6 1-1 2-3 1 3 4 1 9 0 5 0 0 2310 Drake Wilks 2-5 1-2 1-2 1 1 2 1 6 1 3 0 1 1712 Bobby Jackson 0-1 0-0 1-4 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 920 Charles Simmons 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 332 Devante Jackson 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 3 3 2 0 0 1 0 0 8 TEAM Totals 19-53 2-12 13-19 13 21 34 19 53 9 21 2 10 200

FG % 1st Half: 9-25 36 .0% 2nd Half: 10-28 35 .7% Game: 19-53 35 .8% Deadball3FG % 1st Half: 0-8 0 .0% 2nd Half: 2-4 50 .0% Game: 2-12 16 .7% ReboundsFT % 1st Half: 3-3 100 .0% 2nd Half: 10-16 62 .5% Game: 13-19 68 .4% 4

Grand Canyon 87 (6-2) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 24 Keonta Vernon F 8-8 0-0 3-4 3 3 6 2 19 1 2 0 1 2325 Alessandro Lever F 1-4 0-2 0-0 0 1 1 3 2 1 0 0 0 1501 Fiifi Aidoo G 2-4 1-2 0-0 0 2 2 2 5 4 1 0 0 2002 Joshua Braun G 5-9 3-7 0-0 0 5 5 2 13 0 2 1 0 2411 Casey Benson G 2-5 0-2 0-0 1 2 3 1 4 8 3 0 1 2300 Shaq Carr 3-4 2-2 3-3 2 1 3 2 11 3 0 0 1 1203 Parker Dale 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 204 Oscar Frayer 1-4 0-3 1-3 0 1 1 2 3 1 2 0 0 1405 Matt Jackson 5-6 2-3 0-0 0 2 2 2 12 1 0 1 2 1310 Damari Milstead 1-1 1-1 3-4 0 2 2 0 6 0 1 0 0 712 Roberts Blumbergs 2-6 1-4 1-2 0 0 0 1 6 2 0 1 3 2113 Ibrahima Sankare 1-2 0-0 1-2 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 1 415 Cheick Sy-Savane 1-3 1-1 0-0 1 0 1 0 3 0 0 0 0 421 Kerwin Smith 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 222 Nehemiah Allen 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 342 Gerard Martin 0-1 0-0 0-1 2 4 6 1 0 2 1 0 0 13 TEAM 1 0 1 Totals 32-58 11-27 12-19 10 23 33 19 87 23 12 3 9 200

FG % 1st Half: 17-29 58 .6% 2nd Half: 15-29 51 .7% Game: 32-58 55 .2% Deadball3FG % 1st Half: 4-12 33 .3% 2nd Half: 7-15 46 .7% Game: 11-27 40 .7% ReboundsFT % 1st Half: 1-4 25 .0% 2nd Half: 11-15 73 .3% Game: 12-19 63 .2% 2

Officials: Ronnie Hernandez, Matthew Rukasin, Ryan McDanielTechnical Fouls: Grambling State-None . Grand Canyon-Casey Benson .GCU Arena, Phoenix, AZ Attendance: 6829 In Off 2nd FastScore by Period 1st 2nd Total Points Paint T/O Chance Break BenchGrambling State 21 32 53 GSU 30 15 13 4 18Grand Canyon 39 48 87 GCU 38 26 5 6 44

Last FG - GRAM 2nd-00:43,GCU 2nd-00:21 . Score Tied - 0 timesLargest lead - GRAM by 2 1st-18:53, GCU by 38 2nd-06:44 Lead Changed - 1 timesGRAM led for 00:15 . GCU led for 38:38 . Game was tied for 01:07 .

‹ 37 ›

2017-18 GAME RECAPS

GAME 9: GCU 64, NC CENTRAL 59

RAPID RECAP:

With Grand Canyon’s first road game and perhaps toughest opponent two days away, a carryover of the momentum of Saturday’s thorough blowout would have been ideal.

Instead, the Lopes had their first extended challenge in a win this season. GCU led for the final 32-plus minutes of the game Monday night but beating North Carolina Central was never easy in a 64-59 win at GCU Arena.

GCU (7-2) held a 10-point lead with 12:13 to go but offensive struggles kept them from putting away the Eagles (4-8). Facing NC Central’s zone, the Lopes went more than six minutes without a made field goal until junior Gerard Martin broke a string of six consecutive missed GCU 3-pointers with a deep 3.

North Carolina Central pulled within one point with 2:09 to play on an interior three-point play. The Eagles had chances to take a lead after GCU missed consecutive layups but Lopes senior guard Joshua Braun rebounded the second one while getting fouled and hit two free throws for a 60-57 lead with 1:12 remaining.

The Eagles cut the lead to 60-59 with the last of their interior scoring (34 points in the paint) and got a stop blocking GCU senior point guard Casey Benson’s drive. Senior power forward Keonta Vernon fouled out on the rebound but the Havocs helped prompt a miss on the front end of a one-and-one bonus situation. Roberts Blumbergs rebounded and got the ball to Benson, who hit two free throws and made two more free throws after North Carolina Central missed a 3-pointer to tie in the final seconds.

Braun led the Lopes with 20 points and seven rebounds while Benson finished with six points, seven rebounds and seven assists.

The Lopes were efficient offensively in the first half but did not have the usual offensive sharpness until the close. GCU went on an 8-0 run with the new three-guard starting trio of Braun, Benson and Fiifi Aidoo but the Eagles finished on a three-point play to cut the Lope lead to 38-30 at halftime.

Braun led GCU’s scoring attack with 10 of his points in the first half, mixing a pair of 3-pointers with a pair of power moves in the paint. The Lopes committed only three first-half turnovers despite facing full-court pressure but had trouble getting into fast breaks or early offense.

DAN MAJERLE POSTGAME QUOTES:

(opening statement) “It’s a win, so I am happy. Second half was the same. A lot of things that went wrong for us as far as shooting the basketball. Just not finishing, but we pulled out a win and got a stop when we needed it. I thought our defense was really poor tonight. Just a lot of mental mistakes more than anything. Just not following assignments and doing the things we are supposed to do, so that was a little concerning. That is a good team, man. That is a team I knew was going to give us some problems. That big kid is really good. They did a good job getting the basketball, so I’ll take it. Good win.”

(on the offense being deliberate and going deep into the shot clock) “They had the 2-3 zone and the 3-2 zone and when we are not hitting jump shots, that puts us in a problem. Last game we were able to make a few jumpers and got into the paint. They did a good job of protecting the basket, so anytime you see a zone the whole game and a press the whole game, you are not going to be able to get quick shots. You know we want to attack the press, but we also do not want to turn the ball over. We do not have a lot of great ball handlers, so we want to make sure they we are not only aggressive, but we do not want to be too aggressive where we turn the ball over. We only had six turnovers, but it does lead to some late shot clocks, especially when they are in a zone and taking away Josh, things like that. Early we shot the ball pretty well, but we could not buy a basket there in the second half. ”

(on the interior scoring by NCCU and what led to it whether it was their size or mistakes by GCU) “A little bit of both, they had a couple back cuts to the basket, number 32, Davis is a good player. Man he is there best player, he is a big kid-- 6-9, 250--does a good job of sealing, they do a good job getting him the basketball and he finishes around there. It is just what happens when you play a good big guy. They got some penetration, they got some and-ones, which we will have to look at the tape on there because we gave them too many easy and-ones, with some ticky-tack fouls, so we have to do a better job with that, but I think our focus defensively, for whatever it was, we just did not do a good job of depleting our assignments, getting lost on back cuts and things like that.”

(on what to anticipate going on the road to Boise State) “I am expecting an extremely tough game. Boise is a really, really good team, it will be a real good test for us. It will be good for our guys, we need to get on the road a little bit and play against a good team on the road in a new environment, and they have all of that. I am anxious, to get there and see what we got.”

(on grinding it out when the three points shots were not falling) “Well we had to, against that zone. That is why people play zone, to keep you from getting inside and we do not have a whole lot of finishers on the inside anyways, so we are going to have to be able to make those threes. Josh did not shoot extremely well the second half, as far as from the three, and nobody else could really make a shot either, so we have to do a better job at pounding the boards and getting second opportunities that way, and then finding a way to penetrate and finish around the glass.”

(on whether it is good to finally get on the road) “Yeah I think it is going to be good. We have such a great experience here and have such a great crowd, we get a little comfortable, so it is good to get on the road, especially against a team like Boise. It is going to be a real good test for us to see what we got. So yeah, I am excited to get on the road.”

(on what it does for the team closing out a close game) “I don’t know I think our guys are confident. I’m usually irate right now because we know we won but we should have played better. I’ve learned in my short coach career of five years, you take every win and the positives and you move on. That was a tough team, our guys are positive we just have to do a better job of finishing down the stretch. Just being a little tougher mentally, like I said defensively I didn’t enjoy that at all. We just made mental mistakes.”

(on what the learning experience has been like for the team) “It’s hard because I am a competitive guy, winning is great losing is misery. So you’ve just got to take the winning and breathe a sigh of relief instead of always looking at the negative. That’s kind of my problem sometimes is always looking at the negative. We should have done this, we should have done that, but you know we won. That’s a getaway game, when you go on the road next day to go play a good team you can’t afford to lose at home. So I’m going to look at this and be happy tonight.”

(on having a low number of turnovers) “We did a good job against the zone, we would like to be more aggressive and make them pay for zoning us. But that also comes with the fact that you’re going to have more turnovers. We wanted to make sure that we took care of the basketball, and that is why the shot clock went deep a lot of times. We were methodical in breaking the press and trying to do too much and turning it over. Casey had seven assists and Shaq had four and both of them didn’t have turnovers so that’s good.”

December 11, 2017 - 7:09 PM Tip Phoenix, Ariz. (GCU Arena)

NC Central 59(4-8) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 02 Zacarry Douglas * 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 603 Brandon Goldsmith * 2-6 0-1 2-3 0 5 5 2 6 0 0 0 1 3404 Jordan Perkins * 0-4 0-0 0-0 0 3 3 4 0 6 5 0 0 3405 Reggie Gardner Jr * 3-8 2-4 3-3 0 2 2 0 11 1 1 0 0 2632 Raasean Davis * 6-7 0-0 4-6 5 4 9 2 16 2 3 0 0 2911 Alston Jones 4-8 0-0 2-2 0 0 0 4 10 2 2 0 0 2613 Pablo Rivas 6-9 1-3 0-0 1 7 8 3 13 0 0 0 1 3222 Dominique Reid 1-3 0-0 1-2 1 1 2 1 3 0 2 0 0 13 TEAM 1 2 3 Totals 22-46 3-8 12-16 8 25 33 16 59 11 13 0 3 200

FG % 1st Half: 11-23 47 .8% 2nd Half: 11-23 47 .8% Game: 22-46 47 .8% Deadball3FG % 1st Half: 2-5 40 .0% 2nd Half: 1-3 33 .3% Game: 3-8 37 .5% ReboundsFT % 1st Half: 6-7 85 .7% 2nd Half: 6-9 66 .7% Game: 12-16 75 .0% 0

Grand Canyon 64 (7-2) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 24 Keonta Vernon F 3-7 0-0 3-6 3 2 5 5 9 0 1 1 0 2525 Alessandro Lever F 0-2 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 0 0 1 2 0 0 1601 Fiifi Aidoo G 2-4 2-4 0-0 1 1 2 2 6 2 2 0 1 2002 Joshua Braun G 7-15 3-8 3-3 4 3 7 1 20 1 0 0 0 3311 Casey Benson G 1-8 0-2 4-4 0 7 7 0 6 7 0 0 0 2800 Shaq Carr 2-5 0-2 1-1 1 0 1 3 5 4 0 0 1 2104 Oscar Frayer 2-4 0-1 0-0 1 0 1 3 4 0 1 0 0 1005 Matt Jackson 1-3 0-1 0-0 1 3 4 1 2 0 0 0 0 1312 Roberts Blumbergs 3-7 1-4 2-2 2 2 4 0 9 0 0 0 0 1542 Gerard Martin 1-4 1-4 0-0 0 1 1 1 3 1 0 0 0 19 Totals 22-59 7-26 13-16 13 20 33 16 64 16 6 1 2 200

FG % 1st Half: 16-32 50 .0% 2nd Half: 6-27 22 .2% Game: 22-59 37 .3% Deadball3FG % 1st Half: 5-13 38 .5% 2nd Half: 2-13 15 .4% Game: 7-26 26 .9% ReboundsFT % 1st Half: 1-1 100 .0% 2nd Half: 12-15 80 .0% Game: 13-16 81 .3% 2

Officials: Mike Reed, Steve Olson, David HallTechnical Fouls: North Carolina Central University-None . Grand Canyon-None .GCU Arena, Phoenix, AZ Attendance: 6276 In Off 2nd FastScore by Period 1st 2nd Total Points Paint T/O Chance Break BenchNC Central 30 29 59 NCCU 34 5 13 4 26 Grand Canyon 38 26 64 GCU 26 13 12 0 23

Last FG - NCCU 2nd-00:44,GCU 2nd-03:29 . Score Tied - 1 timesLargest lead - NCCU by 4 1st-16:47, GCU by 11 1st-00:55 Lead Changed - 4 timesNCCU led for 03:14 . GCU led for 35:16 . Game was tied for 01:30 .

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2017-18 GAME RECAPS

GAME 10: BOISE STATE 85, GCU 80 (2OT)

RAPID RECAP:

Grand Canyon was the first non-conference visitor to outplay Boise State in regulation over the past four seasons and it still was not enough to win.

The Lopes were often at their best for their best opponent of the season but did not close out chances to win regulation and the first overtime before the Broncos claimed an 85-80 double-overtime victory at Taco Bell Arena.

GCU’s fifth-ranked scoring defense in Division I proved stronger than a Boise State offense that ranked fifth in the nation for 3-pointers made. The Lopes (7-3) limited the Broncos (10-1) to three made 3-pointers in regulation time and five-for-24 3-point shooting overall.

The Lopes had a four-point lead with 1:32 remaining in regulation and had the last possession of the first overtime but Boise State controlled the second overtime by scoring on eight consecutive possessions.

GCU was given a shot to tie by gaining possession with 15.9 seconds to go in the second half. The Lopes executed the play with Fiifi Aidoo sending a bounce pass along the baseline to an open Alessandro Lever in the corner but the freshman power forward missed for Boise State’s 24th consecutive home win against non-conference opponents.

Senior point guard Casey Benson led GCU with 16 points, seven rebounds and three assists but fouled out in the second overtime. Senior power forward Keonta Vernon posted 15 points and 12 rebounds. The Lopes shot 35.4 percent from the field but made 15 of 19 free throws.

The Lopes led 63-60 with 13.3 seconds to play in regulation after two Benson free throws but Boise State, held to three-for-19 3-point shooting to that point, got a tying, long 3 from Lexus Williams. Benson had 3.9 seconds to get upcourt and his long 3-pointer leaner missed to send the game to overtime.

In the first overtime, Boise State took a quick 68-63 lead but GCU held the Broncos without a field goal for the final three minutes. Benson made one of two free throws to tie the game with 28.2 seconds to and had a clean 3-point look that missed at the buzzer.

In the second overtime, the Lopes missed five of their first six shots to fall behind 79-72 but rallied to 85-80 with two Lever free throws before the final miss.

After holding a 36-30 halftime lead, the Lopes missed nine of their first 10 second-half shots but still held a 41-36 lead with 14:05 to go when Benson found Vernon for a slam.

The Lopes’ rotating defensive effort on Boise State star Chandler Hutchison was effective in the first half, when the 6-foot-7 senior guard made two of eight shots with two turnovers. Hutchison scored seven consecutive Broncos points for Boise State’s first lead (45-43) when the Broncos were finding their way to the rim.

GCU responded just as the Boise State fans were getting more into the action. With about 200 “Lopes on the Road” fans on hand, the Lopes answered with a 12-3 run that included two aggressive drives from senior point guard Shaq Carr.

Another Carr scoring drive put GCU ahead 59-55 with 4:02 remaining and the Lopes did not get on the board again until Vernon’s follow scored put GCU ahead 61-57 with 1:32 remaining.

The Lopes emerged with their best start of the season, jumping on Boise State and silencing the home fans with a 12-4 lead. GCU scored on five of their first six possessions with four of the starters scoring.

The Lopes played with better tempo than Monday’s win and stretched their lead to as much as nine (21-12) with more of their 3-point-denying defense. Boise State entered the game with the fifth-most made 3-pointers (120) in the nation but GCU kept the Broncos to one-for-10 shooting on 3s in the first half.

Boise State tightened GCU’s lead to one with 3:59 to go until halftime but the Lopes closed on a 7-2 run with Benson dropping a 3-pointer at the horn.

DAN MAJERLE POSTGAME QUOTES:

(on dropping a double overtime thriller to Boise State) “We needed one stop to beat them. We were supposed to switch everything. I’ll have to look at the film and see what happened. We were supposed to make everything go towards the basket. The kid made a tough shot, but that’s a shot we’ve got to stop and we didn’t stop it. Our guys battled hard and kept fighting. This is a really good team in a tough place. We battled and hopefully we’ll get better.

(on if that was the best the Lopes have played this season) “No. We shot 35 percent. Everybody is talking about moral victories and ‘you hanged with them’. I’m done with hanging with teams. I’m done with that crap. Play better--35 percent is not good enough. That’s a good defensive team but so are we. It’s time to win. I’m upset. I’m never upset at our guys’ effort. They play extremely hard and they want to win. They try, but they had a lot of mental mistakes that we have to get over it if we want to be a good team. Right now, we’re not a very good team because we make too many mental mistakes.”

(on if the team recovered from regulation with Boise State getting out to quick leads in the overtime period) “When you lead most of the game and they make a three to tie it up, the momentum swings to their team. We battled back in that first overtime, but we were 4-for-18 in overtime. We missed layups and wide open threes. Josh goes 3-for-15 and Casey goes 4-for-16. Those are our two best players. We played well. We battled, but we have to find a way to put the ball in the basket and guys have to find a way to score.”

(on how his team did defensively on Chandler Hutchinson and Justinian Jessup) “They’re good players. Yeah, I thought we did well. We did fine. They’re a really good team. I’ve got no problem with how hard we played and we tried, but we made silly mistakes and we’ve got to play better on the offensive side. We have to shoot better.”

