Newest member of the fam. Welcome home, Braylon! 🤝💜
📰: https://t.co/7wp6wwy05W pic.twitter.com/FQIP6JPmPB
— Grand Canyon Men’s Basketball (@GCU_MBB) September 20, 2024
Braylon played his high school ball at Phoenix Pinnacle High after his family relocated to the Valley when Cam was drafted in 2019.
“It was really cool, especially when Cam was playing here,” Johnson told GCULopes.com’s Paul Coro of the love his family has felt in the area. “But it’s crazy seeing how much he’s still supported even though he’s not here anymore.”
“We are really excited to be adding Braylon to our roster,” GCU head coach Bryce Drew said. “He has tremendous upside, a great work ethic and comes from a terrific basketball family.”
Johnson averaged 17.4 points and 8.3 rebounds as a senior, helping Pinnacle reach the 6A state semifinals.
Puff Johnson, a brother aged between Braylon and Cam, also played at Pinnacle. He considered GCU while in the transfer portal after starting his college career at North Carolina. He now plays for Penn State.
“GCU was the place I always wanted to go. It just always seemed like a great environment,” Braylon added. “The coaching staff is great, the fans are great, the games are crazy. I just thought it would be a great place for me to come in and grow and become a better player.”
The ‘Lopes enter the 2024-25 season returning most of the rotation that earned the program’s first NCAA tournament victory, including 2023 WAC Player of the Year Tyon Grant-Foster.
]]>Valley native Jade Carey is once again representing the U.S. in gymnastics after she won a gold medal for women’s floor at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.
Arizona State swimmer Leon Marchand of France set a world record in the 400m individual medley at the world swimming championships, beating his mentor Michael Phelps’ mark.
A pair of Phoenix Suns and a trio of Mercury players are set out to extend Team USA’s run of gold medals in men’s and women’s basketball.
Plus, former Arizona Wildcats and Suns basketball player Chase Budinger is looking to help Team USA win gold in beach volleyball.
American tennis player Desirae Krawczyk
Canadian swimmer Ilya Kharun (100 m fly, 200m fly)
Canadian basketball player Luguentz Dort
Canadian water polo player Blaire McDowell
Chinese Taipei golfer Kevin Yu
Dutch water polo player Bente Rogge
Dutch water polo player Lieke Rogge
Dutch track & field athlete Jorinde Van Klinken
Fijian swimmer Tolu Young (50m freestyle)
French swimmer Leon Marchand (200m individual medley, 400m individual medley, 200m butterfly, 200m breaststroke)
French water polo player Mia Rycraw
German golfer Alexandra Forsterling
Hungarian swimmer Hubert Kos
Hungarian swimmer Zalan Sarkany (400m freestyle, 800m freestyle, 1500m freestyle)
Irish swimmer Max McCusker (100m fly)
Italian golfer Alessandra Fanali
New Zealander soccer player Gabi Rennie
Nigerian basketball player Promise Amukamara
Nigerian track & field athlete Dubem Nwachukwu (4x400m mixed relay)
Norwegian track & field athlete Beatrice Llano (hammer throw)
Spanish golfer Jon Rahm
Spanish golfer David Puig
Spanish golfer Carlota Ciganda
Spanish golfer Azahara Munoz
Swedish golfer Linn Grant
Swiss swimmer Tiago Behar (4x200m freestyle relay)
American diver Delaney Schnell (synchronized 10-meter, 10-meter platform)
American beach volleyball player Chase Budinger (former Suns player)
American basketball coach Steve Kerr
Australian basketball player Josh Green
Azerbaijanis swimmer Maryam Sheikhalizadeh (50m freestyle)
Filipino golfer Bianca Pagdanganan
German track & field athlete Karolina Pahlitzsch (4x400m relay)
Guamanian track & field athlete Joseph Green (100m)
Italian track & field athlete Giancarla Trevisan (4x400m relay)
Lithuanian swimmer Tomas Lukminas (800m free relay)
Luxembourgish swimmer Ralph Daleiden (100m freestyle)
Mexican swimmer Jorge Iga (100m and 200m freestyle)
Mexican track & field athlete Edgar Rivera-Morales (high jump)
American 10,000-meter runner Nico Young
American 5,000-meeter runner Abdihamid Nur (North High School)
Puerto Rican basketball player Trinity San Antonio
Kenyan swimmer Maria Brunlehner
American guard Devin Booker
American forward Kevin Durant
American guard Diana Taurasi
American wing Kahleah Copper
American center Brittney Griner
Australian forward Rebecca Allen (withdrawn with injury)
American swimmer Keaton Jones (Gilbert Higley High School)
American gymnast Jade Carey (Glendale Mountain Ridge High School)
American skateboarder Jagger Eaton (Mesa)
American skateboarder Paige Heyn (Tempe)
American archer Brady Ellison (Mountain Ridge High School)
American road cyclist Brandon McNulty (Deer Valley High School)
American BMX Daleny Vaughn (Tucson resident)
American BMX Cameron Wood (Glendale Community College)
Canadian swimmer Taylor Ruck (Chaparral High School)
]]>The Oakland Athletics, who drafted Wilson with the No. 6 overall pick last summer, called up Wilson on Friday just over a year after selecting him.
