GCU Basketball Making Grand Entrance into Mountain West

Grand Canyon upset Utah State on the 17th, when the Aggies were ranked 15th in the NET, becoming the highest-ranked NET victim the Lopes have ever taken down.

They did it by locking down the sharp-shooting Aggies and limiting them to just 36.2% from the floor.

GCU followed up that performance in perhaps the program’s greatest back-to-back regular-season wins by beating San Diego State four days later.

Those two wins came in the middle of a two-and-a-half-week stretch that saw the Antelopes go 5-1, including a win over Boise State, creating a logjam atop the league standings.

The win streak came to an end in overtime at Nevada on Tuesday night.

(Side note on that matchup in Reno with Steve Alford’s Wolf Pack: It marked the first time that a pair of Indiana Mr. Basketballs coached against each other collegiately.)

GCU was a bit shorthanded, with starters Brian Moor Jr. and Caleb Shaw both out with injuries, but still gave the Pack all they could handle in the OT loss.

The lack of depth was evident in the box score as the Lopes bench was outscored 41-2 by Nevada. GCU’s starters played 92% of the game’s minutes.

Grand Canyon’s bench has been a huge reason for the team’s success this year. The Lopes are 11-1 when their bench outscores the opposition.

The loss tightened the top of the league standings even more, as five teams now sit within two games of each other.

Another key to the success of Grand Canyon in conference play has been the play of Makaih Williams.

The junior guard has been a bench performer for the most part, and has seen his scoring average in league play jump to 15.9 points per game compared to 10.7 in nonconference contests.

The play of Jaden Henley also can’t be overlooked. The senior guard transferred to GCU this season and has been impactful. He currently leads the team in scoring at 17.2 points per game, while also collecting 5.5 rebounds per outing.

His scoring average ranks fifth-highest in the conference, and his rebounding total is 10th in the league, among the best for backcourt players.

The biggest factor in the Antelopes’ success so far this season has been their stifling defense, limiting opponents to just 40.9% from the field. Over the last 11 games, they have held opponents to 38.8% shooting from the floor.

Grand Canyon’s effective FG defense is tied for 24th best in the nation at 46.7%, allowing opponents only 23.1 made FGs per game. That ranks them in the Top 25 in that category nationally.

We still have plenty of basketball left to play, but the Lopes have done a great job of adjusting to the Mountain West, giving themselves an opportunity to make some noise down the stretch.

And as the rest of the league is discovering, Global Credit Union Arena has proven to be a tough place to play. The Lopes are 9-2 at home this season, including a non-conference win over USC.

In only their first season, Grand Canyon looks to have some staying power among the best in the Mountain West.