December 13, 2017 - 7:05 PM Tip Boise, Idaho (Taco Bell Arena)

Grand Canyon 80 (7-3) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 24 Keonta Vernon F 6-10 0-1 3-3 5 7 12 3 15 2 1 2 0 3925 Alessandro Lever F 3-10 1-3 3-4 1 1 2 1 10 1 3 0 0 2001 Fiifi Aidoo G 1-1 1-1 0-0 0 1 1 3 3 1 0 0 1 1202 Joshua Braun G 3-15 2-8 2-4 1 4 5 4 10 3 1 0 2 4311 Casey Benson G 4-16 3-9 5-6 0 7 7 5 16 3 2 0 1 3800 Shaq Carr 5-11 1-3 0-0 0 3 3 2 11 5 3 0 0 2904 Oscar Frayer 2-5 0-2 2-2 4 5 9 2 6 0 1 1 0 2505 Matt Jackson 1-2 0-1 0-0 0 2 2 0 2 1 0 0 0 1412 Roberts Blumbergs 2-7 0-2 0-0 1 0 1 5 4 0 3 0 0 1021 Kerwin Smith 0-0 0-0 0-0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 042 Gerard Martin 1-2 1-2 0-0 0 1 1 4 3 0 0 0 2 20 TEAM 1 1 2 Totals 28-79 9-32 15-19 14 32 46 29 80 16 14 3 6 250

FG % 1st Half: 14-33 42 .4% 2nd Half: 10-28 35 .7% OT: 4-18 22 .2% Game: 28-79 35 .4%3FG % 1st Half: 4-11 36 .4% 2nd Half: 3-11 27 .3% OT: 2-10 20 .0% Game: 9-32 28 .1%FT % 1st Half: 4-5 80 .0% 2nd Half: 4-5 80 .0% OT: 7-9 77 .8% Game: 15-19 78 .9%

Boise State 85 (10-1) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 11 Zach Haney F 1-1 0-0 1-2 2 2 4 3 3 0 0 0 0 1943 Chris Sengfelder F 4-11 0-6 4-6 2 6 8 2 12 1 3 1 1 4502 Lexus Williams G 4-4 2-2 2-3 2 4 6 4 12 2 2 0 1 3803 Justinian Jessup G 5-10 2-6 6-7 0 8 8 2 18 4 2 2 0 4715 Chandler Hutchinson G 10-23 1-6 6-12 0 11 11 3 27 3 7 0 0 4400 Marcus Dickinson 1-5 0-4 3-5 0 3 3 4 5 0 1 0 1 2410 Robin Jorch 1-1 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 0 2 0 0 0 0 633 David Wacker 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 334 Alex Hobbs 2-4 0-0 2-2 0 2 2 1 6 0 2 0 0 24 TEAM 1 0 1 Totals 28-59 5-24 24-37 7 38 45 20 85 10 18 3 3 250

FG % 1st Half: 10-24 41 .7% 2nd Half: 12-25 48 .0% OT: 6-10 60 .0% Game: 28-59 47 .5%3FG % 1st Half: 1-10 10 .0% 2nd Half: 3-10 30 .0% OT: 1-4 25 .0% Game: 5-24 20 .8%FT % 1st Half: 9-12 75 .0% 2nd Half: 6-12 50 .0% OT: 9-13 69 .2% Game: 24-37 64 .9%

Officials: Michael Irving, Rick Randall and Dan NowakowskiTechnical Fouls: Grand Canyon-None . Boise State-None .Boise, Idaho - Taco Bell Arena Attendance: 4628 In Off 2nd FastScore by Period 1st 2nd OT OT2 Total Points Paint T/O Chance Break BenchGrand Canyon 36 27 6 11 80 GCU 34 16 19 4 26 Boise State 30 33 6 16 85 BSU 40 11 3 4 13

Last FG - GCU OT2-00:48,BSU OT2-00:58 . Score Tied - 6 timesLargest lead - GCU by 10 1st-09:09, BSU by 7 OT2-02:16 Lead Changed - 3 timesGCU led for 36:09 . BSU led for 09:11 . Game was tied for 04:40 .

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2017-18 GAME RECAPS

GAME 11: GCU 71, MISSISSIPPI VALLEY STATE 38

RAPID RECAP:

The visitors came to GCU Arena in red and green Monday night and Grand Canyon got the early Christmas present.

For the seventh time in this season’s 11 games, the Lopes held an opponent to less than 40 percent shooting. It was far below this time, as Mississippi Valley State shot 27.5 percent in a 71-38 GCU home victory.

The Lopes (8-3) opened the game by hitting 3-pointers for their first four made field goals to take a 12-6 lead and stayed in command from there.

The GCU defense shut out the Delta Devils (0-11) for five minutes of the first half when the Lopes opened a 30-15 lead after consecutive 3-pointers from junior power forward Matt Jackson on senior point guard Casey Benson’s assist and Benson in transition.

After the defense established GCU’s hold on the game in the first half, the offense opened the second half with a five-shot possession that lasted one minute and 14 seconds before the Lopes scored on a jumper by freshman power forward Alessandro Lever.

The GCU offense thrived on 3-pointers in the first half but worked inside-out to start the second half, scoring 18 points in a span of 6:18 to open up a 22-point lead. Mississippi Valley State struggled to score even more from there as the Lopes pulled away on a string of free throws.

Senior guard Joshua Braun led the Lopes in scoring with 16 points while Jackson added 10 points and five rebounds in 17 reserve minutes. Benson delivered a team-high six assists while scoring eight points.

GCU made 13 of 27 3-pointers and nearly grabbed as many offensive rebounds (16) as Mississippi Valley State had defensive rebounds (21).

GCU returns to action at 6 p.m. Thursday against Longwood at GCU Arena.

DAN MAJERLE POSTGAME QUOTES:

(opening statement) “Obviously a good game for us. We had some goals that we wanted to meet and we met them. This was a good game for us to come home after a tough loss against Boise. We obviously did what we had to do. You are always a little nervous when you face a team that has not won. That is a team that travels all over the place and plays hard. I am happy with our guys, I thought defensively we were good, active, got on the offensive boards. Sixteen offensive rebounds, which is good. Actually shot 40 percent which is a step up for our team. We are getting there. I thought Matt Jackson was really good. He has got to continue to round into shape. We missed him, especially last year. He is a big part of this team. Very smart. Overall really good win. Got one more to get and [then] we get on the road.”

(on Matt Jackson playing like he did before the injury) “He missed a whole year. When we scrimmaged Oregon State, you know, he was really good, then he got hurt. He missed that whole year and had a bunch of different injuries he had to battle through and then has done a good job. We have been trying to bring him along slowly to make sure he is healthy, especially for the WAC Season. Trying to get his wind and get back into game shape. He is just so smart. Not only when he shoots the ball well, he is a good shooter, but he is just so smart defensively. He knows what we are trying to do offensively and is a really good glue guy. When he shoots the ball like that, he gives us good size and a guy that can stretch the floor and just a smart guy.”

(on what they concentrated on for this game following a tough loss at Boise) “Learn from our mistakes. We have a history of giving away games. We had that game won at Boise against a really good team at a tough place. We just cannot continue to give games away. We have to take whoever we are playing and get better. We cannot just go out and play and not try to improve and I thought tonight we did a good job of really concentrating and getting after it and like I said, we have one more to get here then get on the road and play a really good Louisville team and Morgan State who is going to be good at Vegas and then obviously Illinois. It will be good for us to get on the road and start to test our mental [strength].”

(on how it was having Jerry Colangelo and Paul Westphal in attendance) “It’s always fun. Mr. Colangelo is here a lot and I talked to him. The first thing he said when he came into my office was ‘why don’t you foul like Boise State?’ It’s always good to see him. Coach Westphal, was a big part of what we did in Phoenix. He’s such a legend, not only in Phoenix but wherever in the NBA and then what he was able to do as a coach. It’s always good to see him. He was a terrific coach and a better person. I got to visit with Mr. Colangelo and Coach Westphal in the office before. It’s always good when those guys come back. Mr. Colangelo is here all the time so I will get his update on the game tomorrow.”

(on what he said at halftime about the offense) “I told them we have to be better. We have to finish. I am tired of looking at the stat sheet and seeing 30 percent. We have to find a way. The big thing was that we were shooting 46 percent from the three in the first half and we were shooting 33 percent overall in the first half and I said enough is enough. We have to concentrate, we missed a lot of layups. We have to put the ball in the basket. Have to make the extra pass, sometimes we are still taking bad shots so we have to make the extra pass and penetrate. We have to do a better job of that.”

December 18, 2017 - 7:09 PM Tip Phoenix, Ariz . (GCU Arena)

Mississippi Valley St 38 (0-11) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 01 Dante Scott * 5-13 1-1 2-2 3 2 5 0 13 0 2 2 0 3303 Jordan Evans * 3-8 1-1 0-0 0 4 4 4 7 1 4 0 0 2510 Emmanuel Ejeh * 0-4 0-0 0-0 1 2 3 2 0 1 2 0 0 2215 Gemaal Davis * 1-6 0-0 2-2 0 1 1 2 4 0 0 0 2 2323 Lacurtis Allen * 0-0 0-0 1-2 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 600 Jeffery Lewis 0-1 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 605 Tereke Eckwood 1-8 0-0 2-2 0 4 4 2 4 0 1 0 0 2111 Kylan Phillips 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 2 0 0 0 0 1 612 Lorenzo Hunt 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 920 Davere Creighton 0-0 0-0 1-2 0 1 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 721 Arinze Anakwenze 3-4 0-1 0-2 2 2 4 4 6 1 2 2 1 2122 Nate Nahimy 0-2 0-0 0-1 0 0 0 3 0 0 1 0 0 1324 Henry Taylor 1-2 0-0 0-2 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 1 332 Kaleb Allison 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 5 TEAM 3 4 7 Totals 14-51 2-4 8-15 9 21 30 23 38 4 14 4 5 200

FG % 1st Half: 8-29 27 .6% 2nd Half: 6-22 27 .3% Game: 14-51 27 .5%3FG % 1st Half: 1-1 100 .0% 2nd Half: 1-3 33 .3% Game: 2-4 50 .0%FT % 1st Half: 2-2 100 .0% 2nd Half: 6-13 46 .2% Game: 8-15 53 .3%

Grand Canyon 71 (8-3) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 24 Keonta Vernon F 3-8 0-0 0-0 1 3 4 2 6 0 0 4 2 2325 Alessandro Lever F 2-7 1-2 2-2 2 4 6 2 7 2 3 1 1 1401 Fiifi Aidoo G 1-2 1-2 1-2 3 1 4 3 4 1 1 0 0 2002 Joshua Braun G 3-9 3-8 7-9 2 4 6 1 16 0 0 1 0 2811 Casey Benson G 2-6 1-4 3-4 2 2 4 3 8 6 1 1 1 2600 Shaq Carr 0-2 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 0 0 1103 Parker Dale 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 104 Oscar Frayer 1-3 0-2 0-1 1 3 4 2 2 2 1 0 0 2005 Matt Jackson 3-5 3-5 1-2 0 5 5 1 10 1 1 0 1 1710 Damari Milstead 2-2 1-1 0-0 0 1 1 0 5 1 0 0 0 412 Roberts Blumbergs 0-3 0-2 2-2 1 1 2 2 2 0 0 0 0 913 Ibrahima Sankare 1-1 0-0 0-0 0 2 2 0 2 0 0 1 0 415 Cheick Sy-Savane 1-2 1-1 0-0 0 0 0 1 3 0 0 0 0 321 Kerwin Smith 1-1 0-0 0-2 0 2 2 2 2 0 1 0 0 422 Nehemiah Allen 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 342 Gerard Martin 2-3 0-0 0-0 2 2 4 0 4 0 0 0 0 13 TEAM 2 3 5 Totals 22-54 11-27 16-24 16 33 49 19 71 14 12 8 5 200

FG % 1st Half: 9-27 33 .3% 2nd Half: 13-27 48 .1% Game: 22-54 40 .7%3FG % 1st Half: 7-15 46 .7% 2nd Half: 4-12 33 .3% Game: 11-27 40 .7%FT % 1st Half: 8-11 72 .7% 2nd Half: 8-13 61 .5% Game: 16-24 66 .7%Officials: Larry Spaulding, Rob Rorke, Kelly PfeiferTechnical Fouls: Mississippi Valley State-None . Grand Canyon-None .GCU Arena, Phoenix, AZ Attendance: 6464 In Off 2nd FastScore by Period 1st 2nd Total Points Paint T/O Chance Break BenchMississippi Valley State 19 19 38 MVSU 20 4 11 2 13 Grand Canyon 33 38 71 GCU 18 9 8 7 30

Last FG - MVSU 2nd-01:55,GCU 2nd-01:35 . Score Tied - 0 timesLargest lead - MVSU None, GCU by 34 2nd-01:35 Lead Changed - 0 timesMVSU led for 00:00 . GCU led for 39:30 . Game was tied for 00:30 .

MEN’S BASKETBALL GAME NOTES

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GAME 12: GCU 86, LONGWOOD 76December 21, 2017 - 7:09 PM Tip Phoenix, Ariz . (GCU Arena)

Longwood 56 (3-9) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 02 B .K . Ashe * 6-12 0-2 1-2 0 6 6 2 13 2 4 0 0 3903 Kamil Chapman * 3-8 2-6 5-5 0 2 2 4 13 1 3 0 3 2621 Jashaun Smith * 4-9 1-4 2-2 0 1 1 2 11 0 2 0 1 3024 Damarion Geter * 3-5 0-1 1-3 0 5 5 2 7 0 0 1 1 3530 Chris Shields * 2-6 0-1 1-2 2 2 4 3 5 0 3 0 0 2400 Dominic Ezeani 1-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 213 Spencer Franklin 1-7 0-0 1-4 3 2 5 3 3 0 1 0 1 2520 Jordan Cintron 1-2 0-1 0-0 2 0 2 3 2 2 3 0 1 19 TEAM 0 1 1 Totals 21-50 3-15 11-18 7 19 26 20 56 5 16 1 7 200

FG % 1st Half: 8-21 38 .1% 2nd Half: 13-29 44 .8% Game: 21-50 42 .0%3FG % 1st Half: 1-5 20 .0% 2nd Half: 2-10 20 .0% Game: 3-15 20 .0%FT % 1st Half: 3-6 50 .0% 2nd Half: 8-12 66 .7% Game: 11-18 61 .1%

Grand Canyon 86 (9-3) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 04 Oscar Frayer F 4-8 2-3 0-0 3 1 4 2 10 0 2 1 1 1924 Keonta Vernon F 1-2 0-0 0-0 2 1 3 0 2 3 0 0 1 1825 Alessandro Lever F 2-5 1-3 2-4 2 8 10 4 7 2 1 2 0 2302 Joshua Braun G 2-7 2-6 0-0 1 0 1 2 6 1 1 0 0 1411 Casey Benson G 4-10 1-5 2-2 1 4 5 1 11 5 1 0 2 2000 Shaq Carr 1-1 0-0 0-0 1 1 2 2 2 5 2 2 2 1701 Fiifi Aidoo 6-8 2-4 0-0 1 1 2 1 14 2 0 0 0 2205 Matt Jackson 4-7 2-4 0-0 1 2 3 0 10 1 1 0 1 1610 Damari Milstead 1-1 1-1 2-2 0 0 0 0 5 0 2 0 0 812 Roberts Blumbergs 1-5 0-2 4-6 1 4 5 2 6 0 1 0 0 1713 Ibrahima Sankare 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 215 Cheick Sy-Savane 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 221 Kerwin Smith 2-2 0-0 0-0 1 0 1 0 4 1 0 2 0 522 Nehemiah Allen 1-2 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 242 Gerard Martin 2-5 2-5 1-2 1 1 2 0 7 2 0 0 1 15 TEAM 1 2 3 Totals 31-63 13-34 11-16 16 26 42 16 86 22 11 7 8 200

FG % 1st Half: 16-32 50 .0% 2nd Half: 15-31 48 .4% Game: 31-63 49 .2%3FG % 1st Half: 8-19 42 .1% 2nd Half: 5-15 33 .3% Game: 13-34 38 .2%FT % 1st Half: 4-5 80 .0% 2nd Half: 7-11 63 .6% Game: 11-16 68 .8%

Officials: Shawn Lehigh, Frank Harvey, Jon StiglianoTechnical Fouls: Longwood-None . Grand Canyon-None .GCU Arena, Phoenix, AZ Attendance: 7006 In Off 2nd FastScore by Period 1st 2nd Total Points Paint T/O Chance Break BenchLongwood 20 36 56 LWD 32 13 4 2 7 Grand Canyon 44 42 86 GCU 30 18 11 1 50 Last FG - LWD 2nd-00:04,GCU 2nd-00:19 . Score Tied - 0 timesLargest lead - LWD by 1 1st-18:47, GCU by 35 2nd-13:43 Lead Changed - 2 timesLWD led for 00:15 . GCU led for 39:31 . Game was tied for 00:14 .

RAPID RECAP:Grand Canyon did not wait until Saturday to get ready for its high-profile game Louisville.

The Lopes came out Thursday night with play befitting a match with a perennial power, pouncing on Longwood with a sizzling 34-5 start that led to a 86-56 victory in front of 7,006 fans at GCU Arena.

GCU (9-3) made 15 of its first 21 shots, scoring 25 points in one first-half stretch of five minutes and 14 seconds.

The Lopes played with more pace than usual and came at Longwood in waves. GCU dominated Longwood in bench scoring, 28-0, in the first half.

Head coach Dan Majerle moved sophomore guard Fiifi Aidoo back to the bench in part to get him more scoring opportunities and he continued his recent hot shooting with a run of 10 consecutive Lopes points over two minutes. Aidoo finished with a team-high 14 points on six-of-eight shooting.

Two days after Longwood had No. 3 Arizona State tied at 30 late in the first half, GCU held the Lancers to five points in the game’s first 11 minutes. The stops translated to more transition play for an offense with quick strikes and crisp passes to score 39 points in the first 13 minutes.

A cool-off was unavoidable but the Lopes went seven minutes without making a field goal and still led 39-20 before closing the first half with five unanswered points and opening the second half with nine more.

Coming off a win with 11 made 3-pointers, the Lopes hit 13 more on Thursday for its second-highest total of the season. Aidoo, Matt Jackson, Gerard Martin, Joshua Braun and Oscar Frayer (in his return to the starting lineup) each hit two 3-pointers.

On the flip side, GCU maintained its status as the defense that has allowed the fewest 3-pointers in Division I and the sixth-lowest opponent 3-point percentage. Longwood, missing leading scorer Isaiah Walton for a third consecutive game, went three for 15 from 3-point range.

In addition to Aidoo, Jackson (10 points) and senior point guard Casey Benson (11 points, five rebounds, five assists) scored in double figures for GCU. Freshman power forward Alessandro Lever grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds, which also is a season high. The win marked GCU’s third win by 30 points or more in the past five games.

DAN MAJERLE POSTGAME QUOTES:(Opening statement) “Good win. You’re always a little nervous about these, especially when we are flying out tonight and have a big road trip. I thought our guys came out really focused. Came out and played really well in the opening minutes and shot the ball extremely well. The bench came in, Fiifi brought a lot of energy, Matt, everybody. Just a good win. Those are two home games that you get nervous for but our guys did a great job of coming out and taking care of business. I’m proud of them.”

(on Fiifi Aidoo’s performance off the bench) “Fiifi is a good player. He’s starting to get some confidence and the best thing is Oscar started to get going too. They were just reversing their roles a little bit. I think Oscar’s more of a starter and Fiifi can come off the bench and get it going. Oscar the second half got it going. He’s so athletic and flies around and that’s when he’s really good. He crashes the boards and uses his athleticism, it makes the three point shot earlier. I’m proud of both of them.”

(on what it’s like when both rotations are playing well and how it raises the play) “When you play 10, Kerwin and Damari make 12, and we really can’t play that many. We have some talented guys so we will see how they hold up against Louisville, Illinois and Morgan State, guys like that. We have guys who can go in and play four or five minute stretches and play really hard defensively and that’s what we try to key on. Go out there and let our defense get our offense going and pick up our energy. All of those guys are doing a good job there. All of those guys understand what they have to do and they did a good job. These are games that are sometimes hard and I was proud of our guys.”

(on traveling to Louisville on a quick turnaround similar to two years ago) “We didn’t get kind of blown out, I think we lost by 60 so we really got blown out. That’s why we are flying out tonight. We have a red-eye at 12:30, we get into Louisville at 9:30 in the morning that way we can be in there, get some practice and get a little bit of rest then we have another afternoon game. They’re obviously very good but I told our guys I expect us to go in there, compete and win the game. We are past the point of just showing up. Tonight hopefully we get some rest on the plane and when we get there we will be energized, have a good practice and be ready for Saturday.”