July 9, 2023: Drafted 6th overall in the MLB Draft
July 19, 2024: Called up to The ShowWe have selected infielder Jacob Wilson, #Athletics No. 1 and MLB Pipeline’s No. 50 overall prospect, from Triple-A Las Vegas! pic.twitter.com/8WaYRkYzup
— Oakland A’s (@Athletics) July 19, 2024
Wilson, a 22-year-old infielder, crushed minor league pitching this year across three levels. For Double-A Midland, Triple-A Las Vegas and in the complex league, Wilson has slashed .438/.475/.687 with seven homers and 25 doubles.
He earned All-American honors, was a three-time first-team All-WAC member and a two-time Golden Spikes semifinalist during a decorated college career in the Valley.
“I loved his father as a player. I definitely believe Jacob will exceed his dad’s career accomplishments.”
Jacob Wilson’s (@Athletics No. 1) promotion to Triple-A has been seamless.
MLB’s No. 60 prospect had his second three-hit performance in four games with @AviatorsLV:… pic.twitter.com/Nvr3Uzuc5k
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) May 12, 2024
His father, Jack Wilson, played 12 MLB seasons and coached him at GCU as an assistant.
Wilson has a miniscule 3.3% strikeout rate in 90 Triple-A plate appearances, entering the draft with elite bat-to-ball skills at GCU and transferring that ability to the pros. He struck out 31 times in 697 plate appearances with the Antelopes.
He is the No. 50 prospect in baseball and No. 1 in Oakland’s system, ranked by MLB Pipeline.
The Athletics face the Los Angeles Angels in Oakland on Friday night.
]]>McGlothan won the college slam dunk contest this past season that was hosted at GCU’s arena in Phoenix.
McGlothan graduated from Chandler Basha High School in 2018 and started his collegiate career at Southeast Missouri State before transferring to GCU in 2019.
In his final season at GCU, McGlothan averaged 12.8 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game. He also shot 47.7 percent from the field and 39.8 percent from three-point range.
McGlothan and the ‘Lopes finished the 2023-24 season with a 30-5 record, on their way to winning the WAC tournament.
The ‘Lopes would get their first tournament win in program history with a win over fifth-seeded St. Mary’s, before losing to eventual Final Four team Alabama.
McGlothan is the first GCU player to sign an NBA contract since they transitioned to a Division 1 program for the 2013-14 season.
His ‘Lopes teammate, Tyon Grant-Foster, would’ve likely joined him in the NBA ranks but he was a last-minute withdrawal from the draft and announced he would return to GCU for next season.
]]>The transfer portal activity is a big part of it. Name, image and likeness factors play a role in who enters the portal and who does not.
The NBA Draft process combined with that has made things especially wacky, where the trickle-down effect from a single player’s decision can run deep.
In Arizona, one decision by an individual reached three intrastate universities. Arizona Wildcats guard Caleb Love took in the full NBA Draft water-testing process, playing at the G League Elite Camp and hitting some team-run workouts.
And before the NCAA’s withdrawal deadline at the end of May, Love decided to give it one more go in Tucson with the Wildcats.
The fallout from his choice looked like this:
Love’s return announced on May 29 directly impacted five-star wing Joson Sanon, who has since admitted the decision caused him to flip to rival Arizona State because he hopes to take a lead scoring role and leave college after a single season.
That was assumed when Sanon had his ASU decision ready about an hour after Love’s return, just as the withdrawal deadline hit.
News of Jamari Phillips de-committing from Arizona popped less than an hour prior to Love announcing his return. We’ll assume that decision was directly tied to Love, too.
Arizona’s top-10 class of four players, per 247 Sports’ rankings, tumbled to 28th after it was cut in half with the loss of Sanon and Phillips.
