(Phoenix, AZ) GCU Arena was as loud as a concert and shaking like an earthquake and the team loved it.
Grand Canyon enjoyed it too, but New Mexico State was the team that reveled in it on its season-long revenge tour. The Aggies remained in a WAC first-place tie with Seattle U by enjoying a season-best 3-point shooting night that sparked their 82-66 over the Lopes on Saturday night.
New Mexico State (22-4, 12-2 WAC) entered the game as a 32% 3-point shooting team, but went 13 for 25 from 3-point range against GCU with four 3s storming the Aggies to a 16-5 start with Allen scoring. The Lopes missed 10 of their first 12 shots.
In his first collegiate game in his hometown, WAC Player of the Year favorite Teddy Allen delivered 30 points, 10 rebounds and five assists for New Mexico State to nearly never relinquish control. The Lopes (18-7, 9-5 WAC) enter the final four regular-season games in fifth place in the conference after spending most of Saturday night trailing by double digits.
“You could obviously tell they (the Aggies) were excited to play here,” said GCU graduate guard Holland Woods II, who scored a team-high 22 points. “I would be too if I was them. Those guys lost to us, not me personally, three times last year so they want to come back with a vengeance. They’ve got a little bit of an edge.”
The Aggies used that edge to strong-arm the Lopes to a 42-28 halftime lead with GCU again relying on 3-point attempts, as it had at New Mexico State. This time, the Lopes went 3 for 14 on 3s in the first half after having a 5-for-32 game on 3s in the Jan. 29 loss at New Mexico State.
The Lopes found a better balance in the second half, but just as few stops. A 6-0 run gave GCU its best shot when sophomore guard Jovan Blacksher Jr.made two free throws to cut the Aggies’ lead to 59-51 with 12:34 to play.
“I thought we were going to get them,” GCU freshman guard Jayden Stonesaid. “The crowd was roaring. I couldn’t hear anything. The electricity in the building was amazing.”
Woods followed with a steal but missed a breakaway layup in traffic, flipping the scenario to set up a 14-3 New Mexico State run that broke the game back open.
“We knew it wasn’t going to happen quickly,” Drew said. “We just wanted to win the first segment, win the second segment, get it under double figures and then get that run. We were pretty much to a tee on all that. We got it 59-51. If he makes that layup, it’s a six-point game. I thought they would call time out. That would’ve got us over that first hump.”
GCU followed a 33% shooting first half with 52% accuracy in the second half, when Woods and Blacksher (20 points) got a little more help. Sophomore power forward McGlothan scored seven of his eight points in the second half and freshman guard Jayden Stone notched six of his seven.
New Mexico State was more consistent, shooting better than 50% in each half in what Aggies head coach Chris Jans called his team’s “most complete effort” of the season. When the 3-point binge against the Lopes’ No. 2-ranked 3-point defense ended, passing broke down GCU for three second-half slams in half-court offense.
“From my view, from everyone’s view, that was a really good team that played their best game of the season and hit a bunch of tough shots against us throughout the whole night,” Drew said. “I thought our guys played hard the whole game. I was proud of the effort they gave. Tonight, we just weren’t going to win with how well they were shooting and how well they were playing.
“When you beat a team three times the year before, they’re fired up to play their best games against you and they played their best game of the year against us tonight in our arena.”
Stone was one of the team bright spots with his aggression, including his defense on Allen and his attacks that drew fouls for all seven of his points coming at the free throw line. The Australian played 17 minutes in his second February appearance.
“I’m doing the little things, not trying to score,” Stone said. “I’m getting rebounds and loose balls and try to find open guys. I let the game come to me. I’m not trying to rush anything. I’ll let Nuna (Blacksher) and Holland and those great players do what they do. I’m just trying to clean up the scraps.”
The GCU-New Mexico State regular-season ended in a sweep for the fifth consecutive year, with the Aggies taking four of them. New Mexico State is the only team besides Loyola Marymount to shoot better than 50% against the Lopes this season.
The sellout crowd of 7,174 included NBA players Cam Payne of the Phoenix Suns, Marvin Bagley III of the Detroit Pistons and Oshae Brissett of the Indiana Pacers.
“This has been really fun playing here,” New Mexico State forward Donnie Tillman told reporters about GCU Arena. “This environment is different. This team loved it. We thrived in it, actually. They want to party? We like to party, too. That’s what the Aggies do and we came and got it done.”
The Lopes play their final regular-season home game Wednesday at Chicago State before finishing with three home games
Press Release courtesy of Grand Canyon University – Paul Coro