(on the offensives pace vs Longwood) “When you hit jump shots, it is always a little bit better. Fiifi shot the ball well, Gerard shot it well, Matt came in and shot it well. When you start hitting jump shots everything kind of loosens up and then we kind of let them back in the game, which is a tough deal for me. I wanted them to keep playing, but we came out in the second half and did a good job. We just have to continue to shoot the ball that well, but it can’t be just living by the jump shot, we have to be able to attack and most of our stuff will come off of our defensive pressure.”

(on if Alessandro Lever is doing a better job on the boards and rebounding) “I think so. He is starting to figure it out. He has got to get stronger with the basketball, but he is doing a good job. I thought Rob was a little bit more aggressive. He is a much better shooter then he is right now. He can really shoot it, but he is not shooting the ball well, but I liked how he took the ball to the basket. He is starting to figure it out a little bit. Both those guys with their size have to be more physical and have to be stronger with the basketball.”

(on whether there was discussion on not looking ahead to Louisville and focusing on Longwood) “There is a lot of discussion. I told our guys we have given away enough games and we are not good enough to look past anybody. We are always looking ahead to the WAC, not just Louisville, but we always want to be able to learn and get better each night that we play and tonight was an opportunity for us to get better and learn about each other, play hard and continue to do well on defense and I thought we did that for the most part. We are not looking past anybody. We have to try to get better every game and work on our game, and our guys have to learn and get experience”

(on what the key is when you face a good shot blocking team like Louisville) “Drive. Kick. Drive. Kick. It is not that hard. I mean you have to get in the paint. There is going to be shot blockers coming, you have to have good spacing and just move the basketball. We have done a better job at that lately and moving the basketball, trying to make the extra pass. I mean we had 22 assists tonight, so I think we are starting to move the ball a little bit better. Our guys understand that. So we just have to do that come Saturday. Pick our spots, but once you get to the paint, if somebody is there, just find the open guy.”

(on if the team is used to environments like Louisville) “Oh yeah, I mean these guys, if you think about it. Josh has played at almost every environment, Casey, obviously played at Oregon and has done all that, Oscar has been to Duke, started as a freshman. Matt, Gerard, all the way down the line. Alessandro and Roberts are two foreigners that don’t know what the hell is going on, they don’t even know where Louisville is. We will be alright.”

MEN’S BASKETBALL GAME NOTES

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GAME 13: LOUISVILLE 74, GCU 56December 23, 2017 - 1:02 PM Tip Louisville, Ky . (KFC Yum! Center)

Grand Canyon 56 (9-4) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 24 Keonta Vernon F 4-7 0-0 1-3 3 6 9 5 9 0 2 2 1 2625 Alessandro Lever F 5-9 2-2 0-0 1 2 3 5 12 4 3 0 0 2302 Joshua Braun G 3-10 1-4 1-2 2 2 4 1 8 0 3 0 2 3004 Oscar Frayer G 6-8 1-3 1-1 0 1 1 3 14 1 1 1 0 2811 Casey Benson G 2-7 2-4 1-2 0 3 3 1 7 7 3 0 2 3400 Shaq Carr 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 301 Fiifi Aidoo 1-4 0-2 0-0 0 1 1 0 2 0 1 0 1 1105 Matt Jackson 0-2 0-0 0-0 1 4 5 3 0 1 2 0 0 1710 Damari Milstead 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 112 Roberts Blumbergs 0-3 0-3 2-4 1 1 2 0 2 0 0 0 0 1121 Kerwin Smith 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 242 Gerard Martin 1-3 0-1 0-0 0 3 3 2 2 0 0 0 1 14 TEAM 4 0 4 1 Totals 22-55 6-19 6-12 12 23 35 20 56 13 19 3 7 200

FG % 1st Half: 10-25 40 .0% 2nd Half: 12-30 40 .0% Game: 22-55 40 .0%3FG % 1st Half: 3-11 27 .3% 2nd Half: 3-8 37 .5% Game: 6-19 31 .6%FT % 1st Half: 2-2 100 .0% 2nd Half: 4-10 40 .0% Game: 6-12 50 .0%

Louisville 74 (10-2) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 13 Ray SPALDING F 8-13 0-1 5-9 6 10 16 2 21 1 1 2 3 3622 Deng ADEL F 5-14 1-6 3-4 0 1 1 1 14 2 1 1 1 3214 Anas MAHMOUD C 3-4 0-0 1-2 2 3 5 0 7 2 2 3 1 3300 VJ KING G 2-6 1-1 2-4 0 3 3 3 7 1 3 0 1 1904 Quentin SNIDER G 4-10 0-2 4-4 2 1 3 1 12 5 2 0 1 3202 Darius PERRY 1-2 1-1 0-0 0 1 1 2 3 1 2 0 0 805 Malik WILLIAMS 0-2 0-2 0-0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 624 Dwayne SUTTON 2-3 0-1 3-4 2 3 5 4 7 0 0 0 0 1830 Ryan McMAHON 1-5 1-5 0-0 1 3 4 1 3 2 0 0 3 1433 Jordan NWORA 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 TEAM 2 1 3 Totals 26-59 4-19 18-27 15 26 41 15 74 14 12 6 10 200

FG % 1st Half: 13-30 43 .3% 2nd Half: 13-29 44 .8% Game: 26-59 44 .1%3FG % 1st Half: 1-11 9 .1% 2nd Half: 3-8 37 .5% Game: 4-19 21 .1%FT % 1st Half: 4-8 50 .0% 2nd Half: 14-19 73 .7% Game: 18-27 66 .7%

Officials: Bert Sith, Brent Hampton, Lamar SimpsonTechnical Fouls: Grand Canyon - None . Louisville - None . KFC Yum! Center, Louisville, Ky . - Attendance: 16,841 In Off 2nd FastScore by Period 1st 2nd Total Points Paint T/O Chance Break BenchGrand Canyon 25 31 56 GCU 24 15 7 4 6Louisville 31 43 74 LOU 34 21 13 2 13 Last FG - GCU 2nd-02:27, LOU 2nd-00:37 . Score Tied - 3 timesLargest lead - GCU by 8 1st-13:28, LOU by 19 2nd-08:28 . Lead Changed - 3 timesGCU led for 13:30 . LOU led for 23:58 . Game was tied for 02:32 .

RAPID RECAP:Grand Canyon was going to need to be at its best to upset a perennial power like Louisville in its building. Playing well at times was good for first-half GCU leads and a tight first half. Falling far short of that led the Lopes to a 74-56 loss to the Cardinals at KFC Yum! Center.

GCU (9-4) trailed Louisville (10-2) by one point with 16:53 remaining in the game but the Cardinals then went on a 21-3 run to beat the Lopes for a third consecutive year.

GCU was far more of a challenger than its Louisville visit two years ago but expected to be. The Lopes led for nearly the first 12 minutes of the game and more than 13 minutes of the first half. But 12 first-half turnovers prevented the Lopes from doing more and they crashed hard in the second half until it was too much to overcome. Starting big men Keonta Vernon and Alessandro Lever fouled out during one last surge that trimmed the Louisville lead to 11 with 3:32 to go.

Louisville junior power forward Ray Spalding set career highs for points (21) and rebounds (15) as the Cardinals outscored GCU 34-24 in the paint. The Lopes committed 19 turnovers and shot 40 percent from the field with sophomore guard Oscar Frayer scoring a team-high 14 points.

The Lopes were far from the team shook by playing at Louisville two years for a 48-point loss. They shut out Louisville for the first 3:41 and jumped ahead 6-0 when senior point guard Casey Benson hit 3-pointers on their second and third possessions of the game.

GCU’s turnover issues prevented them from extending the lead more but the Lopes still led 11-3 after seven minutes with Frayer adding another 3-pointer. GCU then missed its next seven 3-point tries of the half but still led 23-21 when Benson threaded a bounce pass for a layup by Vernon.

Louisville closed the first half with a 10-2 run over the final 3:34 by getting repeatedly into the paint with its size. The Cardinals led 31-25 at the half despite hitting one of 11 3-pointers against GCU, which entered the game with the third-lowest opponent 3-point percentage in Division I.

GCU handled Louisville’s full-court press better early in the second half and tightened Louisville’s lead to 38-37 when Lever beat the shot clock with a jumper off Benson’s inbound. Shortly after, Benson had a potential tying 3-pointer rim around twice before coming out and Vernon nearly had a follow. Instead, it was the start of a massive Lopes offensive funk.

GCU scored once, a Lever 3-pointer, over more than eight minutes of play to fall irretrievably behind at 59-40 with 8:28 to go.

DAN MAJERLE POSTGAME QUOTES:

(opening statement) “Obviously they’re a really good team, playing at home. With our travel, it’s tough, but that’s no excuse. We’ve had a hard time scoring all year long. The matchup zone really bothered us. I thought we had too many careless turnovers early. We hung in there early and tried to battle. We just didn’t have it tonight. I’m a little disappointed in our effort, but like I said, that’s a really good team. They’ve got a lot of talent. I thought Spalding really took the game over with 21 (points) and 16 (rebounds). He did a really good job for them. I’m a little disappointed in us, but that’s a really good team.”

(on not taking advantage of the stops early with the turnovers) “That’s a good defense and its predicated on not letting guys get to the basket. They’re the number one shot blocking team in the country. We just haven’t shot the ball. We hit some early threes—Casey hit two-straight threes and got us off to that lead, but didn’t shoot the ball well and didn’t finish. The careless turnovers, not so much of what Louisville did, but us just being too casual with the basketball and the worst thing you can do is have live-ball turnovers against a team like that and we had a lot of those. I’m disappointed, but we kept on fighting there in the second half. We made a little bit of a run, but it wasn’t enough.”

(on what was working early in the game when GCU jumped out to an 11-3 lead) “Inside-out. We got the ball into our freshman, who I thought had a really good game. I’m excited about him. He’s continuing to get better and better—Alessandro from Italy. He’s going to be a good player. One of those stretch fours, stretch fives, that can really shoot it. We got the ball into him at the post and just ran a stagger pick for Casey coming off and he hit two big threes to start us off in the game. They kind of adjusted to that as all coaches and teams do. We just found it hard to find a way to score in that matchup zone. If you’re not shooting the ball well, and Josh didn’t shoot well—and he’s got to shoot it well for us to play well.”

(on if Louisville did anything to slow Josh Braun down) “Josh did something to slow Josh down. Josh hasn’t shot the ball well. He gets a lot of good looks. He was 3-for-10, 1-for-4 from three. He’s been a great player for us. He’s the WAC Preseason Player of the Year this year. He’s been a First-Team Academic All-American, First-Team All-WAC. For whatever reason, he’s really struggling with this shot and confidence. We have to find a way to fix that before the conference season. He just hasn’t had a good year, but he’s one of those kids that’s tough and will find a way to get it done. He’s one of our main guys and for us to be successful, we have to be able to shoot the ball.”

(on adapting to Louisville’s full court press) “We’ve got to do a better job of guys getting to the basketball. They’ve got two guys on Casey. We’ve handled the press well. We knew Louisville was going to press and the last couple of years, we’ve done a good job against them. We just had guys not getting to the ball. Not flashing and getting the ball and turning it over. We’ve got to be aggressive. We did a little better job in the second half when we got some layups, but we’ve got to become more aggressive in attacking the press and trying to score instead of being satisfied with just breaking it. Double-team Casey, and we’ve got guys kind of hiding. They don’t want to go get the ball for whatever reason.”

MEN’S BASKETBALL GAME NOTES

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GAME 14: GCU 100, MORGAN STATE 74December 27, 2017 - 6:09 PM Tip Las Vegas, Nev . (Orleans Arena)

Morgan State (4-8) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 05 Tiwian Kendley * 9-20 1-4 12-12 0 3 3 1 31 2 5 1 4 3702 Martez Cameron * 2-11 1-3 0-0 1 2 3 3 5 5 2 0 1 3010 Antonio Gillespie * 0-1 0-1 0-0 0 2 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 1322 Phillip Carr * 5-17 1-1 7-9 6 6 12 4 18 1 2 0 1 3934 Elijah Staley * 0-4 0-0 3-4 3 0 3 2 3 1 0 0 0 1500 Stanley Davis 2-10 0-3 1-2 1 0 1 2 5 1 3 0 1 2101 Lapri McCray-Pace 3-5 1-1 1-3 1 2 3 3 8 1 0 0 2 1703 Azariah Sykes 0-0 0-0 2-4 1 3 4 2 2 0 0 0 1 1632 David Syfax 0-2 0-0 2-2 0 3 3 1 2 0 0 0 0 12 TEAM 6 0 6 1 Totals 21-70 4-13 28-36 19 21 40 19 74 11 13 1 10 200

FG % 1st Half: 11-33 33 .3% 2nd Half: 10-37 27 .0% Game: 21-70 30 .0%3FG % 1st Half: 3-8 37 .5% 2nd Half: 1-5 20 .0% Game: 4-13 30 .8%FT % 1st Half: 8-11 72 .7% 2nd Half: 20-25 80 .0% Game: 28-36 77 .8%

Grand Canyon 100 (10-4) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 24 Keonta Vernon F 5-8 0-0 1-1 4 2 6 4 11 0 2 0 0 1525 Alessandro Lever F 3-9 0-2 2-4 2 7 9 3 8 1 1 0 0 2100 Shaq Carr G 3-3 0-0 3-3 1 5 6 3 9 6 2 2 0 2202 Joshua Braun G 6-11 5-9 1-2 2 3 5 2 18 2 2 0 3 2811 Casey Benson G 3-9 1-4 4-4 0 5 5 4 11 5 2 0 0 2301 Fiifi Aidoo 4-9 2-6 2-2 2 2 4 2 12 3 1 1 1 2105 Matt Jackson 0-4 0-2 0-0 0 2 2 0 0 2 1 0 1 1510 Damari Milstead 3-5 0-0 3-3 0 3 3 1 9 3 2 0 0 1712 Roberts Blumbergs 2-2 2-2 2-2 0 2 2 1 8 1 1 2 0 1413 Ibrahima Sankare 0-0 0-0 1-2 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 215 Cheick Sy-Savane 1-1 1-1 0-0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 221 Kerwin Smith 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 222 Nehemiah Allen 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 242 Gerard Martin 4-5 2-3 0-0 1 1 2 5 10 1 1 1 0 16 TEAM 0 1 1 Totals 34-66 13-29 19-23 12 33 45 28 100 24 15 6 5 200

FG % 1st Half: 18-38 47 .4% 2nd Half: 16-28 57 .1% Game: 34-66 51 .5%3FG % 1st Half: 6-17 35 .3% 2nd Half: 7-12 58 .3% Game: 13-29 44 .8%FT % 1st Half: 4-4 100 .0% 2nd Half: 15-19 78 .9% Game: 19-23 82 .6%

Officials: Kevin Brill, Deldre Carr, Doran GotschallTechnical Fouls: Morgan State-None . Grand Canyon-None .Orleans Arena, Las Vegas, NV Attendance: 1544 In Off 2nd FastScore by Period 1st 2nd Total Points Paint T/O Chance Break BenchMorgan State 33 41 74 MSU 30 17 18 13 17Grand Canyon 46 54 100 GCU 36 15 11 18 43

Last FG - MGS 2nd-01:09,GCU 2nd-01:22 . Score Tied - 0 timesLargest lead - MGS None, GCU by 31 2nd-04:09 Lead Changed - 0 timesMGS led for 00:00 . GCU led for 38:40 . Game was tied for 01:20 .

RAPID RECAP:Grand Canyon is undefeated in Orleans Arena.

That record would mean much more come mid-March when the Western Athletic Conference Basketball Tournament is here but blowing out Morgan State 100-74 at Orleans Arena on Wednesday could be a nice prelude.

In one of the more balanced scoring attacks of the season, the Lopes set a season high for scoring and had five double-digit scorers. Nine GCU players scored eight or more points to make the most out of one of their best defensive efforts. GCU reached 100 points for the second time in its Division I era, enthralling a crowd of 1,544 fans that was nearly all Lopes fans.

GCU (10-4) held Morgan State to 30.0 percent shooting, including no made field goals for the first 6:55 of the second half. The Lopes started the second half fouling the Bears on their first three possessions to prompt a time out from GCU head coach Dan Majerle. After that, a Shaq Carr 3-point play on a follow started an 8-0 run that gave the Lopes a 58-38 lead and a command that they would not relinquish.

The Lopes started the game with a different look because sophomore guard Oscar Frayer injured his knee in practice Tuesday but is expected to return soon. Carr started in his place at point guard, moving senior Casey Benson off the ball with senior Joshua Braun to small forward for tip-off. It worked well for everyone.

Carr delivered a team-high six assists and did not miss a shot while scoring nine points and grabbing five rebounds. Benson still had five assists to go with 11 points and five rebounds. Best of all, Braun found his shooting stroke to make five of nine 3-point tries for a team-high 18 points.

The Lopes’ bench played a major part again, outscoring the Morgan State reserves 37-17. Sophomore guard Fiifi Aidoo led the Lopes subs with 12 points, including two great end-to-end stretches. He followed one layup by taking a charge six seconds later. He also followed a 3-pointer by blocking a Bear layup try nine seconds later.

GCU shot 51.5 percent from the field, 44.8 from 3-point range and 82.6 percent from the free throw line. Freshman center Alessandro Lever led GCU’s rebounding with nine boards while also scoring eight.

The Lopes stay on the road to next play at Illinois on Saturday in their final non-conference game.

DAN MAJERLE POSTGAME QUOTES:

(opening statement) “Really good game. The Lopes score 100. Holy cow. Just the energy was really good. The only negative that I have about this game is transition. They really pushed the ball and got out in transition. We did a really good job despite that in the half court. We had too many fouls. They got to the foul line. Really good energy, offensively. I thought everybody came in and played extremely well. Good to see Josh get it going a little bit. He needed that. We needed that. Shaq started and played really well. Keonta, when he was in there, played really well. I thought Rob, in the second half, had a couple of breakthrough moments, which he needs as freshman. Overall, everybody played well—a great team win. It’s good to experience, so I’m very happy.”

(on if the ball moved better by pass than dribble tonight) “Oh no question, 24 assists. We tried to put in stuff where we just got off the ball and had movement. We did a good job of that, especially that first half. They went to the zone, but we still did a good job of moving the ball and trying to get it inside. I thought Alessandro did a really good job. He’s just got to finish around the basket, but really nice offensive rebounds a couple of times, high-low, get down there and seal. He just has to take his time to make the plays, but I thought everybody moved the basketball. It didn’t really stick. We shot it really well.”

(on the message to the team following the loss at Louisville) “I told them today, before the season, everybody was kind of picking Grand Canyon. Now, everybody thinks we’re dead. I understand that. We haven’t played real well. New Mexico State is playing great. I just said, ‘It’s time to get our mojo back. Nothing has changed. We just hit a little bit of a lull. We have to get our mojo back. We have to get our confidence up. We have to play as a team. We have to get out of ourselves and just win games. If we’re not making shots, rebound and play defense and all those things will come around. I thought we did a better job of that. We just have to continue to that as we get closer and closer. We’ve got a really hard game coming up against Illinois and then we’ve got Seattle and New Mexico State when the league starts. We’ve got to get ourselves back to having a lot of confidence and playing fun and playing free, but yet, fundamentally strong.”

(on if he looks for the players to step up into those leadership roles) “Yeah, our coaching staff can want to win as bad and work as hard, but until the team takes over the team, we’re not going to be a good team. Until someone takes that locker room by the throat as a player, and they decide they want to be better and they want to listen and they want to improve. Then they’ll be a good team and I think that’s starting to happen. We’ve done a good job against teams and that’s a good team. They’ve got those guys back, so we did a good job. We’ve got to step up and play against the upper echelon teams that we should be able to beat and hang with. So far, we haven’t done that this season. Boise State was a very good test for us, but we let that one go. I’m happy with this game and hopefully it will catapult us forward.”