Sanon’s move to join the Sun Devils initially gave them the No. 4-ranked class with four recruits.
But it then had its own domino effect. Hours after Love’s decision, Yeanay reopened his recruitment.
Bo Aldridge followed suit and reopened his commitment on June 5. He remains undecided, while Yeanay signed with Grand Canyon on Thursday.
]]>At 6-foot-8 and 230 pounds, Yeanay was rated by 247 Sports composite as a top-20 power forward in the class and top-90 overall prospect. He visited GCU on June 8 after visiting Oklahoma State earlier in the week.
Yeanay is the third addition — and the highest-rated one — to a 2024 class for GCU that includes former Phoenix St. Mary’s point guard Styles Phipps (No. 189 overall) and Oregon product Austin Maurer (No. 235).
The ‘Lopes return five key contributors from last season’s program-best season, including 2023-24 WAC Player of the Year Tyon Grant-Foster, who tested NBA Draft waters.
GCU’s roster already featured two former Sun Devils in forward Duke Brennan and guard Malcolm Flaggs. Holland Woods was another recent Sun Devil to transfer to GCU.
Yeanay decommitted from ASU following the additions of five-star center Jayden Quaintance and four-star guard Joson Sanon to the 2024 class under head coach Bobby Hurley. Sanon arrived similarly to how Yeanay arrives to GCU following an initial commitment to Arizona.
Over the offseason, GCU head coach Bryce Drew has added 7-foot-1 center Dennis Evans (Louisville) and 6-foot-8 forward JaKobe Coles (TCU) in the transfer portal to help the depth behind those returners.
This will be Grand Canyon’s final season in the WAC before a transition into the West Coast Conference.
]]>Run it back. 7️⃣#WeHoopAtGCU pic.twitter.com/4oOmvFKRYE
— Grand Canyon Men’s Basketball (@GCU_MBB) June 4, 2024
As a senior last year, Grant-Foster averaged 20.1 points per game on 44.6% shooting and 33.1% from three-point range. He added 6.1 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.5 blocks across 33.5 minutes per contest last season.
For his efforts, he was named the WAC Player of the Year.
At the NBA Draft Combine, he measured 6-feet, 5.75 inches. His wingspan came in at 6-feet, 11.75 inches. He did not participate in drills.
Off the court, Grant-Foster overcame a harrowing medical scare before becoming a difference-maker at GCU.
He missed more than a year of basketball after collapsing in the locker room while playing for DePaul in 2021. He was resuscitated, spent 10 days in the hospital and received an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator.
Shortly after, he attempted to play in a pickup game, where he collapsed again. He was sent to the hospital where he received a second heart surgery in the spring of 2022.
Grant-Foster spent 16 months recovering before doctors cleared him to play in March 2023. He transferred to GCU and lived with his cousin, Suns player Ish Wainright.
The NBA Draft is from June 26-27 in Brooklyn, New York.
]]>Reed Chumley and Grant Hussey each drove in a run for West Virginia (36-22) in the top of the first, but Cade Verduso’s RBI double sparked a three-run rally in the bottom of the inning for Grand Canyon (35-25).
The Mountaineers took the lead for good with a three-run second. Suave, Sam White and Chumley all had RBI singles.
Suave had a two-run double to push West Virginia’s advantage to 7-3 in the third. Ben Lumsden singled in a run in the fourth and White plated a run in the fifth with a double before scoring on a single by Hussey for a 10-3 lead.
Michael Diaz singled in a run in the bottom of the fifth for the Antelopes and Zach Yorke hit a two-run homer in the ninth to cap the scoring.
Aidan Major (5-4) earned the victory, taking over after West Virginia starter Hayden Cooper failed to retire a batter. Major went 4 2/3 innings, allowing one run on two hits and five walks.
The Mountaineers captured their first regional title after 15 prior NCAA Tournament appearances.
Grand Canyon has appeared in three regionals, all of them since 2021
]]>GCU put together 19 hits, but it scored the game-winning runs on back-to-back bases-loaded walks in the eighth inning.
Every batter in the Antelopes’ lineup recorded at least one hit and one RBI in the elimination game.
GCU advanced to the regional final matchup against West Virginia, which defeated Grand Canyon 5-2 on Saturday.
𝐓𝐈𝐄. 𝐁𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐆𝐀𝐌𝐄.@DustinCrenshaw6‘s third hit of the game follows Pelc and Yorke RBIs to knot it at 9! pic.twitter.com/WKJNUPe4Yk
— Grand Canyon Baseball (@GCU_Baseball) June 2, 2024
The Antelopes need to beat the Mountaineers twice with the double-elimination format. The first game is Sunday at 6 p.m. If GCU wins, the final game at Hi Corbett Field will be Monday.