(on if he likes having this amount of extended road time together) “Yes and no. You miss your family. I know our guys, some of them have their families here now, but you miss being home for the holidays. Everyone misses that. You never like being on the road for 10 or 11 days, but it’s good to be on the road and go through battles, and see each other every day, and eat with each other every day, and go through practice. It’s so comfy back at our house where we play, that sometimes we lose perspective. So it’s good, but you always wish you were home. I think this is a good trip for our guys.”

(on having 1,500 fans travel to Vegas for this game) “Our fans are unbelievable. Are you kidding me? Wherever we go, we travel well. With Lopes on the Road and President Mueller allowing us to come here and rent the facility and play here, so we have a shot to get in here before the WAC Tournament. People getting on buses, the dance, the band—I’ve said from the beginning that it takes a university to raise a great team and they’ve done way more than their share. They are absolutely unbelievable. Our fan base is incredible.”

(on how important it is to get this game in at the Orleans Arena before the WAC Tournament) “It’s big. It is. We’ve had five or six guys that have never been to Vegas with Ali and Rob and Fiifi and all those guys, they’ve never been here. To get here and to see this gym and be able to practice and shootaround and have a game, get familiar with it, so when they walk in here for hopefully those three games, they are comfortable having been here before and now look back on a good experience.”

(on if he liked the offense with Casey Benson playing off the ball more) “When Shaq plays like that, I like it. We’ve got to handle the ball well. I thought Damari was good. The problem with Shaq is every time he gets comfortable, he gets comfortable. He can’t play comfortable. He has to play on fire. He’s got to play with a sense of urgency. He’s got to play like I’m going to pull him out of the game. When he does that, he’s really good. His problem is he gets casual. We need him, but if he doesn’t play well, I’ve got Damari right there to move in, so he’s got to stay on edge. He’s got to stay on edge. Casey has got to continue to work, but it was good to see Josh. I was really happy for Josh. Nobody is harder on Josh than Josh. I just hold him, he’s got to just play.”

MEN’S BASKETBALL GAME NOTES

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GAME 15: ILLINOIS 62, GCU 58December 30, 2017 - 3:01 PM Tip Champaign, Ill . (State Farm Center)

Grand Canyon 58 (10-5) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 24 Keonta Vernon F 5-9 0-0 4-6 2 3 5 2 14 0 1 2 1 1925 Alessandro Lever F 5-10 1-3 2-3 2 3 5 3 13 1 3 0 0 2600 Shaq Carr G 4-8 0-0 1-1 0 4 4 1 9 3 4 0 0 3302 Joshua Braun G 2-10 1-5 2-3 1 4 5 2 7 3 0 1 1 3411 Casey Benson G 0-4 0-2 0-0 0 1 1 4 0 1 3 0 0 2001 Fiifi Aidoo 0-2 0-1 0-0 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 1 1 904 Oscar Frayer 5-9 0-1 0-1 3 0 3 2 10 1 0 0 2 2005 Matt Jackson 1-4 0-2 0-0 2 2 4 0 2 1 1 0 0 810 Damari Milstead 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 112 Roberts Blumbergs 0-3 0-2 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 942 Gerard Martin 1-5 1-4 0-0 0 1 1 1 3 1 0 0 2 21 TEAM 3 1 4 1 Totals 23-64 3-20 9-14 13 20 33 16 58 13 14 4 8 200

FG % 1st Half: 14-33 42 .4% 2nd Half: 9-31 29 .0% Game: 23-64 35 .9%3FG % 1st Half: 2-11 18 .2% 2nd Half: 1-9 11 .1% Game: 3-20 15 .0%FT % 1st Half: 2-3 66 .7% 2nd Half: 7-11 63 .6% Game: 9-14 64 .3%

Illinois 62 (10-5) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 12 Leron Black F 8-12 1-3 3-4 3 8 11 4 20 0 2 0 0 3243 Michael Finke F 4-9 1-3 0-0 1 2 3 0 9 0 0 2 1 2803 Te’Jon Lucas G 1-2 0-0 0-0 1 2 3 2 2 1 5 0 0 1513 Mark Smith G 1-6 0-3 0-0 2 1 3 3 2 2 0 0 0 1124 Mark Alstork G 1-4 0-2 2-2 3 5 8 2 4 1 3 0 1 2801 Trent Frazier 6-12 1-2 1-3 0 2 2 1 14 2 3 0 2 2502 Kipper Nichols 1-2 0-1 0-0 0 2 2 1 2 0 1 1 0 1111 Greg Eboigbodin 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 2 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 720 Da’Monte Williams 1-4 1-3 0-0 0 2 2 2 3 3 2 1 1 1923 Aaron Jordan 2-6 1-2 1-2 1 3 4 2 6 0 4 0 1 24 TEAM 4 0 4 Totals 25-57 5-19 7-11 15 29 44 18 62 9 20 4 6 200

FG % 1st Half: 11-29 37 .9% 2nd Half: 14-28 50 .0% Game: 25-57 43 .9%3FG % 1st Half: 0-6 0 .0% 2nd Half: 5-13 38 .5% Game: 5-19 26 .3%FT % 1st Half: 5-8 62 .5% 2nd Half: 2-3 66 .7% Game: 7-11 63 .6%

Officials: D .J . Carstensen, Lamont Simpson, Tod EadesTechnical Fouls: Grand Canyon-None . Illinois-None .State Farm Center; Champaign, Ill . Attendance: 13762 In Off 2nd FastScore by Period 1st 2nd Total Points Paint T/O Chance Break BenchGrand Canyon 32 26 58 GCU 36 18 13 8 15Illinois 27 35 62 ILL 32 10 9 2 25

Last FG - GCU 2nd-00:07,ILL 2nd-00:17 . Score Tied - 11 timesLargest lead - GCU by 5 1st-00:48, ILL by 6 1st-06:23 Lead Changed - 6 timesGCU led for 16:49 . ILL led for 12:36 . Game was tied for 10:35 .

RAPID RECAP:The theme is encouraging for Grand Canyon but the ending was too familiar when the Lopes gave another quality opponent a test but came away with a loss on Saturday. GCU led at halftime and for much of the second half at Illinois but lost 62-58 at State Farm Center after a nine-for-29 second half of shooting.

The Lopes move to 10-5 with all five losses coming to opponents who have at least 10 wins. Illinois (10-5) won despite committing 20 turnovers and going three for 17 on 3-pointers until closing the game by making its final two 3-point tries.

After taking a 37-32 lead to halftime on freshman center Alessandro Lever’s 11 first-half points, GCU gave up scores on the first four Illinois second-half possessions before resuming its strong defense. The Lopes were strong with ball pressure and rotations to help out of double-teams and create some of the Illini’s 20 turnovers.

The Lopes led or were tied for the first 14 minutes of the second half, including taking a 47-43 lead when junior forward Gerard Martin made a 3-pointer off sophomore guard Fiifi Aidoo’s assist.

The strong GCU defense continued but Illinois got a desperate 3-pointer against the shot clock from freshman Trent Frazier for a 57-54 lead with 1:16 remaining. GCU tightened the lead to 57-56 when senior power forward Keonta Vernon made a difficult catch on a post entry pass and was able to finish the shot left-handed with:18 to go. The Lopes got the stop they needed but the rebound caromed out of bounds to Illinois for another time-draining possession. Another Illini freshman, Da’Monte Williams, hit a 3-pointer at the end of the shot clock for a 60-56 Illinois lead with 15.2 seconds to go.

Vernon scored quickly on a layup to finish his team-high 14 points and cut the lead back to two but Illinois senior guard Mark Alstork iced the game with two free throws for a 62-58 lead with 6.3 seconds remaining.

The Lopes received a major first-half boost from the return of sophomore guard Oscar Frayer, who came off the bench after missing Wednesday’s game for a knee bruise. Frayer scored six consecutive Lopes points for a 15-12 lead. Frayer finished with 10 points, making his highlight play in the second half when he had a dunk follow despite getting fouled by Kipper Nichols.

The Lopes, ranked second in the nation for 3-point defense, did not allow Illinois to make a 3-pointer in the first half while the Illini also committed 11 turnovers.

DAN MAJERLE POSTGAME QUOTES:

(opening statement)“I thought my guys really battled hard. They played hard. This is 10 of an 11-day road trip so I’m happy with how hard we played. We didn’t shoot the ball well, which has been a problem all year long. I knew coming in here that we were going to face a tough defensive team in Illinois and they were exactly that. We just didn’t shoot well enough to win the game. But we battled hard and I’m happy for our guys. We’ll be able to learn from it and move on going into conference play.”

(on what he saw from Illinois and specifically at the end of the game) “I knew they were going to be good and they hold and they play the way I used to play when I was with the Heat. I’ve experienced that and I love it. That’s just their style and we try to play that way, but it was just hard to get shots. They do a good job of pressuring you all game long. I thought our guys kept on battling and made stops when we had to. As I said, when you go 3-for-20 from the 3-point line and Josh has been struggling where he goes 2-for-10 and missed some easy ones, it’s hard to win. Casey didn’t play a good game. Between those guys, they were 2-for-14. We had some other guys step up. Our 6-foot-10 center, Alessandro, was good. Keonta always plays hard. Oscar, coming off the knee injury where he missed the last game, I thought was very effective. That’s a good team. They’re playing very well. Coach has them playing the way he likes to play and I’m proud of our guys. We hung in there. It was just too much for us at the end.”

(on what he saw on the final 3-pointer of the game) “We got switched off. Alessandro, we told them to get up and run them off the line. We’ve a great job defending the 3-point line all year long. We didn’t do bad tonight. They shot 5-for-19, but those last two shots, he’s got to get up there and make him put it on the floor and have somebody come over and make him make another pass. We made a mistake and blitzed the high-ball screen on a butter situation at the end of the clock. We should’ve just whited it or switched it, because a 2-pointer doesn’t kill us. We’re only down three and 3-pointer puts us down four which is a two possession game. So we made a mistake blitzing that, but our guys were just over aggressive, but I’ll take that. We didn’t fully rotate, but we should switched it. But you’re right, they hit two big threes when they had to and that, so that’s good for them.”

(on forcing 20 turnovers) “We’re one of the best defensive teams around. We’ve done that all year long. It’s the only way we’ve been able to win games and stay in games. Our shooting has been spotty all year long, so we’ve been turning up the defense and doing a good job of forcing turnovers. A lot of our offense comes off of good defense and getting stops and getting out and running hopefully. I’m happy with how hard we played and all of that is our defense. We did a good job of that tonight. Fourteen turnovers for us is pretty good because at Illinois, they turn teams over 20 times (a game). That’s been our biggest Achilles heels in that we turn the ball over way too much. For us to have 14 turnovers and turn them over 20 is good, but like I said, we have to find a way to shoot better. Josh not shooting the ball, it’s hard for us to score.”

(on getting a recruit out of Champaign for his 2018 class in Tim Finke) “I needed him tonight. That would’ve been good. I love Tim. Josh will be gone. I told him we need a shooter. He’s a high character kid. I love his family. His brother plays extremely hard. I went and watched him practice and I knew right away he’s one of those kinds of kids that we like in our program: a guy that loves to be in the gym and is only going to get better, can really score, can shoot it. We’re excited to get him. He was really the highest recruit that we’ve ever got, so we’re excited to have Tim and he plays again tonight, so hopefully we can get out there and see him. We’re excited to have Tim. That’s a big get for us.”

(on what he thought changed in the second half offensively) “When we come out of halftime, more times than not, we kind of fall asleep and it gets them going a little bit. They went on a little bit of a run and cut the lead real quick. Like I said, they were doing a good job of playing defense and we weren’t hitting shots. We just battled in there and they hit some big threes down the stretch, which was big. We didn’t make a whole lot of those. We just battled, but coming out of halftime, we have to be better. If we have a 5-point lead, we’ve got to build it to 10. They came out and got some easy baskets right away, just our guys not being on point coming out of the locker room. That’s hurt us the past two.”

(on the defense continuing to play well down the stretch) “Well, we made a few mistakes. Ali got switched off on the point guard and didn’t get up and we want to make him get off the line and he backed off and he hit a terrific shot over a 6-10 guy, but we want to make him put it on the floor. We blitzed the second one, which we’re not supposed to do. We’re supposed to white it because we don’t want to go down four, but our guys are aggressive and that’s fine. That’s just a mistake that we shouldn’t have made. We have to give them credit. They made two big shots. They’re a good team. We keep fighting. I’m proud of our guys. We didn’t fight at Louisville. We played good the last game, but to come in here and fight these guys like this, I’m proud of our guys. We obviously want to win, but we played really hard. We’ll learn from this and going into the WAC season, it will make us better.”

MEN’S BASKETBALL GAME NOTES

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GAME 16: GCU 73, SEATTLE U 57January 6, 2018 - 7:00 PM Tip Seattle, Wash . (KeyArena)

Grand Canyon 73 (11-5) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 04 Oscar Frayer F 8-14 2-4 0-0 4 3 7 2 18 1 2 0 1 3024 Keonta Vernon F 3-8 0-0 2-3 1 4 5 3 8 3 1 1 1 2325 Alessandro Lever F 3-4 1-2 0-1 0 2 2 3 7 0 2 0 1 1302 Joshua Braun G 2-8 1-4 5-6 0 1 1 2 10 0 0 0 1 3711 Casey Benson G 1-5 0-1 5-6 1 1 2 1 7 1 1 0 0 2300 Shaq Carr 2-6 0-0 6-7 0 3 3 0 10 3 2 0 0 2301 Fiifi Aidoo 2-3 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 2 4 1 1 0 1 905 Matt Jackson 1-2 0-0 1-3 0 5 5 1 3 1 1 0 1 1312 Roberts Blumbergs 1-1 1-1 0-0 0 3 3 1 3 0 2 0 1 642 Gerard Martin 1-3 1-3 0-0 0 7 7 3 3 2 0 0 0 23 TEAM 0 3 3 Totals 24-54 6-16 19-26 6 32 38 18 73 12 12 1 7 200

FG % 1st Half: 9-25 36 .0% 2nd Half: 15-29 51 .7% Game: 24-54 44 .4%3FG % 1st Half: 2-9 22 .2% 2nd Half: 4-7 57 .1% Game: 6-16 37 .5%FT % 1st Half: 11-15 73 .3% 2nd Half: 8-11 72 .7% Game: 19-26 73 .1%

Seattle U 57 (11-7) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 13 Josh Hearlihy F 1-9 0-3 3-4 3 0 3 3 5 0 4 0 1 3741 Aaron Menzies C 0-4 0-0 3-4 1 4 5 5 3 0 2 0 0 1202 Jordan Hill G 11-22 4-10 0-1 1 4 5 1 26 2 2 0 0 4005 Matej Kavas G 3-11 0-5 0-0 0 8 8 4 6 0 3 0 0 3110 Richaud Gittens G 2-5 0-1 2-3 3 2 5 4 6 1 1 0 1 2601 Morgan Means 3-7 1-1 0-1 1 4 5 4 7 1 1 1 0 2511 Scott Ulaneo 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 3 3 1 0 0 2 0 0 812 Mattia Da Campo 2-3 0-0 0-1 0 3 3 3 4 2 0 0 0 2023 Aaron Nettles 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 TEAM 4 3 7 1 Totals 22-61 5-20 8-14 13 31 44 25 57 6 16 1 2 200

FG % 1st Half: 10-30 33 .3% 2nd Half: 12-31 38 .7% Game: 22-61 36 .1%3FG % 1st Half: 3-9 33 .3% 2nd Half: 2-11 18 .2% Game: 5-20 25 .0%FT % 1st Half: 6-9 66 .7% 2nd Half: 2-5 40 .0% Game: 8-14 57 .1%

Officials: Ronnie Hernandez, Casey McClellan, SirAllen ConnerTechnical Fouls: Grand Canyon-None . Seattle U-None .KeyArena; Seattle, Wash . Attendance: 2156 In Off 2nd FastScore by Period 1st 2nd Total Points Paint T/O Chance Break BenchGrand Canyon 31 42 73 GCU 24 22 6 0 23Seattle U 29 28 57 SU 30 8 8 0 11

Last FG - GCU 2nd-01:03,SU 2nd-00:08 . Score Tied - 4 timesLargest lead - GCU by 18 2nd-00:16, SU by 2 1st-13:33 Lead Changed - 6 timesGCU led for 28:46 . SU led for 03:15 . Game was tied for 07:59 .

RAPID RECAP:If Grand Canyon’s offense caught up with the play of its defense this season, its Western Athletic Conference play had a chance of living up to the label of preseason favorite.

That happened in the second half of GCU’s conference opener Saturday night, when the Lopes found their flow with better shooting and no turnovers for nearly 16 minutes on the way to a 73-57 victory Saturday night at KeyArena. Lopes sophomore guard Oscar Frayer scored a team-high 18 points, including 14 during a second half in which GCU (11-5) shot 51.7 percent from the field.

The Lopes were strong defensively throughout the game but they took control with nine points in the final 3:10 of the first half and never let go of the lead in the second half. Seattle (11-7) cut GCU ‘s lead to 59-55 with 6:55 remaining but the Lopes ran off 14 unanswered points and held the Redhawks scoreless until eight seconds remained and the hundreds of Lopes fans were celebrating.

Seattle missed nine shots in a row while also committing four turnovers over that 6:47 against GCU, which entered Saturday with a No. 11 national ranking for scoring defense. For the ninth time in 16 games, the Lopes held an opponent to less than 40 percent shooting with Seattle coming in at 36.1 percent.

Besides Frayer’s 18, Lopes guards Joshua Braun and Shaq Carr each added 10 points. Frayer and junior Gerard Martin shared the rebounding lead with seven each.

Seattle’s leading scorer, Matej Kavas, entered the game averaging 17.8 points but was kept to six points on three-of-11 shooting. Each Redhawks starter has averaged in double figures but only Jordan Hill (26 points) did it against the Lopes on Saturday.

Conference play for the Lopes looked a lot like their non-conference work. Outstanding defense was good enough for a 31-29 halftime lead despite more offensive struggles.

The Lopes kept the Redhawks to one made shot on their first nine tries, denying Seattle’s post chances well and pressuring Seattle into mistakes. The defensive effort maintained but GCU had a hard time capitalizing it with a four-for-16 shooting start to the game.

The Lopes also committed 11 first-half turnovers but locked Seattle up well enough to lead until a 7-0 Redhawks run put Seattle ahead 24-22 with 4:14 to go.

GCU closed the half strongly, taking the halftime lead after a late 8-2 run started by a Braun 3-pointer and continued with an alley-oop dunk and a tip-in score from Frayer.

DAN MAJERLE POSTGAME QUOTES:

(on the difference between the first half and second half) “I thought we played great defense the whole game. We played great defense in the first half and just got sucked in a couple times and left them open for 3s. We turned the ball over. I think we had 10 turnovers in the first nine minutes and then we only ended up with 12. It was a combination of not turning the ball over and our defense was really good. And then Oscar (Frayer) getting hot. Oscar made some big buckets, which was huge. It was everything. We rebounded the ball. Defensively, we were good. And then guys played intelligently on offense. We didn’t foul, which was huge because they’re a great foul-shooting team, and we stayed home on the 3s. They only made five 3s and I think they had three at the end of the first half.”

(on the second half displaying how the team can play) “I hope so. Who knows what we can do when we get Josh going? He still hasn’t got going. We need other guys to step up. Oscar’s got the talent to do it. He works really hard. When he starts making that shot, he’s going to be hard to guard. We’ve got to have everybody step up. Ali didn’t play a lot. He got in foul trouble and he kind of got out of the game because they went small but he did a good job coming out in the second half and made a few buckets.”

(on the defensive job against leading scorer Matej Kavas) “Just locked into him. Made him put it on the floor. Gave him no space. Just moved with him. We did a really good job. Hill was fantastic. We tried to guard him with everybody and he just made a lot of different shots. They have a lot of guys who can score and we did a good job.”

(on the strong interior defense) “We played straight up. We didn’t really want to help because then you ended up giving up threes. Our guys really welled up and moved their feet and made them take tough shots. I’ve learned, since I’ve been a college coach, that college kids don’t make a lot of contested layups. They miss them a lot. I just say go straight up and contest it. If they make it, take the ball out of bounds and let’s go. We don’t want to foul. Just make them make tough shots.”

(on a 14-0 Lopes run down the stretch) “Oscar really did a good job there hitting some key shots. Defensively, we got stops when we needed to. I’m just proud of our guys. I was worried about this game.”

MEN’S BASKETBALL GAME NOTES

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GAME 17: NMSU 70, GCU 59January 11, 2018 - 7:00 PM Tip Phoenix, Ariz . (GCU Arena)

New Mexico State 70 (14-3) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 10 Jemerrio Jones * 3-9 0-2 0-0 4 11 15 0 6 3 1 0 0 2311 Johnathon Wilkins * 2-4 1-3 1-2 2 1 3 1 6 1 1 0 0 1512 Aj Harris * 5-11 1-2 0-0 0 6 6 3 11 2 0 0 0 2913 Sidy N’dir * 1-4 0-1 1-2 1 2 3 3 3 0 1 0 0 1923 Zach Lofton * 8-15 3-6 10-10 2 3 5 2 29 2 7 0 0 3700 Keyon Jones 1-1 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 3 2 0 2 0 1 1301 Shunn Buchanan 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 3 0 1 2 0 1 1403 Gabe Hadley 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 622 Eli Chuha 4-5 0-1 1-3 0 4 4 2 9 1 3 0 0 2435 Johnny McCants 2-6 0-0 0-2 4 5 9 0 4 1 0 1 1 20 TEAM 1 1 2 1 Totals 26-56 5-15 13-19 14 36 50 17 70 11 18 1 3 200

FG % 1st Half: 16-28 57 .1% 2nd Half: 10-28 35 .7% Game: 26-56 46 .4%3FG % 1st Half: 3-7 42 .9% 2nd Half: 2-8 25 .0% Game: 5-15 33 .3%FT % 1st Half: 2-3 66 .7% 2nd Half: 11-16 68 .8% Game: 13-19 68 .4%

Grand Canyon 59 (11-6) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 04 Oscar Frayer F 2-8 1-4 0-0 1 3 4 2 5 2 2 1 3 3324 Keonta Vernon F 6-15 0-0 0-0 6 6 12 2 12 2 0 2 0 2425 Alessandro Lever F 4-9 0-2 1-1 0 1 1 4 9 1 1 1 1 1902 Joshua Braun G 4-9 2-5 5-8 0 2 2 2 15 2 2 0 0 3411 Casey Benson G 2-7 1-4 4-4 0 1 1 2 9 2 0 0 0 3200 Shaq Carr 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 0 0 1101 Fiifi Aidoo 1-5 1-4 0-0 0 0 0 1 3 1 0 0 1 905 Matt Jackson 1-4 0-2 0-0 0 1 1 0 2 2 0 0 1 912 Roberts Blumbergs 1-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 442 Gerard Martin 1-5 0-3 0-0 0 2 2 3 2 1 0 0 2 25 TEAM 0 2 2 Totals 22-64 5-24 10-13 7 18 25 17 59 13 7 4 8 200

FG % 1st Half: 13-29 44 .8% 2nd Half: 9-35 25 .7% Game: 22-64 34 .4%3FG % 1st Half: 4-10 40 .0% 2nd Half: 1-14 7 .1% Game: 5-24 20 .8%FT % 1st Half: 7-9 77 .8% 2nd Half: 3-4 75 .0% Game: 10-13 76 .9%

Officials: David Hall, Michael Irving, Eric AndersonTechnical Fouls: New Mexico State-None . Grand Canyon-None .GCU Arena, Phoenix, Ariz . Attendance: 7521 In Off 2nd FastScore by Period 1st 2nd Total Points Paint T/O Chance Break BenchNew Mexico State 37 33 70 NMSU 34 6 17 2 15Grand Canyon 37 22 59 GCU 24 19 10 0 9 Last FG - NMSU 2nd-00:33,GCU 2nd-00:09 . Score Tied - 3 timesLargest lead - NMSU by 13 1st-08:36, GCU by 4 2nd-15:34 Lead Changed - 1 timesNMSU led for 30:17 . GCU led for 05:33 . Game was tied for 04:10 .

RAPID RECAP:Grand Canyon’s Western Athletic Conference goals will need an early reboot after the Lopes lost a second-half lead at home to end their eight-game Western Athletic Conference winning streak.

New Mexico State outscored GCU 32-9 at the close of the game for a 70-59 victory Thursday night at a sold-out GCU Arena, where the standing-room-only crowd of 7,521 set a Lopes basketball attendance record. The Lopes took their first lead of the game on a follow score by senior power forward Keonta Vernon less than three minutes into the second half and stayed ahead for the next five minutes until a decisive cold spell did in GCU.

The Lopes (11-6) missed 10 consecutive shots as the Aggies (14-3) took the lead with nine unanswered points. GCU remained within striking distance when freshman Alessandro Lever, who scored nine points, hit a jump shot to cut NMSU’s lead to 58-55 with 6:24 to go. But the Lopes again went cold, failing to score unitl the final minute when the game was decided.

GCU only made seven turnovers but shot 34.4 percent from the field. NMSU committed 18 turnovers but shot 46.4 percent from the field and doubled GCU in rebounds, 50-25.

Lopes senior guard Joshua Braun led the team with 15 points while Vernon added 12 points and 12 rebounds. Senior guard Zach Lofton scored 29 for the Aggies with 10-for-10 free throw shooting.

The Lopes trailed 27-14 after almost 12 minutes of play with NMSU dominating the boards and senior guard Zach Lofton scoring 12 of the Aggies’ points. Early in the game, NMSU was thriving with second-chance points and off-ball cuts for easy scores. The Aggies entered the game with a plus-7.7 average rebounding margin to rank 10th nationally but outrebounded GCU 17-4 to start Thursday’s game.

It was Braun’s shooting that kept the Lopes in the game early and sparked the rally when he made his second 3-pointer with 8:03 remaining until halftime. That 3 started a Lopes 17-4 rally that pulled GCU within two points.

The Lopes’ defense came up with tough stops down the stretch of the first half, including when junior forward Gerard Martin stripped Eli Chuha on a post trap to thrill GCU head coach Dan Majerle. He was even more pumped when junior forward Matt Jackson followed with a jumper that sent the game to a 37-37 halftime tie.

NMSU shot 57.1 percent from the field but committed 12 first-half turnovers that led to 14 of the Lopes’ first-half points.

DAN MAJERLE POSTGAME QUOTES:

(opening statement) “First of all give them a lot of credit. They played the way they were supposed to play. Came on the road in a tough environment and just kicked our butts. Congratulations to New Mexico State, they earned it, they were the better team. I’m at a loss for words. We’ve hung our hat on defense and for the most part, rebounding all year. We didn’t do any of that. At the first half, in the beginning, (Zach) Lofton has the ability to get off and we didn’t guard him the way we were supposed to guard him. Our rebounding was awful. We fought back but we were 4-for-10 from the three-point line and then we were 1-for-14. Just started jacking up three’s, took the easy way out and got soft. When you get out rebounded 50 to 25 on your home court something is wrong. They were a lot tougher than we were, they were better than we were and hopefully that’s a wakeup call for everyone. We can’t score. I don’t know what to do. Not making shots, not making layups, not making three’s. So I told our guys we can’t score and it’s been like that all year. They only reason we are any good, sometimes, is that we play defense and rebound for the most part. As I said, tonight we didn’t do anything and that’s what happens. We got our butt handed to us by a better team on our own floor. We will see how our guys respond. Luckily it’s a quick turnaround. We have a game on Saturday so we will get back to work. We have some time to fix it hopefully but it’s not going to work unless they buy into it and figure it out. There is no way you can get out rebounded by 25 rebounds on your own floor.”

(on if he felt the team was settling a lot offensively in the second half) “We just can’t score. You try every play, every shot, guys are missing lay ups. We ran a play where we got a wide open lay up and missed. Missing three’s, turning the ball over, although we didn’t it over a ton, it just was out of our hands. We shoot, 34 percent and only get seven offensive rebounds. They shoot 46 percent and get 14. We haven’t been able to score all year, that doesn’t shock me. That’s a good defensive team. We have to hold teams to 59 or 60 points, 30 percent and we didn’t do it. We weren’t tough enough. We didn’t guard how we were supposed to guard. We guarded Lofton better the second half and he struggled a bit. I don’t know how many turnovers he had but then he got it going. I tell our guys all the time, if they guard the way we ask them to and they score it’s my fault. If they guard the way they want to and they score, I got nothing to tell you. It’s your fault, we are trying. Todd Lee, everybody on our coaching staff watches hours and hours of film and we game plan. I’m not blaming this all on the players, this is us. I’m in it too. They have to listen and guard the way we ask them to guard. I can’t tell you how many box-out drills we do, they were just tougher. It’s all about the heart. (Jemerrio) Jones is 6’5, 180 pounds and we are lucky he got hurt or he would’ve had 25 rebounds.”

(on Keonta being the only consistent rebounder) “Well Keonta is a tough kid. I have said all along, he is a tough kid. He is one guy that I know will compete. He has got to do a better job of finishing around the basket, but he is a tough kid. He will go after it and he played hard. He rebounded, he had six out of the seven offensive rebounds. So I have no problem with Keonta and his effort. I just need, and I talk about it all the time, I need more performance out of our players. You know Josh, it is time. Casey, it is time. Oscar, had a terrible night, it is time. I am not upset at Alessandro. Alessandro is a freshman and that is a hard place for a freshman to play in that kind of game. We tried, he will get better. Gerard, it is time. All those guys. They have been here for years. They have to start playing. Now Gerard tries, he plays defense, but he has to make shots. Like I said, it is us, just not players. I have a lot of work I have to do, our coaching staff has a lot of work we have to do. We have to figure it out and we will, but our players have to take a long look in the mirror and figure out how you can get beat that bad at home on the boards. I have never seen anything like it. ”

(on if his previous statement was what he said to the team after the game) “That is what I said. I can scheme, put in a new offense, do all this stuff. We cannot score. Fine. We better be able to play defense and rebound. We did not do it. Did not play defense the first half the way we were supposed to. Rebounding, obviously you guys saw that, we did not rebound and that is all we talked about. We said take care of the basketball, which we did for the most part, which was good, and then rebound. I mean a freshman, kicked our butts twice in a row down there. A freshman. So whatever. We just have to keep working. We have some time. So we will have to get after it and get back on the horse Saturday. Hopefully these guys will realize it. We have to get to work.

MEN’S BASKETBALL GAME NOTES

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GAME 18: GCU 84, UTRGV 71January 13, 2018 - 7:00 PM Tip Phoenix, Ariz . (GCU Arena)

UTRGV 71 (10-9) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 03 Terry Winn * 3-7 0-0 2-4 3 6 9 4 8 1 2 0 1 1904 Nick Dixon * 5-12 0-3 18-21 2 3 5 1 28 0 0 1 1 3113 Lew Stallworth * 1-5 0-2 3-3 1 2 3 4 5 3 0 0 0 1923 Dan Kimasa * 1-3 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 1425 Xavier McDaniel Jr . * 2-7 0-1 2-3 0 1 1 3 6 0 1 0 1 2200 Greg Bowie 3-7 2-3 0-0 1 1 2 2 8 0 0 0 0 1210 Moe McDonald 1-4 0-2 0-0 1 1 2 5 2 0 1 0 0 1611 Lesley Varner Jr . 1-3 1-3 1-1 0 0 0 1 4 0 0 1 0 1114 Javon Levi 0-3 0-0 1-2 0 2 2 2 1 4 3 0 2 2320 Johnny Crnogorac 1-2 0-0 0-0 0 2 2 1 2 0 0 0 0 1221 Mike Hoffman 1-4 1-1 2-2 0 0 0 3 5 0 1 0 0 1232 Adonis Rwabigwi 0-0 0-0 0-0 1 1 2 0 0 0 2 0 0 9 TEAM 1 2 3 Totals 19-57 4-15 29-36 10 21 31 28 71 8 10 2 5 200

FG % 1st Half: 9-29 31 .0% 2nd Half: 10-28 35 .7% Game: 19-57 33 .3%3FG % 1st Half: 2-9 22 .2% 2nd Half: 2-6 33 .3% Game: 4-15 26 .7%FT % 1st Half: 9-11 81 .8% 2nd Half: 20-25 80 .0% Game: 29-36 80 .6%

Grand Canyon 84 (12-6) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 04 Oscar Frayer F 2-5 0-2 0-0 1 5 6 1 4 0 2 1 1 2024 Keonta Vernon F 5-11 0-0 3-4 4 11 15 4 13 1 2 2 0 3225 Alessandro Lever F 2-6 0-2 2-2 0 2 2 3 6 2 2 1 1 2102 Joshua Braun G 5-9 3-5 7-8 3 1 4 1 20 3 2 1 2 2911 Casey Benson G 2-5 2-3 4-6 0 0 0 4 10 2 3 0 0 2700 Shaq Carr 1-1 0-0 0-0 1 0 1 3 2 3 2 0 0 1701 Fiifi Aidoo 2-3 0-1 0-1 0 0 0 2 4 1 1 0 1 1410 Damari Milstead 0-2 0-1 0-0 1 0 1 1 0 1 2 0 1 1112 Roberts Blumbergs 6-11 2-6 11-13 3 5 8 4 25 2 2 0 0 1821 Kerwin Smith 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0+42 Gerard Martin 0-2 0-1 0-0 0 3 3 5 0 1 0 0 0 11 TEAM 2 3 5 Totals 25-55 7-21 27-34 15 30 45 28 84 16 18 5 6 200

FG % 1st Half: 14-33 42 .4% 2nd Half: 11-22 50 .0% Game: 25-55 45 .5%3FG % 1st Half: 3-13 23 .1% 2nd Half: 4-8 50 .0% Game: 7-21 33 .3%FT % 1st Half: 8-12 66 .7% 2nd Half: 19-22 86 .4% Game: 27-34 79 .4%

Officials: Brad Fowler, Dan Dorian, James FordTechnical Fouls: UTRGV-None . Grand Canyon-None .GCU Arena, Phoenix, Ariz . Attendance: 7222 In Off 2nd FastScore by Period 1st 2nd Total Points Paint T/O Chance Break BenchUTRGV 29 42 71 UTRGV 16 20 13 2 22Grand Canyon 39 45 84 GCU 30 7 23 8 31

Last FG - UTRGV 2nd-00:50,GCU 2nd-02:43 . Score Tied - 1 timesLargest lead - UTRGV None, GCU by 23 2nd-10:44 Lead Changed - 1 timesUTRGV led for 00:00 . GCU led for 38:18 . Game was tied for 01:42 .

RAPID RECAP:Grand Canyon did not leave much question to how it would respond to a home loss with a corresponding challenge from its head coach.

The Lopes turned around Thursday’s rebounding and scoring issues to beat UT Rio Grande Valley 84-71 Saturday night at GCU Arena.

Lopes freshman power forward Roberts Blumbergs went from a four-minute appearance in Thursday’s loss to New Mexico State to scoring a season-high 25 points and grabbing a season-high tying eight rebounds in Saturday’s victory. The scoring total is a GCU record for a true freshman.

After being outrebounded 50-25 against NMSU, GCU controlled the glass against UTRGV with a 45-31 advantage that helped make the defensive effort stand up. The Vaqueros shot 33.3 percent, becoming the 10th Lopes opponent to shoot less than 40 percent this season.

The Lopes (12-6, 2-1) took command with an 11-4 start with a tone set by senior power forward Keonta Vernon hammering the boards, sophomore forward Oscar Frayer denying conference scoring leader Nick Dixon and a better GCU offensive tempo for scoring.

The Lopes rattled off 11 points in 2:33 to take a 22-12 lead and carried that 10-point lead into halftime when they closed the half with a Blumbergs 3-pointer and a Vernon 3-point play.

Those six unanswered points rolled into a 13-0 run by the time senior guard Joshua Braun made a 3-pointer for a 46-29 lead about two minutes into the second half. With UTRGV (10-9, 2-1) missing eight of its first nine second-half shots, the Lopes stretched the lead to 20 with 13:32 to play. GCU led by 23 points on three occasions before the Vaqueros closed the gap slightly down the stretch.

GCU boasted four double-digit scorers, including Vernon’s effort to tie his career high in rebounds (15) while scoring 13 points. It marks the third time that Vernon has posted consecutive double-doubles in his career. Braun added 20 points with three-for-five 3-point shooting and senior point guard Casey Benson posted 10 points.

DAN MAJERLE POSTGAME QUOTES:

(opening statement) “I thought it was a really good effort. I think you saw the concentration on the boards in the beginning. Defensively we were good the only thing we did wrong was turn the ball over. Overall, good. Everyone came in, played hard. We tried to keep the minutes limited as far as play so everyone did a good job. Roberts, I’ve been kind of waiting for a night like that so good for him, he’s been working hard the last two weeks and it’s been paying off.”

(on what specifically he saw from Roberts Blumbergs) “He got to the line. He’s a really good free throw shooter. He’s physical down there and that’s the one thing he’s had a problem with is finishing around the basket. He did a good job even thought they were switching a lot of one through four and slipping picks. He was able to get to the free throw line and that’s what he does. He shoots good free throws. He made a three, two threes, so that’s good. He’s a talented kid so maybe this will fuel him to work as hard as he has the last couple of weeks.”

(on if he saw Blumbergs adjust more to physical contact) “I think so. He’s got a long way to go but he’s starting to figure it out. Last game, I didn’t play him very long but every time he caught it he didn’t shoot a three and started attacking the basket. He started figuring out that ‘my shot’s not going, maybe I have to get to the line or change things up.’ He’s a really smart kid and has a high basketball IQ. He does everything right the way we want him too offensively. I am really happy he had a night like that but everybody did well. It’s good.”

(on having two or three guys on the boards every time) “I told them, I had the assistant coaches watching. They each had guys and if they didn’t go to the boards when they were supposed to, if they didn’t box out they were coming out. I don’t care if they were in there for one minute or five minutes. I think everyone wants to play so they understood if they weren’t boxing out or crashing they were going to come out. The focus was there and the concentration to go to the boards.”

(on how Keonta Vernon has elevated his game and shown toughness) “He’s always been like that. When he first got here he got in foul trouble a lot so it was hard for him to stay on the floor. He’s done a better job of that, a decent job. He got in a bit of foul trouble tonight but he’s just so physical. A lot of people can’t match his strength and quickness. Some people have quickness, some have strength and he has both. He is kind of an undersized five but he really uses his quickness and strength and he is a great athlete. I just keep telling him ‘you can’t settle for jump shots, you have to take the ball to the basket. Nobody can handle your quickness and strength.’ He is starting to figure it out. He’s a big part of our locker room as far as his voice, the physical way he plays. He’s done a great job.”

(on how impressed he was that the team received his message from Thursday) “I’ll be impressed if it is continued to be received. Everyone feels better after a win, everybody can play well the day after. Whether they revert back the to the way we played New Mexico State or learn a few things and bounce back to keep playing the way they are supposed to. We will find out because we will have that rule that we are going to play these guys and if you’re not doing your job, rebounding or whatever, you’re coming out. That’s the way it will be from now on and we will see. We’ve been able to beat teams – UTRGV is a good team, they are 2-0 but we’ve been able to beat teams we should beat. Our next step is to beat the teams that we haven’t been able to beat.”