DBU’s run ended after the Patriots knocked out the regional host Arizona Wildcats on Saturday.
WAC Player of the Year Tyler Wilson doubled home a run to give GCU a 3-2 lead in the second inning, and Dallas Baptist took over from there.
The Patriots scored the next six runs to go up 8-3. Designated hitter Tom Poole had a homer, two doubles and five RBIs over the first four innings, and he finished with six RBIs.
But the Antelopes rallied for seven runs in the fifth and sixth innings on eight hits, benefitting from a pair of Patriots errors. Dustin Crenshaw’s double off the right-field wall in the sixth tied the game, and Eli Paton drove in Crenshaw with a go-ahead knock on a bouncer up the middle.
𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐋𝐎𝐏𝐄𝐒 𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐃. 💥@PatonEli caps a four-run 6th to give the good guys a 10-9 advantage! pic.twitter.com/SzG7PvFJbC
— Grand Canyon Baseball (@GCU_Baseball) June 2, 2024
Zach Yorke slid underneath a tag at home in the fifth inning despite getting beat by the ball, a great slide for the 295-pound first baseman and key play in the comeback.
𝐙𝐀𝐂𝐇 𝐆𝐄𝐓𝐒 𝐔𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐓𝐀𝐆. 😱@AltonGyselman scores @zach_yorke to make it a two-run game in the 5th! pic.twitter.com/6VoWgUJo8n
— Grand Canyon Baseball (@GCU_Baseball) June 2, 2024
Through six innings, GCU led 10-9 with 29 total hits between the two teams.
DBU tied the game in the seventh inning on a sacrifice fly. GCU loaded the bases with one out in the seventh but came away empty-handed.
In the eighth, GCU’s Cade Verdusco and Eddy Pelc drew walks with the bases loaded against Dallas Baptist pitcher Conner Mackay, who walked four of five hitters to end his outing.
Walter Quinn got through the final three innings with only one earned run for GCU to seal the win.
The Antelopes picked up their first NCAA Tournament win in program history Friday against Arizona.
Grand Canyon will look to force a seventh game in the Tucson regional on ESPN+ at 6 p.m.
]]>West Virginia (35-22) plays Sunday against the winner between Grand Canyon and Dallas Baptist in an elimination game at 12 p.m. after the two teams have beaten Arizona and lost to West Virginia so far. It’s a win-or-go home situation for both schools.
Kresser singled to drive in Reed Chumley and Sam White, Ben Lumsden followed with an RBI single and Kresser scored to make it 5-1 when King reached on a fielder’s choice in the fourth.
Dustin Crenshaw’s RBI single in the top of the ninth capped the scoring.
Grand Canyon (35-24) took a 1-0 lead when Beau Ankeney scored on a sacrifice fly by Eddy Pelc in the top of the second but the Mountaineers tied it bottom when Chumley scored on a single by Kresser.
Tyler Switalski gave up a run on six hits and walk over 7 2/3 innings to improve to 5-2 this season for West Virginia. Carson Estridge (4) retired the only batter he faced to earn the save.
Two right-handed sophomores will be on the mound Sunday between GCU’s Issac Lyon (6-1, 3.56 ERA), who earned a three-inning save against Arizona on Friday, and Dallas Baptist’s Jerrod Jenkins (6-0, 3.28), who will make just his sixth start of the season.
]]>The Antelopes won a game in the tournament for the first time in program history.
GCU will take on West Virginia in the winner’s bracket Saturday at 7 p.m. MST, while Arizona has an elimination game against Dallas Baptist at 1 p.m. MST. Regionals are double elimination, and the winner will head to a best-of-three super regional for a chance at the College World Series.
WVU defeated DBU 4-1 in the opening game of the Tucson regional.
GCU’s Tyler Wilson, the WAC Player of the Year, led off the game with a home run on the second pitch thrown by Arizona starter Clark Candiotti.
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐖𝐀𝐂 𝐏𝐎𝐘 𝐆𝐎𝐄𝐒 𝐘𝐀𝐑𝐃. 💣@TyWilson44 blasts the second pitch of the game and the Lopes are on the board first! pic.twitter.com/wd3zk8ORAl
— Grand Canyon Baseball (@GCU_Baseball) June 1, 2024
The Wildcats, though, grabbed the lead with three runs in the second inning off GCU’s Grant Richardson, who took a comebacker off the leg and was looked at by trainers. Pac-12 All-Conference Team outfielder Brendan Summerhill hit the go-ahead single.