(on if Josh Braun has his shot back) “He’s getting there, he’s not back yet but he’s getting there. It’s good that he got 20 points. I think limiting his minutes, he is getting more of the minutes he’s out there. Instead of playing 35, 36 minutes probably helps him a bit. He just has to keep working at it. It is good for him to get 20. He had four rebounds, three offensive. He usually gets five or six rebounds and he hasn’t been rebounding at all so it’s good to see him really crash the boards a little bit. A better step. I think it’s good I limited his minutes a little bit so when he’s out there he’s gotten to play really hard then get rest then play really hard again.”

(on what he thought of Shaq Carr, Damari Milstead and Fiifi Aidoo together) “It’s alright. It all depends. These guys have to show up when we are on the road and tough games when it’s physical. All of these guys. To be honest our guys always look good against teams that we should beat. We need those guys to step up against New Mexico State or Illinois or Louisville. I wanted to get Damari in today, did that, happy. I will try to continue to do that. When it really gets tough, we have to stick with a lineup that is going to get it done and if they’re not we have to find someone else to step up.”

(on what he thought was better about the offense tonight) “They are a big pressing team, trapping team so we just had to get open. Our turnovers, I think we sped up too much, our guys are too fast. We just have to slow down and attack. We knew they were going to trap and I think we did a good job of attacking. We got some good mismatches off of slips so I thought that was pretty good. We got to the free throw line. We didn’t shoot 21 free throws like (Nick) Dixon but he has a good shot.”

MEN’S BASKETBALL GAME NOTES

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GAME 19: GCU 86, CHICAGO STATE 58January 18, 2018 - 7:05 PM Tip Chicago,Ill . (Jones Convocation Center)

Grand Canyon 86 (13-6) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 02 Joshua Braun * 9-14 3-5 2-2 3 3 6 5 23 1 2 0 2 2304 Oscar Frayer * 0-3 0-2 0-2 3 3 6 2 0 1 2 0 0 2511 Casey Benson * 1-6 0-2 0-0 1 2 3 0 2 6 0 0 0 2424 Keonta Vernon * 4-8 0-0 1-2 1 6 7 4 9 4 3 1 0 3125 Alessandro Lever * 11-14 2-3 4-6 2 6 8 4 28 2 2 0 0 2700 Shaq Carr 1-1 0-0 0-0 0 2 2 1 2 4 2 0 0 2001 Fiifi Aidoo 2-7 1-4 0-0 1 0 1 1 5 1 1 0 2 1305 Matt Jackson 1-3 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 1 2 0 0 0 2 710 Damari Milstead 1-2 0-0 4-4 1 1 2 1 6 1 2 0 2 1112 Roberts Blumbergs 2-2 1-1 1-2 2 2 4 1 6 0 1 0 0 1113 Ibrahima Sankare 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 121 Kerwin Smith 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 142 Gerard Martin 1-4 0-3 1-2 0 0 0 0 3 0 1 0 0 6 TEAM 2 1 3 Totals 33-64 7-20 13-20 16 28 44 20 86 20 17 1 8 200

FG % 1st Half: 17-37 45 .9% 2nd Half: 16-27 59 .3% Game: 33-64 51 .6%3FG % 1st Half: 1-10 10 .0% 2nd Half: 6-10 60 .0% Game: 7-20 35 .0%FT % 1st Half: 5-8 62 .5% 2nd Half: 8-12 66 .7% Game: 13-20 65 .0%

Chicago State 58 (2-19) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 00 Glen Burns * 5-8 2-2 4-7 0 3 3 4 16 1 5 0 0 3710 Anthony Harris * 1-6 1-2 0-0 2 5 7 2 3 3 3 0 0 2114 Jr ., Fred Sims * 1-8 0-4 0-0 0 2 2 0 2 2 2 0 1 2521 Cameron Bowles * 0-1 0-1 3-4 1 2 3 1 3 1 0 3 1 1832 Montana Byrd * 0-1 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 802 Jelani Pruitt 2-4 0-0 0-0 2 2 4 5 4 0 4 0 1 703 Deionte Simmons 4-9 0-0 6-7 4 3 7 5 14 0 4 1 0 2105 Alex Dubovitskiy 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 523 Patrick Szpir 1-1 0-0 1-1 0 1 1 0 3 0 1 0 0 930 Travon Bell 2-9 1-6 2-2 1 1 2 0 7 2 2 0 2 2431 Ken Odiase 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 335 Rob Shaw 3-7 0-0 0-0 1 1 2 1 6 3 0 0 3 22 TEAM 0 1 1 Totals 19-55 4-16 16-21 11 21 32 22 58 12 22 4 8 200

FG % 1st Half: 7-20 35 .0% 2nd Half: 12-35 34 .3% Game: 19-55 34 .5%3FG % 1st Half: 1-7 14 .3% 2nd Half: 3-9 33 .3% Game: 4-16 25 .0%FT % 1st Half: 6-7 85 .7% 2nd Half: 10-14 71 .4% Game: 16-21 76 .2%

Officials: Rick Hartzell, Brent Meaux, Dan NowakowskiTechnical Fouls: Grand Canyon-None . Chicago State-None .Jones Convocation Center - Chicago, IL Attendance: 463 In Off 2nd FastScore by Period 1st 2nd Total Points Paint T/O Chance Break BenchGrand Canyon 40 46 86 GCU 46 20 13 6 24Chicago State 21 37 58 CSU 26 17 10 10 34

Last FG - GCU 2nd-02:01,CHS 2nd-00:56 . Score Tied - 0 timesLargest lead - GCU by 30 2nd-15:04, CHS None Lead Changed - 0 timesGCU led for 39:39 . CHS led for 00:00 . Game was tied for 00:21 .

RAPID RECAP: More of the same Grand Canyon defense, more of the return of Joshua Braun’s offense and way more scoring than ever from Alessandro Lever was more than enough against Chicago State.

The struggling Cougars contended for a half with New Mexico State and nearly beat Seattle but GCU (13-6, 3-1) never gave them a sniff of hope in a 86-58 blowout at Jones Convocation Center.

Braun continued his best three-game scoring string since the season’s opening three games by putting up 23 points and Lever added a game-high 28 points, which more than doubled his previous season of 13 at Illinois. It marks the first time that two Lopes have scored 20 in a game since GCU’s last Chicago visit a year ago.

The Lopes’ 11th-ranked scoring defense dropped its opponent scoring average from 62.1 by limiting Chicago State to 34.5 percent shooting from the field. The Cougars also committed 22 turnovers as sophomore guard Oscar Frayer led the effort to hold Chicago State top scorer Fred Sims to two points in 25 minutes. He entered the game averaging 14.5 points per game.

Lever, the 6-foot-10 power forward from Italy, offered too much size for Chicago State to handle. The Lopes established him early in the paint, where GCU scored 32 of its 40 first-half points. Lever made 11 of 14 shots and also grabbed a game-high eight rebounds.

Braun continued his recent shooting streak, getting his offense going early with mid-range jumpers and drives before adding 3-pointers. Braun made three of five 3-pointers, making him eight of 15 on 3s in the past three games.

The Lopes held Chicago State without a field goal for the game’s first three minutes and took complete command at the end of the first half, when they scored on seven consecutive possessions for a 40-21 halftime lead. GCU stretched the lead to as much as 30 in the second half on a 51.6 percent shooting night. Senior point guard Casey Benson delivered six assists without a turnover while senior power forward Keonta Vernon added nine points and seven rebounds.

DAN MAJERLE POSTGAME QUOTES:

(on the win) “The first half was good. Josh played well and Ali obviously. We worked all week on getting the ball inside and did a good job of that. I’m going to keep throwing the ball inside to Rob, Keonta and Ali and keep working on their post moves. I think we shoot better when it goes inside-out. Ali’s talented down there and it’s my job to get him working down there to get him better and get us better. We’re going to try to do that most games.”

(on maintaining a big lead) “We rebounded the ball exceptionally in the first half. I thought the second unit wasn’t very good, which is disappointing. In the second half, we did what most bad teams do. We just played. We didn’t put our foot on their throat. Rebounding, we weren’t very good. Defense, we weren’t very good. We just didn’t have that killer instinct.”

(on GCU’s veterans) “I don’t like Gerard, Matt and Casey the way they play. Casey is a 22-year-old senior who played at Oregon. Gerard is a fourth-year junior. Matt is a fourth-year junior. It’s time they start playing. We need those guys if we’re going to be really good. Right now, they’re not playing well. Those guys have to play well if we’re going to be really good, win the WAC and go to the tournament, those guys have to play well.”

(on Oscar Frayer holding Fred Sims Jr. to two points) “Oscar did a great job on defense but it’s not too much for a coach to ask for great defense and to crash the boards.”

(on a 30-point lead slipping to 18) “We could’ve held them down. We’re just too nice. We should have just put a foot on their throat and just ended it. We let them start trading baskets and stopped guarding.”

(on Joshua Braun regaining his shot) “He’s being more aggressive. He’s just not living by the 3. We’re trying to get him to get to the basket more and he’s rounded into shape so hopefully he can keep it rolling because we’re going to need him to play well.”

MEN’S BASKETBALL GAME NOTES

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GAME 20: GCU 86, UMKC 69January 20, 2018 - 7:05 PM Tip Kansas City, Mo . (Municipal Auditorium)

Grand Canyon 86 (14-6) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 04 Oscar Frayer F 6-9 2-4 0-3 3 6 9 3 14 0 2 1 1 2924 Keonta Vernon F 0-3 0-0 1-2 1 3 4 4 1 0 4 1 1 1725 Alessandro Lever F 8-12 1-1 7-10 3 7 10 1 24 1 2 0 0 2702 Joshua Braun G 1-5 1-3 6-8 3 5 8 3 9 1 2 0 1 2411 Casey Benson G 3-7 1-3 5-6 1 3 4 2 12 9 1 0 0 3101 Fiifi Aidoo 3-3 1-1 0-0 2 1 3 1 7 0 1 0 0 2005 Matt Jackson 0-2 0-1 0-0 0 1 1 0 0 2 1 0 0 1110 Damari Milstead 1-2 0-1 4-4 0 0 0 0 6 0 0 0 1 912 Roberts Blumbergs 4-7 0-1 1-3 2 0 2 3 9 1 0 0 0 1442 Gerard Martin 2-5 0-3 0-0 1 4 5 0 4 1 1 0 1 18 TEAM 1 0 1 3 Totals 28-55 6-18 24-36 17 30 47 17 86 15 17 2 5 200

FG % 1st Half: 18-33 54 .5% 2nd Half: 10-22 45 .5% Game: 28-55 50 .9%3FG % 1st Half: 5-11 45 .5% 2nd Half: 1-7 14 .3% Game: 6-18 33 .3%FT % 1st Half: 6-10 60 .0% 2nd Half: 18-26 69 .2% Game: 24-36 66 .7%

UMKC 69 (6-15) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 11 Tony Jackson F 2-5 1-4 3-4 0 2 2 3 8 2 1 0 0 1930 Aleer Leek F 1-4 0-1 2-2 1 1 2 4 4 0 2 0 0 2400 Xavier Bishop G 9-16 0-4 5-6 0 3 3 4 23 0 2 0 1 3003 Brandon McKissic G 1-4 1-1 0-0 0 3 3 4 3 2 1 0 0 3010 Broderick Robinson G 2-9 1-4 2-2 1 4 5 1 7 2 3 0 3 3901 Marco Smith 3-5 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 4 6 0 2 0 0 2102 Isaiah Ross 6-11 4-8 2-2 1 2 3 4 18 0 2 0 0 2415 Robert Knar 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 125 Steve Dulley 0-2 0-1 0-2 0 1 1 5 0 0 1 0 1 12 TEAM 2 1 3 Totals 24-56 7-24 14-18 5 17 22 29 69 6 14 0 5 200

FG % 1st Half: 13-29 44 .8% 2nd Half: 11-27 40 .7% Game: 24-56 42 .9%3FG % 1st Half: 4-15 26 .7% 2nd Half: 3-9 33 .3% Game: 7-24 29 .2%FT % 1st Half: 2-3 66 .7% 2nd Half: 12-15 80 .0% Game: 14-18 77 .8%

Officials: Art Brown, Matthew Rukasin, Riel BanariaTechnical Fouls: Grand Canyon-None . UMKC-None .Kansas City, Mo . - Attendance: 1,440 In Off 2nd FastScore by Period 1st 2nd Total Points Paint T/O Chance Break BenchGrand Canyon 47 39 86 GCU 40 20 15 6 26UMKC 32 37 69 UMKC 24 19 7 2 24

Last FG - GCU 2nd-00:08,UMKC 2nd-05:22 . Score Tied - 1 timesLargest lead - GCU by 18 1st-01:05, UMKC by 1 1st-16:14 Lead Changed - 2 timesGCU led for 38:00 . UMKC led for 00:19 . Game was tied for 01:41 .

RAPID RECAP:Grand Canyon’s best offensive string of the season comes directly in line with a three-game winning streak.

The Lopes downed UMKC 86-69, posting their third consecutive 80-point game and shooting better than 50 percent from the field in consecutive games for the first time this season.

GCU (14-6, 4-1) moved into a tie for second place in the Western Athletic Conference by taking their conference road record to 3-0. Lopes freshman center Alessandro Lever followed his 28-point, eight-rebound performance Thursday at Chicago State by scoring 24 points Saturday and adding a season-high 10 rebounds.

Sophomore forward Oscar Frayer added 14 points and nine rebounds while senior point guard Casey Benson set a season high for assists with nine while only making one turnover and adding 12 points. The Lopes were plus-25 in the 31 minutes that Benson played.

UMKC (6-15, 1-4) opened the second half with 10 unanswered points to quickly get back in the game. The Kangaroos trimmed the lead to four twice in the second half but the Lopes’ work in the paint drew a steady dose of free throws to take the lead back to double digits. The Lopes scored 17 of their final 28 points at the free throw line.

GCU controlled the interior with 40 points in the paint and 15 second-chance points.

The Lopes looked like they might pull away and hide from UMKC in the first half, when a 21-4 run gave them a 24-8 lead midway through the half. In those 10 minutes, GCU was doing damage in the paint with four early points from Lever and freshman power forward Roberts Blumbergs coming off the bench for six of those points.

The Kangaroos found their offense for the duration of the half but the Lopes’ dominance on the boards was even better than its work on the scoreboard. With a 26-8 rebounding edge, the Lopes led 47-32 at halftime with Lever posting 14 points and eight rebounds.

Lever scored 10 of GCU’s 15 points during a late first-half stretch in which he showed his repertoire by scoring on a follow, a 3-pointer and a pick-and-roll dive.

DAN MAJERLE POSTGAME QUOTES:

(on GCU using their size for a rebounding advantage) “This team gets outrebounded by 16.5 or 17 rebounds a game, so we knew we had to crash. We knew there would be mismatches, not only on the offensive end, but defensively, our big guys would have to guard guards, so we had to take advantage of the size we have down here because we were going to have to guard the little guys and we did a good job. We did a really good job of finding Ali in the post and working the ball around. He was fantastic scoring. Oscar did a really good job. I’m happy.”

(on if the team’s confidence going to Alessandro Lever in the post has increased) “The team doesn’t have a choice. I told them we’re getting the ball in the post. It’s not just Ali. It will be Keonta, but Keonta got in foul trouble. It will be Rob. I thought Rob played well in the first half. We’re going to post those guys up. It’s not just Ali. We’re going to go to the post. It doesn’t matter if they have confidence or not. They’re going to go to those guys.”

(on knowing UMKC would put up a lot of 3-pointers) “Yeah, I knew it. It was going to be hard to keep them to four or five like we usually do because we had bigger guys. They’re going to kind of back off which we don’t want them to do, but they’re going to start making shots. Overall, we did a good job, but I knew that would be tough.”

(on if this was one of Casey Benson’s better nights in terms of setting people up) “Yeah, he was better. Now he’s got to start making shots. I thought he ran the team well and got them in position, but he’s got to start making shots. But yeah, he played well.”

(on if the offense is turning a corner with three straight 80-point games) “I think it’s better because we’re inside-out, we’re getting offensive rebounds, and we’re going to the line. We went 36 times—if we could make free throws, it would even be better. The first five minutes of the game, we missed four layups. We’ve got to keep working, but inside-out, going inside is a high percentage shot for us.”

(on if the team can be a big paint scoring team) “We better be, because we can’t shoot. That’s why the last couple of weeks we’ve worked on getting the ball into the post, working inside-out. That’s what we’re trying to do.”

(on if the team is trying to become less reliant on 3-pointers) “We can take threes, but it has to come as it goes inside-out. Before we were just swinging the ball and trying to shoot threes. It was a good win. We didn’t play with Keonta and we basically didn’t play with Josh. Josh got into foul trouble and had a tough night. Keonta was awful—got into foul trouble and was awful. It was good that other guys stepped up, so that’s good if we can win without those guys.”

(on being 3-0 on the road in conference) “You’ve got to win on the road in the conference if you want to win. You have to take care of home court, which we didn’t do against New Mexico State. To win this league, you have to win on the road. We’re getting there.”

MEN’S BASKETBALL GAME NOTES

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GAME 21: GCU 96, WILLIAM JESSUP 80January 23, 2018 - 7:05 PM Tip Phoenix, Ariz . (GCU Arena)

William Jessup 80 (15-6) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 21 Brennan Rakoz F 0-0 0-0 0-0 1 1 2 2 0 2 2 0 0 1503 Luis Medearis G 8-14 4-5 0-0 1 0 1 2 20 1 0 0 1 2004 Brandon Lindsey G 2-7 0-2 2-2 0 0 0 3 6 2 1 0 0 1912 Tate DeLaVeaga G 4-12 0-4 1-2 2 1 3 3 9 4 0 0 2 2522 Keith Phillips W 6-7 1-1 0-0 1 2 3 3 13 2 1 0 2 2701 Luke Walker 2-4 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 1 4 5 0 0 2 1302 Jayvon Stone 0-3 0-3 0-0 0 1 1 3 0 2 2 0 1 1314 Austin Dill 1-2 0-1 6-6 1 2 3 1 8 0 0 0 0 1420 Antonio Lewis 3-11 1-3 0-0 0 2 2 0 7 1 2 0 0 1923 Oliver Amajoyi 3-5 0-0 4-4 3 4 7 3 10 0 1 1 0 1833 Wilson LaShells 1-2 1-1 0-0 0 1 1 2 3 0 0 0 0 17 TEAM 2 2 4 Totals 30-67 7-20 13-14 11 17 28 23 80 19 9 1 8 200

FG % 1st Half: 18-37 48 .6% 2nd Half: 12-30 40 .0% Game: 30-67 44 .8%3FG % 1st Half: 5-12 41 .7% 2nd Half: 2-8 25 .0% Game: 7-20 35 .0%FT % 1st Half: 2-2 100 .0% 2nd Half: 11-12 91 .7% Game: 13-14 92 .9%

Grand Canyon 96 (15-6) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 04 Oscar Frayer F 4-6 2-3 0-1 1 2 3 0 10 2 2 4 1 2224 Keonta Vernon F 1-2 0-0 0-0 0 8 8 0 2 3 0 2 0 2225 Alessandro Lever F 10-16 0-2 5-7 1 3 4 3 25 3 1 0 1 2802 Joshua Braun G 7-11 4-8 4-6 0 0 0 4 22 3 1 0 1 3011 Casey Benson G 4-6 1-2 3-6 0 2 2 1 12 10 0 0 0 3001 Fiifi Aidoo 1-3 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 3 2 3 2 0 1 1805 Matt Jackson 0-1 0-1 0-0 0 2 2 0 0 1 2 0 1 810 Damari Milstead 1-1 0-0 6-6 0 0 0 1 8 1 1 0 0 1012 Roberts Blumbergs 4-4 1-1 0-0 2 6 8 1 9 1 1 1 0 1842 Gerard Martin 2-2 2-2 0-0 0 2 2 2 6 2 2 0 0 14 TEAM 2 0 2 Totals 34-52 10-19 18-26 6 26 32 15 96 29 12 7 5 200

FG % 1st Half: 17-27 63 .0% 2nd Half: 17-25 68 .0% Game: 34-52 65 .4%3FG % 1st Half: 7-12 58 .3% 2nd Half: 3-7 42 .9% Game: 10-19 52 .6%FT % 1st Half: 5-11 45 .5% 2nd Half: 13-15 86 .7% Game: 18-26 69 .2%

Officials: Verne Harris, Shawn Lehigh, Ken DittyTechnical Fouls: William Jessup-None . Grand Canyon-None .GCU Arena, Phoenix, AZ Attendance: 6952 In Off 2nd FastScore by Period 1st 2nd Total Points Paint T/O Chance Break BenchWilliam Jessup 43 37 80 WJU 32 13 10 12 32Grand Canyon 46 50 96 GCU 34 14 6 7 25

Last FG - WJU 2nd-01:48,GCU 2nd-00:30 . Score Tied - 4 timesLargest lead - WJU None, GCU by 19 2nd-02:06 Lead Changed - 4 timesWJU led for 00:00 . GCU led for 38:42 . Game was tied for 01:18 .

RAPID RECAP:Grand Canyon did not want to go six days without a game amid conference play or 18 days without a home game.

The Lopes also did not have to go long without a win, extending their winning streak to four games Tuesday night at GCU Arena with a big offensive night that still gave coaches plenty of practice fodder. GCU posted the season’s second-best scoring total to down William Jessup 96-80 in conference break tune-up.

GCU set the program’s Division I-era records for field goal percentage (65.4) and assists (29) with senior point guard Casey Benson dishing out a career-high 10 assists without a turnover in 30 minutes.

The Lopes scored at least 80 points for the fourth consecutive game and shot better than 50 percent for the third consecutive game to continue the momentum of an improving offense. Freshman center Alessandro Lever followed conference road scoring performances of 28 and 24 points by scoring 25 points on 10-of-16 shooting Thursday night.

GCU (14-6) had allowed William Jessup (15-6) to rally in the first half but held the Warriors to 40 percent shooting in the second half to stretch a three-point halftime lead.

The Lopes posted 31 points in the game’s first 10 minutes for a 15-point lead before running into any issues. The offense was rolling with one of team’s best shooting performances, hitting seven of their first 11 3-pointers.

But after junior Gerard Martin’s second 3-pointer put GCU ahead 34-22, William Jewell only allowed the Lopes to take one more 3-pointer over the half’s final 8 ½ minutes.

GCU’s offense had unprecedented ball movement. Their first 15 made field goals came on assists, including Benson delivering five first-half assists. But despite 63 percent shooting and 16 assists on 17 made field goals, the first half of Lopes offense was still flawed enough to keep William Jewell in the game.

The Warriors rallied partly off eight Lopes first-half turnovers. But William Jewell also ended the first half on a tear, getting into the paint to tie the game at 43-43 with 49 seconds remaining in the half. Three Lopes free throws closed out the half for a 46-43 GCU lead.

DAN MAJERLE POSTGAME QUOTES:

(opening statement) “Well the good thing is we won, but that is about it. Offensively we were pretty good. We had to be really good to win this game. Give a lot of credit to those guys, they came out and just dismantled us. I guess we took the night off from playing defense. Very disappointing. You know we talked about it before the game, how we were ranked nationally defensively and how good we have been playing defense. This is a chance to take a step forward, keep the momentum, but we took four steps backward tonight. I mean, shoot 65%, 10/19 from three and it’s a struggle the whole game. They played really well. Can’t guard them. Too quick for us. Our seniors have to step up. Casey was awful in the first half, Josh had 22 points, had zero rebounds, didn’t guard his podium. Keonta should not have of even dressed. So that is very disappointing that our three seniors come out with a game like that. Casey picked it up the second half, but not good enough. Alessandro for a freshman continues to score, he has got to get better, but he is a freshman. So very disappointed. But like I said they played extremely well, played hard, took it to us.”

(on what Majerle said to the team at halftime) “I just don’t know who you guys are. You have no pride, talked about it. I said we aren’t guarding. Shooting the ball great but not guarding. You’re not rebounding. We talked about our rebounding, we got out rebounded 32-28, they had eleven offensive rebounds, we had six. So they were not doing anything. Like I said it is disappointing. I understand sometimes a game like this, it happens, but we had talked about it three or four days now, about how we have to keep the momentum. We have to take a step forward and really get better tonight. I have hard time sometimes, getting through I guess. I don’t know. We run through everything at practice. We get in a game and they just forget about it, defensively.”

(on the current senior leadership and if he is expecting anyone to take charge) “Is DeWayne coming back? Like I told Keonta--Keonta is our leader, our emotional leader, our vocal leader and if he shows up and plays a game like that. I mean DeWayne wouldn’t of played like that. DeWayne, it doesn’t matter if it is William Jessup or Louisville, he is going to play the same way. Keonta has a history of doing this and that is not what we need. Like I said Casey was terrible in the first half. Josh made shots, but he does not know where his guy is half the time. I mean he cannot guard. So those are the three guys. I’ll just got to Alessandro every time. I can work with him, he has only been here for five, six months. Josh has been here for five years now. I told those three guys they got to play. Oscar has got to play better. Defensively he was terrible. Fiifi, same mistakes with his ball handling and his passing. I have seen it for a year and a half now, it has to change. And we work on it. Like I said, we won, 96-80, good, but just a lack-luster performance defensively and like I said, you have to give them a lot of credit. They really took it to us, they played really well.”

(On what he has to see in practice this week to know they are ready for Saturday) “I don’t have to see anything this week. We will do everything right in practice. We will go through and run the offense flawlessly. We go over 15 straight minutes flawlessly. Defensively we will get in a shell we will do everything perfectly. Everyone will be in the right spot, we will be good. When the ball goes up it is all out the window. We will work on it again for the next three to four days but I don’t know what’s going to happen Saturday. We play like this, Utah Valley is a really good scoring team, they will score 130. Like I said, we have been really good defensively all year so I don’t know. It shouldn’t happen again. This is a NAIA team that came in here with a four game losing streak. ”

(on what it is that makes the guys revert back to their old style of play) “I don’t know. I don’t think they have the killer instinct. I don’t think they take pride. I told them about our defensive stat, that’s pride you have to wear that. They can’t take a night off. Good teams don’t take nights off like these guys did. You have struggles on offense, we’ve always had struggles on offense but you can play defense hard every night. I think it starts with our senior leaders and right now they are not very good.”

(on transition defense) “Transition is awful. Awful. Ali is a freshman, he doesn’t know where the ball is at. Guys lose their man. Josh never knows where his man is, ever. Guys don’t get back, it’s just not important enough to them. We talk about it, it’s just not important to them. They think they can just jog back and everything is going to be OK.”

(on if there is something positive to take from 29 assists on 34 baskets) “We shot the ball extremely well and we always pass well. We average like 16.5 assists or something so we always move the ball pretty well. I don’t take anything good away from this game. We are going to hang our hat on defense and our rebounding. Those are the three things we talk about, offensive rebounding, defensive rebounding and defense. And turnovers. Second half we were OK in turnovers but we had nine in the first half so that wasn’t very good either. Three out of four things weren’t good.”

MEN’S BASKETBALL GAME NOTES

‹ 50 ›

GAME 22: UTAH VALLEY 68, GCU 56January 27, 2018 - 3:00 PM Tip Orem, Utah (UCCU Center)

Grand Canyon 56 (15-7) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 04 Oscar Frayer F 4-13 1-2 2-2 6 3 9 4 11 1 2 0 1 3224 Keonta Vernon F 2-8 0-0 0-0 3 4 7 4 4 2 0 0 0 1725 Alessandro Lever F 9-17 1-4 3-6 2 6 8 3 22 2 4 1 0 3402 Joshua Braun G 0-1 0-0 1-2 1 2 3 5 1 2 2 0 1 2411 Casey Benson G 3-7 1-2 2-3 1 6 7 1 9 5 3 0 0 3801 Fiifi Aidoo 3-7 1-4 0-0 1 0 1 1 7 1 1 1 0 2305 Matt Jackson 0-1 0-1 0-0 0 2 2 3 0 1 1 0 0 1110 Damari Milstead 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 212 Roberts Blumbergs 1-3 0-1 0-0 1 1 2 1 2 2 0 0 0 742 Gerard Martin 0-2 0-1 0-0 2 1 3 3 0 0 1 0 0 12 TEAM 1 1 2 Totals 22-59 4-15 8-13 18 26 44 25 56 16 16 2 2 200

FG % 1st Half: 9-27 33 .3% 2nd Half: 13-32 40 .6% Game: 22-59 37 .3%3FG % 1st Half: 1-6 16 .7% 2nd Half: 3-9 33 .3% Game: 4-15 26 .7%FT % 1st Half: 5-8 62 .5% 2nd Half: 3-5 60 .0% Game: 8-13 61 .5%

Utah Valley 68 (16-6) Total 3-Ptr Rebounds ## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min 00 Akolda Manyang C 4-6 0-0 6-6 2 4 6 4 14 0 2 2 0 1402 Jake Toolson G 2-4 0-0 3-4 1 2 3 2 7 4 3 0 0 2403 Brandon Randolph G 1-6 0-1 2-2 0 3 3 2 4 3 0 0 2 3411 Conner Toolson G 3-8 2-4 4-6 0 5 5 3 12 0 2 0 3 3125 Kenneth Ogbe G 4-10 1-2 1-2 0 2 2 1 10 2 0 0 0 3410 Ben Nakwaasah 1-2 1-1 0-0 0 3 3 1 3 4 0 0 2 1314 Daniel Nyman 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 115 Jerrelle DeBerry 2-5 2-3 2-4 0 1 1 0 8 0 0 0 0 2021 Zach Nelson 0-1 0-0 1-2 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 922 Isaac Neilson 3-5 0-0 3-4 2 1 3 3 9 1 0 1 0 20 TEAM 1 1 2 Totals 20-47 6-11 22-30 6 22 28 16 68 14 7 3 7 200

FG % 1st Half: 9-25 36 .0% 2nd Half: 11-22 50 .0% Game: 20-47 42 .6%3FG % 1st Half: 5-10 50 .0% 2nd Half: 1-1 100 .0% Game: 6-11 54 .5%FT % 1st Half: 7-12 58 .3% 2nd Half: 15-18 83 .3% Game: 22-30 73 .3%

Officials: Tom Nally, Horace Shields, Jon StiglianoTechnical Fouls: Grand Canyon-None . Utah Valley-None .Orem, Utah (UCCU Center) Attendance: 4881 In Off 2nd FastScore by Period 1st 2nd Total Points Paint T/O Chance Break BenchGrand Canyon 24 32 56 GCU 28 4 11 2 9Utah Valley 30 38 68 UVU 28 21 7 0 21

Last FG - GCU 2nd-00:23,UVU 2nd-00:34 . Score Tied - 2 timesLargest lead - GCU by 12 1st-11:03, UVU by 15 2nd-02:48 Lead Changed - 1 timesGCU led for 12:26 . UVU led for 25:02 . Game was tied for 02:05 .

RAPID RECAP:Grand Canyon came to Utah Valley with a chance to take over second place in the WAC and left with a loss despite shutting out the Wolverines for the game’s first five minutes.

The Lopes’ offensive struggles returned in a 68-56 loss to Utah Valley on Saturday at the UCCU Center, where the Wolverines (16-6, 5-1) broke a tie for second place in the WAC by giving the Lopes (15-7, 5-2) their first conference road loss.

GCU shot 37.3 percent from the field and committed 16 turnovers to make a 14-2 start to the game moot. Lopes freshman center Alessandro Lever led the team again for the fourth consecutive game with 22 points and also grabbed a team-high eight rebounds. He made nine of 17 shots but his teammates shot 30.9 percent.

After an intensely defensive first half, neither team could stop the other for the early parts of the second half. GCU rediscovered its offensive rhythm, especially with going into the post to Lever. The Lopes tied the game at 40-40 with 13:12 to go on a fast break 3-pointer from senior point guard Casey Benson but UVU kept penetrating to score on the next five trips and open up the lead.

The Lopes hit another offensive funk, protecting the ball well but missing chances at the rim and open 3-pointers. As GCU fell into a 10-point hole, the foul situation made matters more difficult with Lopes fouls putting UVU into the bonus situation for the game’s final 10:53. GCU missed 10 consecutive shots to fall behind 57-46 and the lead stayed in double digits for the remainder.

The game opened almost perfectly for the Lopes, who shut out the WAC’s top offense for the first 5:24 of the game. The Lopes were slow to capitalize offensively but maintained the defense long enough that a driving, 3-point play by freshman Lever put GCU ahead 14-2 after nine minutes.

The Lopes removed Wolverines 7-foot center Akolda Manyang from the game in less than two minutes on fouls and dominated the boards during the 14-2 opening. The Lopes grabbed 16 of the game’s first 21 rebounds and protected the rim well even when UVU got into the paint.

GCU was thriving by getting into the paint but a stretch of four consecutive turnovers flipped momentum. The Lopes went nearly six minutes without a field goal and their normally air-tight 3-point defense was punctured. The Lopes weathered the turnaround, getting their first two 3-pointers from sophomore forward Oscar Frayer and sophomore guard Fiifi Aidoo to trail 30-24 at halftime. GCU shot 33 percent from the field in the first half with 11 turnovers while UVU made only three turnovers.

DAN MAJERLE POSTGAME QUOTES:

(on his thoughts on GCU’s effort and their play) “We came out fine and then the bench came in and I guess just weren’t ready to play. They kind of got back in it, but we knew they were going to make another run. The story of the game is the turnovers. We had 16 turnovers for 21 points. You can’t turn the ball over against a team that really doesn’t turn teams over. You shouldn’t be making those kinds of turnovers. Offensively, it’s going to be hard for us to beat anybody if we score 56 points. We just have to do a better job and keep working at it. We’re going to get better and we’re going to take care of the ball. We’re going to do a little bit better job on the ball screens. We weren’t active enough with our hands. We knew that was going to be a big part of their offense. They were just able to pick us apart because we weren’t active enough with our hands defensively and put them under a little duress. We know what we have to work on and we have to keep getting better at it. We have to find a way to make layups. We missed a lot of those under duress and even wide open ones. Just something we have to work on.”

(on Alessandro Lever scoring 22 points, his fourth-consecutive 20-point game) “He’s going to be really good if he keeps working at it. He keeps working at it. He can’t get frustrated. He shows his emotion sometimes, which I’m talking to him about. It just shows how hard he works every day and he’s starting to get some confidence. He’s a load down there. It was good. I’m proud of the way Ali is playing. He’s got to continue to do that. He has to work on his defense and his hands and things like that, but he’s a freshman, so that’s positive.”

(on outrebounding Utah Valley 44-28 including 18 offensive rebounds) “Everything was fine. We didn’t shoot the ball well. We shot 37 percent again. But the turnovers—they had 21 points off of our turnovers. We’ve just got to do a better job, especially with live ball turnovers. You can’t afford to have live ball turnovers and then they go down and score. Then their pick and rolls just killed us because we just weren’t active enough with our hands. They just picked us apart. They’re a good offensive team. We knew that coming in. We held them to 42 percent shooting, which isn’t terrible. They shoot 48 or 49 percent. When you’re scoring 56 points, you’re not going to get it done.”

(on having five players with two or more fouls in the first half) “Yeah, it affected it, but that’s what’s going to happen on the road. I thought some of the calls were very suspect, but that’s what you’re going to get in the WAC. You’ve just got to play through it. Sometimes it’s going to go both ways, but guys have to play through it. Josh had a hard time getting his hands on guys or whatever. Once again, our defense wasn’t good enough on the pick and rolls and we just missed too many easy shots to stay in the game. We had the great jump off and the lead, but the turnovers just really killed us, especially the first half. That got them back in the game. We can’t turn the ball over like that.”

(on Oscar Frayer being active) “He was 4-for-13 and missed way too many layups—way too many layups. I keep telling him he has to slow down. He has to use his athletic ability, his jumping ability, to go in there and explode up towards the rim instead of exploding away from the rim and just kind of throwing the ball up there. Oscar was fine. Offensively, he had six offensive rebounds, which was great, but he has to do a better job of finishing around the rim.”

‹ 51 ›

BROADCAST NOTES

2017-18 / CAREER AVERAGESGP PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% FT% 3PT%

17-18 18/2 4.4 1.7 2.7 0.3 0.2 50.9% 91.7% 37.5%Career 48/8 4.6 2.0 2.5 0.6 0.1 48.4 85.9 43.8

MISCELLANEOUSPTS REB AST DOUBLE- LED GRAND CANYON IN...

10+ 20+ 10+ 5+ DOUBLE PTS REB AST STL BLK17-18 3 4 7 2 2Total 9 8 1 1 14 8 2

CAREER HIGHS

PTS 18, 2x, last vs. Arkansas-PB, 12/22/16

REB 7, vs. San Diego Christian, 1/17/17

AST 9, vs. Arkansas-PB, 12/22/16

STL 3, 4x, last vs. Chicago State, 2/23/17

BLK 2, 2x, last vs. Morgan State, 12/27/17

MIN 40, vs. Arkansas-PB, 12/22/16

NOTES » Earned first start of season in win over Morgan State on Dec. 27, going

for 9 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists. » Tied season-highs for points (11) & assists (5) at Boise State on Dec. 13. » In first appearance of GCU career, scored 18 points and dished out 8

assists on the road at No. 1 Duke last season. » Transferred from College of Southern Idaho where he was a teammate

of fellow Lope, Keonta Vernon, in 2014-15. » Shot 47.1% from the field and 83.0% from the line in his first season. » Favorite athletes to watch: Kyrie Irving, John Wall.

0SHAQ CARRGuard Sr . • 6-2 • 170 North Las Vegas, Nev .

2017-18 / CAREER AVERAGESGP PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% FT% 3PT%

17-18 22/4 5.0 1.6 1.7 0.7 0.3 43.2% 70.6% 29.1%Career 50/6 4.8 1.9 1.1 0.7 0.2 37.9 68.9 29.0

MISCELLANEOUSPTS REB AST DOUBLE- LED GRAND CANYON IN...

10+ 20+ 10+ 5+ DOUBLE PTS REB AST STL BLK17-18 3 2 2 4 2Total 15 7 8 4 5 10 3

CAREER HIGHS

PTS 16, vs. Bethesda, 1/31/17

REB 5, 3x, last vs. CSU Bakersfield, 2/4/17

AST 3, 5x, last vs. William Jesssup, 1/23/18

STL 3, 2x, last at Utah Valley, 2/18/17

BLK 2, vs. Coppin State, 11/25/16

MIN 36, vs. Alcorn State, 12/20/16

NOTES » Scored 10 points in 2:04 span against Longwood on Dec. 21. » Tied a career high with 3 3-point makes as a part of an 11-point effort in

the season opener vs. Florida A&M. Tied for team lead in points. » Key contributor in GCU’s win over San Diego State on Dec. 7, 2016,

scoring 15 points on 6-for-8 shooting and 3-for-5 from range. » Helped lead his Finnish national team to a 7th-place finish at World

University Games. Over 8 games, shot 50.9% and averaged 9.0 ppg. » Attended the Helsinki Basketball Academy where he was coached by

former Atlanta Hawk and Utah Ute, Hanno Mottola.