Both offenses went quiet until the sixth inning, when GCU’s Eddy Pelc shot a three-run double to clear the bases off Candiotti to go ahead 5-3. Pelc drove in four runs on Friday.
𝐄𝐃𝐃𝐘 𝐏𝐄𝐋𝐂 𝐂𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐒 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐁𝐀𝐒𝐄𝐒. 🗣️@eddypelc gives the Lopes a 5-3 lead in the 6th with a two-out, two-strike double! pic.twitter.com/CwQxokLPCx
— Grand Canyon Baseball (@GCU_Baseball) June 1, 2024
Candiotti — son of former MLB pitcher Tom Candiotti — finished with 6.0 innings, five earned runs on four hits with three walks and five strikeouts.
Richardson went 6.0 innings with one earned run, five hits, four walks and five strikeouts. Isaac Lyon finished the final three innings for GCU.
The Antelopes blew the doors off on in the ninth inning on a two-run double by Zach Yorke, who hit a screaming ground ball to the wall in right field. Grand Canyon scored seven runs over the final four innings.
Arizona — which won the Pac-12 regular season and tournament titles — hit into three double plays that halted the offense.
The Antelopes beat the Wildcats in two of three meetings during the regular season.
The Lopes went 0-2 in each of their first two NCAA appearances, in 2021 and 2022, but now find themselves a No. 4 regional seed one win away from playing for a spot in super regionals.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
]]>Arizona (36-21) won the Pac-12 regular season title and the conference tournament, taking down USC in walk-off fashion.
GCU (34-23) captured the WAC’s regular season championship but came up short in the tournament.
The two Arizona schools met three times during the regular season, twice in Tucson. The ‘Lopes took two of the games, including a 24-8 drubbing that was called after seven innings.
Wildcats graduate right-hander Clark Candiotti — son of former major leaguer and Arizona Diamondbacks analyst Tom Candiotti — gets the start against GCU sophomore left-hander Grant Richardson. They are both Valley products, as Candiotti (7-3, 3.11) attended high school at Chaparral while Richardson (4-1, 4.03) represents Horizon.
First pitch is at 6 p.m. MST from Hi Corbett Field, and the game will air on ESPN+. Play-by-play announcer Mike Ferrin and analyst Jensen Lewis will be on the call.
1. Arizona Wildcats
2. Dallas Baptist Patriots
3. West Virginia Mountaineers
4. Grand Canyon Antelopes
Dallas Baptist faces West Virginia on Friday at noon MST.
DBU (44-13) won the Conference USA Tournament and is one of five programs that made its 10th straight regional.
WVU (33-22) has highly regarded draft prospect infielder JJ Wetherholt, who is No. 7 on MLB Pipeline’s big board.
NCAA regionals are double elimination.
The winners of the first two games match up on Saturday at 7 p.m. MST. The losers play each other in the elimination bracket Saturday at 1 p.m. MST.
There are two games on Sunday, starting with the 1-1 teams facing off in an elimination game at noon. The 2-0 squad will take on the winner at 6 p.m. MST.
The Tucson Regional could end right there or extend to Monday for a win-or-go-home.
Sixteen regional-winning teams head to the best-of-three super regionals.
The 2024 Men’s College World Series starts June 14 in Omaha.
]]>Arizona Wildcats Caleb Love, Jaden Bradley and KJ Lewis also withdrew, although their returns to Tucson were previously known.
The NBA announced today that 93 players from colleges and other basketball teams or leagues have notified the league that they wish to be removed from the list of “early entry” players eligible for selection in the NBA Draft 2024 presented by State Farm. Following the NBA’s… pic.twitter.com/VdG7BBSLf1
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) May 30, 2024
Grant-Foster helped GCU reach the Big Dance and win its first NCAA Tournament game in program history. Grant-Foster led the Lopes with 22 points against Saint Mary’s in the opening round.
The senior averaged 20.1 points per game with 6.1 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.5 blocks last season. He was the WAC Player of the Year.
He went to the NBA Draft Combine, where he measured at 6-feet, 5.75 inches. His wingspan measured at 6-feet, 11.75 inches. He did not participate in drills, though.
When Grant-Foster declared for the draft, he called it a life-long dream to reach the NBA. Grant-Foster can either return to Grand Canyon — which brings back key contributors such as Ray Harrison, Duke Brennan and Collin Moore — or try his luck playing professionally in another league.
Grant-Foster overcame a harrowing medical scare before becoming a difference-maker at GCU.
He missed more than a year of basketball after collapsing in the locker room while playing for DePaul in 2021. He was resuscitated, spent 10 days in the hospital and received an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator.
Shortly after, he attempted to play in a pickup game, where he collapsed again. He was sent to the hospital where he received a second heart surgery in the spring of 2022.
Grant-Foster spent 16 months recovering before doctors cleared him to play in March 2023. He transferred to GCU and lived with his cousin, Suns player Ish Wainright.
The NBA Draft is from June 26-27.
]]>The men’s and women’s basketball squads for the Arizona State Sun Devils and Grand Canyon Antelopes will square off at Phoenix’s Footprint Center on Nov. 14 as part of the Hall of Fame Series.
Tickets will go on sale Wednesday at 10 a.m. MST at HOFSeries.com.
Times and broadcast information will be released at a later time.
“We are excited for the opportunity to play GCU at the Footprint Center,” ASU head coach Bobby Hurley said in a release. “It will be an outstanding matchup for basketball fans in the Valley. I’ve got a ton of respect for the program that GCU has built. We are always looking to challenge ourselves with these type of games in the non-conference to get ready for conference play.”
Grand Canyon under coach Bryce Drew is coming off a 30-5 season that ended in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. He will be reloading with Tyon Grant-Foster, the WAC Player of the Year, looking to turn pro.
Arizona State went 14-18 and did not reach the postseason in 2023-24, but head coach Bobby Hurley has reshuffled the roster through the transfer portal and with five-star big man Jayden Quaintance part of a highly rated incoming freshman class.
The Valley teams last played a two-game series across the Decembers of 2020 and 2021.
ASU came away with a 71-70 win at GCU in the first meeting. Then-Sun Devil guard Remy Martin hit a three with nine seconds left after ASU had blown an eight-point lead to fall behind in the final minute. GCU got 21 points, five assists and four steals from point guard Jovan Blacksher in that loss.
Arizona State pulled out a 67-62 win in Tempe the next year behind 14-point efforts from each of Kimani Lawrence and D.J. Horne. That spoiled a 20-point night from Antelopes guard Holland Woods, who had transferred from ASU to GCU and appeared for each team in the home-and-home series.
]]>Life is what you make it
Just stay focused and dedicated
Don’t ever let somebody tell you
YOU CANT MAKE IT✨🙏🏾#Commited #Letsgolopes💜🤍 pic.twitter.com/0s2CAAp8nH— Glenn Taylor (@IsoGlenn1) May 19, 2024
Taylor is headed back to Arizona after spending part of his high school career at AZ Compass Prep in Chandler.
Taylor spent his first two seasons in college at Oregon State before transferring to St. John’s for the 2023-24 season.
In his junior season with the Red Storm, Taylor shot 45 percent from the field and shot 42.4 percent from three-point range. He started 21 of 33 games last season.
This comes after the news of GCU guard Jovan Blacksher Jr. entering the transfer portal and as 2023 WAC Player of the Year Tyon Grant-Foster makes his case for a professional opportunity at the NBA Draft Combine.
Taylor joins the three-time WAC champions looking to build off their 2023-24 season which saw the team win its first NCAA tournament game in program history.
Two of head coach Bryce Drew’s assistants left GCU this offseason in Ed Schilling (now the Pepperdine head coach) and Jamall Walker (now an assistant at Ohio State), but Drew has retooled the roster.
Along with Taylor, the ‘Lopes have also added seven-footer Dennis Evans (Louisville transfer), Styles Phipps (Phoenix St. Mary’s graduate who is a top-20 point guard by 247Sports in 2024) and Austin Maurer (rated by 247Sports as the class’s top prospect out of Oregon).
GCU is returning difference makers from last season’s squad such as Ray Harrison, Lok Wur, Collin Moore and former Arizona State Sun Devil Duke Brennan.
It will be the final season in the WAC for the ‘Lopes before joining the WCC in 2025-26.
]]>This comes one day removed from the NCAA granting Blacksher a medical hardship waiver and receiving an additional year of eligibility, according to Jon Rothstein.
Blacksher has continued to work on getting healthy after sustaining a torn ACL in January 2023, ending his season.
Blacksher was able to return from injury last season, playing in 26 games and starting in just one game.