1FIIFIAIDOOGuard So . • 6-2 • 200 Helsinki, Finland

2017-18 / CAREER AVERAGESGP PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% FT% 3PT%

17-18 22/22 13.8 4.0 1.9 1.2 0.5 41.5% 71.7% 39.4%Career 110/103 14.8 4.7 1.2 0.8 0.6 44.1 81.3 39.6

MISCELLANEOUSPTS REB AST DOUBLE- LED GRAND CANYON IN...

10+ 20+ 10+ 5+ DOUBLE PTS REB AST STL BLK17-18 15 7 8 4 5 10 3Total 79 31 5 2 5 42 14 5 19 25

CAREER HIGHS

PTS 34, vs. Utah Valley, 1/16/16

REB 11, vs. New Mexico State, 1/9/16

AST 6, at Chicago State, 1/28/17

STL 4, vs. New Mexico, 12/23/14

BLK 3, 5x, last at CSU Bakersfield, 2/27/16

MIN 43, 2x, last at Boise State, 12/13/17

NOTES » Has eclipsed the 20-point mark in 3 of last 5 games. » Ranks 12th in WAC history with 245 career 3-point makes. Needs three

more to pull into 11th place (Dante Swanson, Tulsa, 1999-03). » Had a first-half career-high when he scored 22 points vs. Little Rock on

Nov. 18 on 8-for-8 shooting (5-for-5 from 3-point range). » Hit four 3-pointers in Nov. 13 game vs. Robert Morris to become GCU’s

all-time leader in career 3-pointers (199), passing Richard Davis (197). » Named Preseason WAC Player of the Year by both coaches and media. » Two-time CoSIDA First Team Academic All-American winner.

2JOSH BRAUNGuard R-Sr . • 6-4 • 205 Anthem, Ariz .

2017-18 / CAREER AVERAGESGP/GS PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% FT% 3PT%

17-18 2/0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0Career 2/0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

MISCELLANEOUSPTS REB AST DOUBLE- LED GRAND CANYON IN...

10+ 20+ 10+ 5+ DOUBLE PTS REB AST STL BLK17-18Total

CAREER HIGHS

PTS --

REB --

AST --

STL --

BLK --

MIN 2, vs. Grambling State, 12/9/17

NOTES » Made GCU debut in win over Grambling State on Dec. 9 to a large

ovation from the Havocs. » Won an Australian High School National Championship. » At The Scots College, led his team in scoring, 3-point percentage, and

rebounding. » Off the court, enjoys playing rugby, surfing and skiing. » Attended the same school in Australia as fellow Lope, Gerard Martin.

3PARKER DALEGuard Fr . • 6-4 • 205Sydney, Australia

2017-18 / CAREER AVERAGESGP PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% FT% 3PT%

17-18 21/16 8.8 4.9 1.3 1.4 0.7 45.9% 48.7% 31.3%Career 52/41 8.3 4.6 0.9 1.1 0.7 42.2 59.6 27.7

MISCELLANEOUSPTS REB AST DOUBLE- LED GRAND CANYON IN...

10+ 20+ 10+ 5+ DOUBLE PTS REB AST STL BLK17-18 11 3 4 2 12 3Total 22 2 1 4 8 2 20 16

CAREER HIGHS

PTS 19, 3x, last vs. Norfolk State, 11/20/17

REB 12, 2x, last at Seattle U, 2/16/17

AST 3, 5x, last vs. Little Rock, 11/18/17

STL 4, 2x, last vs. UIC, 12/10/16

BLK 4, 2x, last vs. William Jessup, 1/23/18

MIN 42, at Chicago State, 1/28/17

NOTES » Tied a career-high with four blocks vs. William Jessup on Jan. 23. » Had putback slam at Illinois that went viral; featured on SportsCenter,

BleacherReport and SB Nation and amassing 2.3M+ views. » Moved back to starting lineup after 4-game absence in Longwood win

on Dec. 21 and led GCU in scoring (14) in following game at Louisville. » Started season 7-for-13 from 3-point range (.538). » Led GCU in blocks (24) in his freshman campaign. » High school teammate of Damari Milstead at Moreau Catholic.

4OSCARFRAYERForward So . • 6-6 •190 Oakland, Calif .

2017-18 / CAREER AVERAGESGP PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% FT% 3PT%

17-18 20/0 2.4 2.3 0.8 0.7 0.1 33.9% 40.0% 27.6%Career 75/16 4.0 2.7 0.8 0.3 0.2 38.8 64.6 32.8

MISCELLANEOUSPTS REB AST DOUBLE- LED GRAND CANYON IN...

10+ 20+ 10+ 5+ DOUBLE PTS REB AST STL BLK17-18 3 1 4 1Total 8 1 7 9

CAREER HIGHS

PTS 13, vs. Utah Valley, 1/16/16

REB 7, 2x, last vs. Mississippi Valley St., 11/23/15

AST 5, vs. Great Falls, 12/6/14

STL 2, 5x, last at Chicago State, 1/18/18

BLK 2, vs. South Carolina State, 3/14/16

MIN 30, vs. Great Falls, 12/6/14

NOTES » Scored in double figures in back-to-back games (12/18 vs. MVSU, 12/21

vs. Longwood) for second time in career (last: March 2016). » In season opener, saw first action since March 23, 2016 at Coastal

Carolina. Sat out 2016-17 season with injury. » Considered one of the team’s “high basketball IQ” players by Majerle. » As a sophomore in 2015-16, started 10 games, helping GCU to a 27-7

finish and second place in the WAC. » Played for Australia during the 2012 U17 World Championships, averag-

ing 4.9 points per game over eight contests.

5MATTJACKSONForward R-Jr . • 6-8 • 230 Melbourne, Australia

2017-18 / CAREER AVERAGESGP PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% FT% 3PT%

17-18 14/0 3.9 0.6 0.6 0.3 0.0 59.1% 86.2% 66.7%Career 14/0 3.9 0.6 0.7 0.4 0.0 59.1 86.2 66.7

MISCELLANEOUSPTS REB AST DOUBLE- LED GRAND CANYON IN...

10+ 20+ 10+ 5+ DOUBLE PTS REB AST STL BLK17-18 2Total 2

CAREER HIGHS

PTS 9, vs. Morgan State, 12/27/17

REB 3, vs. Morgan State, 12/27/17

AST 3, vs. Morgan State, 12/27/17

STL 2, at Chicago State, 1/18/18

BLK --

MIN 17, vs. Morgan State, 12/27/17

NOTES » Made first four 3-point field goals of career. » Saw most meaningful playing time of young career in win over Morgan

State on Dec. 27, setting career highs in points (9), rebounds (3), assists (3) and minutes (17).

» High school teammate of Oscar Frayer at Moreau Catholic. » Led the Mariners to a state championship during his Conference Player

of the Year season as a senior. » Arrived on campus in early summer where he put on a “healthy” fresh-

man 15, taking advantage of GCU’s sports performance offerings.

10DAMARIMILSTEADGuard Fr . • 6-2 • 160 Hayward, Calif .

2017-18 / CAREER AVERAGESGP PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% FT% 3PT%

17-18 22/22 9.5 3.8 6.1 0.9 0.1 35.7% 75.6% 31.5%Career 135/73 5.6 2.3 2.8 0.7 0.0 40.2 73.4 35.7

MISCELLANEOUSPTS REB AST DOUBLE- LED GRAND CANYON IN...

10+ 20+ 10+ 5+ DOUBLE PTS REB AST STL BLK17-18 11 1 14 1 2 2 15 4 1Total 24 1 26 1 2 2 15 4 1

CAREER HIGHS

PTS 18, vs. St. John’s, 12/5/17

REB 10, vs. San Diego, 11/25/17

AST 10, vs. William Jessup, 1/23/18

STL 4, vs. UC Riverside, 12/2/17

BLK 1, 5x, last vs. Mississippi Val. St., 12/18/17

MIN 38, at Boise State, 12/13/17

NOTES » Posted first double-double of career with 12-point, 10-assist game

against William Jessup on Jan. 23. » Has a 7.5-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio in last four games. » From Nov. 13 to Nov. 20, scored in double-digits for three consecutive

games for the first time in his career. » Led the nation in assist-to-turnover (4.88-to-1) ratio as a sophomore. » Returns to Arizona where he was a high school standout, winning 2014

Gatorade Player of the Year and winning three state championships. » His brother, T.J. Benson, is a GCU assistant coach.

11CASEYBENSONGuard Sr . • 6-3 • 185 Tempe, Ariz .

‹ 52 ›

BROADCAST NOTES

2017-18 / CAREER AVERAGESGP PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% FT% 3PT%

17-18 22/7 6.4 3.4 1.1 0.6 0.4 39.3% 79.2% 25.0%Career 22/7 6.4 3.4 0.9 0.5 0.3 39.3 79.2 25.0

MISCELLANEOUSPTS REB AST DOUBLE- LED GRAND CANYON IN...

10+ 20+ 10+ 5+ DOUBLE PTS REB AST STL BLK17-18 4 1 1 2 3 4 3Total 4 1 1 2 3 4 3

CAREER HIGHS

PTS 25, vs. UTRGV, 1/13/18

REB 8, 3x, last vs. William Jessup, 1/23/18

AST 6, vs. Norfolk State, 11/20/17

STL 3, vs. Grambling State, 12/9/17

BLK 2, vs. Morgan State, 12/27/17

MIN 31, vs. Norfolk State, 11/20/17

NOTES » Held GCU Division I record for points by a true freshman for one game

after a 25-point performance in win over UTRGV on Jan. 13. » Had best game of early career against Norfolk State on Nov. 20, posting

14 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists in 31 minutes. » Played on Latvian U16 national team. Left home at 16 to join B-league

club in Germany. Efficient producer at 2016 U18 Euro Championship. » Chose GCU over Creighton, Seton Hall and Xavier. » “Arguably the top available 2017 center prospect” according to

247Sports at time of April 2017 signing.

12ROBERTS BLUMBERGSForward Fr . • 6-10 • 220 Ventspils, Latvia

2017-18 / CAREER AVERAGESGP PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% FT% 3PT%

17-18 6/0 1.0 0.5 0.0 0.1 0.1 66.7% 50.0% 0.0%Career 6/0 1.0 0.5 0.0 0.3 0.2 66.7 50.0 0.0

MISCELLANEOUSPTS REB AST DOUBLE- LED GRAND CANYON IN...

10+ 20+ 10+ 5+ DOUBLE PTS REB AST STL BLK17-18Total

CAREER HIGHS

PTS 2, 3x, last vs. Mississippi Val. St., 12/18/17

REB 2, vs. Mississippi Val. St., 12/18/17

AST --

STL 1, 2x, last vs. Grambling State, 12/9/17

BLK 1, vs. Mississippi Val. St., 12/18/17

MIN 4, 2x, last vs. Mississippi Val. St., 12/18/17

NOTES » Scored first points of GCU career in win over Grambling State on Dec. 9. » Selected to play for the Senegal U19 team, competing in the 2013 FIBA

World Championships in Prague. Team matched up with Australia and fellow Lope Gerard Martin during pool play.

» Selected to Senegal’s senior national selects team. » Scored 43 points in the final game of his high school career at Malick Sy

HS in Senegal. Won the championship, won the team’s MVP and was the team’s leading scorer as a junior.

13IBRAHIMASANKAREForwardR-Fr . • 6-7 • 200Thiès, Senegal

2017-18 / CAREER AVERAGESGP/GS PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% FT% 3PT%

17-18 4/0 2.3 0.3 0.0 0.0 0.0 50.0 0.0 100.0Career 6/0 2.0 0.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 40.0 0.0 66.7

MISCELLANEOUSPTS REB AST DOUBLE- LED GRAND CANYON IN...

10+ 20+ 10+ 5+ DOUBLE PTS REB AST STL BLK17-18Total

CAREER HIGHS

PTS 3, 4x, last vs. Morgan State, 12/27/17

REB 1, vs. Grambling State, 12/9/17

AST --

STL 1, vs. Grambling State, 12/9/17

BLK --

MIN 4, vs. Grambling State, 12/9/17

NOTES » Has knocked down all 3 3-point attempts this season, connecting from

distance in 3 of his 4 appearances. » Appeared for GCU in two games in his debut season in 2016-17. » Transferred from Suffolk County where he averaged 27.5 points 5.2

rebounds per game. » Was named a 2015-16 NJCAA Division III All-American. » Father, Ousmane, played professional soccer. » Also played volleyball in high school.

15CHEICK SY-SAVANEGuardSr . • 6-3 • 180 Harlem, N .Y .

2017-18 / CAREER AVERAGESGP PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% FT% 3PT%

17-18 15/0 1.3 1.1 0.2 0.1 0.2 61.5% 42.9% 0.0%Career 78/31 3.1 2.6 0.1 0.2 0.3 58.2 41.1 0.0

MISCELLANEOUSPTS REB AST DOUBLE- LED GRAND CANYON IN...

10+ 20+ 10+ 5+ DOUBLE PTS REB AST STL BLK17-18 1 2Total 7 1 1 7 2 12

CAREER HIGHS

PTS 12, 4x, last at New Mexico State, 1/12/17

REB 10, vs. CSU Bakersfield, 2/4/17

AST 1, 3x, last vs. Longwood, 12/21/17

STL 2, at UTRGV, 1/14/17

BLK 2, 5x, last vs. Longwood, 12/21/17

MIN 33, at New Mexico State, 1/12/17

NOTES » Has scored in double-digits seven times, and pulled down a career-best

10 rebounds vs. CSU Bakersfield on 2/4/17. » As a freshman at GCU, started in 25 of 32 games he played in, scoring a

season high 12 points against St. Edward’s. » Scored 16 points and had 14 rebounds in first game of his senior year » Aunt, Sebrena, played basketball for Louisiana Tech and Northwestern

(LA) before playing professionally in Spain.

21KERWIN SMITHForwardR-Jr . • 6-9 • 220 Dallas, Texas

2017-18 / CAREER AVERAGESGP/GS PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% FT% 3PT%

17-18 4/0 0.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 50.0 0.0 0.0Career 10/0 0.4 0.5 0.0 0.1 0.0 66.7 0.0 0.0

MISCELLANEOUSPTS REB AST DOUBLE- LED GRAND CANYON IN...

10+ 20+ 10+ 5+ DOUBLE PTS REB AST STL BLK17-18Total

CAREER HIGHS

PTS 2, 2x, last vs. Longwood, 12/21/17

REB 2, vs. Coppin State, 11/25/16

AST --

STL 1, vs. Bethesda, 1/31/17

BLK --

MIN 5, vs. San Diego Christian, 1/17/17

NOTES » Scored two points in win over Longwood on Dec. 21. » Saw first action of 2017-18 season in a win over Grambling State on

Dec. 9. » From Lake Oswego, Ore., home to Klay Thompson and Kevin Love. » Played in six games in 2016-17 with a total of 18 minutes. » Scored his first collegiate basket against Arkansas-Pine Bluff . » Father, Dale Allen, played basketball at Hillsdale College in Michigan.

22NEHEMIAHALLENForward So . • 6-5 • 170 Lake Oswego, Ore .

2017-18 / CAREER AVERAGESGP PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% FT% 3PT%

17-18 22/22 8.0 7.5 1.6 0.8 1.8 49.0% 57.9% 0.0%Career 87/61 8.1 6.5 0.9 0.8 0.7 51.1 54.2 25.0

MISCELLANEOUSPTS REB AST DOUBLE- LED GRAND CANYON IN...

10+ 20+ 10+ 5+ DOUBLE PTS REB AST STL BLK17-18 6 4 3 2 12 3 5 16Total 27 2 15 14 6 36 4 21 32

CAREER HIGHS

PTS 24, at Chicago State, 1/28/17

REB 15, 4x, last vs. UTRGV, 1/13/18

AST 4, 2x, at Chicago State, 1/18/18

STL 4, 2x, last at CSU Bakersfield, 3/4/17

BLK 4, 2x, last vs. Mississippi Val. St., 12/18/17

MIN 46, at Chicago State, 1/28/17

NOTES » In the WAC’s Top 10 in a variety of categories: rebounding (4th, 7.5);

field goal pct. (10th, 49.0); blocks (4th, 1.5). » Posted 14th career double-double (13p/15r) against UTRGV on Jan. 13. » Became first GCU player in Division I era and fourth all-time to shoot a

perfect 8-for-8 from the field in a win over Grambling State on Dec. 9. » Last season, Vernon’s 217 total rebounds for the year led the Lopes,

averaging 7.0 per contest. » Teammate of Shaq Carr’s at College of Southern Idaho in 2014-15.

24KEONTAVERNONForward Sr . • 6-6 • 240 Tulare, Calif .

2017-18 / CAREER AVERAGESGP PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% FT% 3PT%

17-18 22/15 9.8 4.0 1.4 0.3 0.4 49.1% 67.7% 27.5%Career 22/15 9.8 4.0 1.2 0.3 0.3 49.1 67.7 27.5

MISCELLANEOUSPTS REB AST DOUBLE- LED GRAND CANYON IN...

10+ 20+ 10+ 5+ DOUBLE PTS REB AST STL BLK17-18 8 4 2 1 4 6 2 3Total 8 4 2 1 4 6 2 3

CAREER HIGHS

PTS 28, at Chicago State, 1/18/18

REB 10, 2x, last at UMKC, 1/20/18

AST 4, at Louisville, 12/23/17

STL 1, 4x, last vs. UTRGV, 1/13/18

BLK 2, vs. Longwood, 12/21/17

MIN 28, vs. William Jessup, 1/23/18

NOTES » Has scored 20+ points in four consecutive games. » Last 4 games: 24.8 ppg, 7.5 rebounds per game, 64.4% fg shooting. » Earned GCU’s first WAC Player of the Week honor for games on the

road at Chicago State and UMKC. » Broke GCU Division I scoring record for a true freshman with 28

against Chicago St. on Jan. 18, topping Blumbergs’ 25 from prior game. Was 15 points better than his previous career high set at Illinois.

» Earned first career start in win over Grambling State on Dec. 9. » Played for the Italian U18 national team.

25ALESSANDROLEVERCenter Fr . • 6-10 • 230 Bolzano, Italy

2017-18 / CAREER AVERAGESGP PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% FT% 3PT%

17-18 22/0 3.5 2.8 1.2 0.8 0.2 39.4% 46.2% 30.6%Career 87/57 4.4 3.1 2.1 1.0 0.3 36.6 44.8 32.0

MISCELLANEOUSPTS REB AST DOUBLE- LED GRAND CANYON IN...

10+ 20+ 10+ 5+ DOUBLE PTS REB AST STL BLK17-18 1 2 4 1Total 9 1 1 7 7 17 15

CAREER HIGHS

PTS 17, vs. Central Michigan, 12/03/15

REB 10, vs. Seattle U, 1/21/17

AST 7, 3x, last vs. Seattle U, 1/21/17

STL 7, vs. SIUE, 11/28/16

BLK 2, 3x, last vs. Little Rock, 11/18/17

MIN 40, 3x, last at Chicago State, 1/28/17

NOTES » Knocked down 4-of-5 shots in win over Morgan State on Dec. 27. » Was named to the WAC’s All-Defensive team after finishing in the

conference’s top 10 in steals per game (1.4) last year. » Had career-best 7 steals and 6 rebounds against SIUE last November. » A member of gold medal-winning sides for the U16 and U18 state team. » Usually first off the bench, considered by Majerle as one of team’s top

defenders and high basketball IQ players.

42GERARDMARTINGuardR-Jr . • 6-7 • 225 Manly, Australia