During his five seasons at GCU, Blacksher played in 123 games and started 98 of those games. He has shot 41.4% from the field and averaged eleven points a game during his college career.
His best season with the team was in 2021-22, where averaged 15.8 points a game and shot 41.5% from the field, as well as shooting 39.4% from three-point range.
For his efforts, he was named to the First Team All-WAC.
The ‘Lopes will look to build off their 2023-24 season, in which the program won their first NCAA Tournament game versus Saint Mary’s before losing in the next round to Alabama.
]]>The testing in Chicago also included roster constructions for the scrimmage portions of the week, with the two Wildcats lined up to take part so far.
Height (without shoes): 6-foot-5.25
Weight: 212.4 pounds
Wingspan: 6-foot-7.5
Max vertical jump: 38 inches
Height (without shoes): 6-foot-6.25
Weight: 224 pounds
Wingspan: 6-foot-10.75
Max vertical jump: 42 inches, tied for high mark
Arizona's Keshad Johnson throws up a 42 inch max vertical leap at the NBA draft combine, tied for the best figure so far in Chicago. pic.twitter.com/S3bMe3Lz4O
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) May 13, 2024
Height (without shoes): 6-foot-5.75
Weight: 215.2 pounds
Wingspan: 6-foot-11.75
Rosters for the NBA Draft Combine scrimmages. Quite a few projected 2nd rounders have declined to participate.
Good opportunity for Justin Edwards, Jamal Shead, Nikola Djurisic, Bronny James, AJ Johnson, Trentyn Flowers, Jaylen Wells, Payton Sandfort and more to help themselves pic.twitter.com/ZXx4L5vtvr
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) May 13, 2024
Johnson will team with a veteran group that also includes jumbo wing Harrison Ingram out of North Carolina, veteran guards in Houston’s Jamal Shead and Creighton’s Trey Alexander, plus Marquette forward and Desert Vista High School product Oso Ighodaro.
Larsson finds himself splitting time with 3-and-D Baylor wing Jalen Bridges. They will be fighting for touches on a roster of ball-dominant players including UC Santa Barbara’s Ajay Mitchell, USC’s Boogie Ellis and Pepperdine’s Michael Ajayi.
Grant-Foster is not listed as a scrimmage participant.
]]>GCU will compete in 14 sports within the WCC, which does not include men’s volleyball, swimming and diving or track and field. The school says options for the remaining sports are being evaluated, such as men’s volleyball continuing to play in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation.
In addition to the nine current WCC institutions of Gonzaga, Saint Mary’s, Loyola Marymount, Pacific, Pepperdine, Portland, San Diego, San Francisco and Santa Clara, Seattle U will join GCU in the transition.
“We have been blessed in the past 16 years to become one of the fastest growing institutions in the country with a true national footprint that is drawing students from all 50 states,” GCU president Brian Mueller said in a release. “This is due to our high-quality academic programs and innovative delivery platforms. Athletically, our teams have also emerged, going from a Division 2 power to a championship-caliber high mid-major in Division 1 in a very short time.”
In the men’s basketball NCAA Tournament this year, GCU beat WCC champion Saint Mary’s in the first round for the program’s first victory in the Division 1 tournament.
Among the benefits GCU will reap from joining the WCC are increased television exposure — the WCC has a multi-year media rights deal with ESPN and CBS Sports Networks — and improved travel logistics, such as time and cost.
“Grand Canyon University matches the mission and vision of the WCC with a focused investment in the holistic student-athlete experience,” WCC commissioner Stu Jackson said. “Under the leadership of president Brian Mueller and vice president of athletics Jamie Boggs, GCU has established itself as a nationally recognized institution with a robust athletic profile and a commitment to competitive excellence.”
In the 2024-25 school year, GCU will play its final Western Athletic Conference seasons before moving on to the WCC.
]]>An agreement has not been finalized and many questions remain unanswered. It is also unclear if new rules could withstand further legal scrutiny, but it appears college sports is heading down a revolutionary path with at least some schools directly paying athletes to participate. Here’s what is known and what still needs to be figured out:
THE CASE
House vs. NCAA is a class-action federal lawsuit seeking damages for athletes who were denied the opportunity to earn money from use of their name, image or likeness going back to 2016. The plaintiffs, including former Arizona State swimmer Grant House, are also asking the court to rule that NIL compensation should include billions of dollars in media rights fees that go to the NCAA and the wealthiest conferences (Big Ten, Big 12, Atlantic Coast and Southeastern), mostly for football and basketball.
HOW MUCH?
The settlement being discussed could have the NCAA paying nearly $3 billion in damages over 10 years, with help from insurance and withholding of distributions that would have gone to the four big conferences. Last year, NCAA revenue approached $1.3 billion and the association projects a steady rise in coming years, thanks mostly to increases baked into the television contract with CBS and Warner Bros. Discovery for the men’s basketball tournament. A new, eight-year deal with ESPN worth $920 million for the Division I women’s basketball tournament and other championship events takes effect in 2025.
The potential settlement also calls for a $300 million commitment from each school in those four conferences over 10 years, including about $20 million per year directed toward paying athletes. Administrators have warned that could lead to program cuts for the so-called non-revenue sports familiar to fans who watch the Olympics.
“It’s the Olympic sports that would be in jeopardy,” Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne said during a March panel in Washington led by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas). “That’s men and women. If you look at the numbers for us at the University of Alabama, with our 19 sports outside of football and men’s basketball, we lost collectively almost $40 million.”
WHO GETS PAID?
Not entirely clear. Presumably, it would start with the athletes in sports that produce most of the revenue: football and men’s basketball players at the biggest and wealthiest programs. Women’s basketball is likely next in line, but it is possible athletes in all sports could see some benefit — but probably not at all schools.
What’s being considered is allowing schools to pay athletes, but not requiring those payments. Schools that don’t rake in millions in TV revenue wouldn’t necessarily be on the hook. There are also unanswered questions about whether the federal gender equity law Title IX would require equal funding for male and female athletes.
WHO MAKES THE CALL?
Getting the presidential boards of four conferences and the NCAA board of governors to approve a settlement is not a given, not to mention the plaintiffs in the House case. Still, the possibility of having to pay $4 billion in damages — and the NCAA has been on the losing end of many recent court cases — has spurred interest in a deal before trial begins in January.
The case is being heard in the Northern District of California by U.S. Judge Claudia Wilken, who has already ruled against the NCAA other landmark antitrust lawsuits and ordered the sides in House to seek a settlement.
EMPLOYMENT AND COLLECTIVE BARGAINING
Settling existing cases is only one step. A new system for compensating college athletes would be needed to avoid similar challenges in the future; for example, anything that looks like a cap on compensation by, say, the four major conferences would be ripe for another lawsuit.
The NCAA has been asking Congress for some kind of antitrust exemption for years, but the emphasis has shifted lately from regulating NIL compensation to keeping the athletes from being deemed employees.
A ruling from an NLRB regional director paved the way for members of the Dartmouth men’s basketball team to vote to join a union after being deemed employees, and many have advocated for collective bargaining as a solution to college sports’ antitrust exposure.
Jason Stahl, executive director of the College Football Players Association advocacy group, says lawmakers should create a special status for college athletes that would give them the right to organize and collectively bargain without actual employee status.
Stahl said even though many college athletes are apprehensive about being employees and joining a union, they should have the right to decide that.
“My concern is there would be some type of one-two punch,” Stahl said of a lawsuit settlement followed quickly by federal legislation to codify a revenue-sharing plan that precludes athletes from employee status and the right to organize. “A lot of things I’m hearing about this cap are not things I want to be hearing.”
WHAT’S NEXT
There are so many moving parts that it is hard to say with certainty, though settling House seems to a priority for late spring or summer. The earliest for any true changes noticed on campus would be fall of 2025.
]]>Grant-Foster watched his draft stock soar this past season as the 2023-24 WAC Player of the Year, averaging 20.1 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game. His play helped GCU on its way to a WAC title and a program-best 30-5 record. He shot 44.6% from the field and 33.1% from 3-point land.
Larsson meanwhile declared for the draft and will forgo his remaining college eligibility after averaging 12.8 points (42.6% on three 3-pointers per game), 4.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game.
Johnson wrapped up his college career averaging 11.5 points, 5.9 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.0 steals across 27.6 minutes per game.
Before his time in Tucson, Johnson spent four seasons at San Diego State.
Two notable names not found on the list of invited prospects include Arizona guards Caleb Love and KJ Lewis.
The combine will take place from May 12-19 at Wintrust Arena and the Marriott Marquis in Chicago. Players will undergo medical testing, drills and scrimmages throughout the week of work.
As part of the league’s latest Collective Bargaining Agreement, every invited member must attend and participate in the combine. The NBA can excuse a player’s absence, though the athlete must complete combine activities at a later time.
Day 1 of the 2024 NBA Draft tips off June 26 from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
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