As badly as Grand Canyon shot and mishandled the ball, the Lopes can feel some sense of accomplishment after losing to USC 67-61 on Oct. 25 in an exhibition contest before 7,379 fans at Global Credit Union Arena.
USC’s size bothered GCU in the beginning, with 7-foot-5 Gabe Dynes dunking everything and Jerry Easter II finishing around the glass and rebounding.
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But after falling into a 21-6 hole, the Lopes made 11 straight stops and took a 28-26 lead on power forward Nana Owusu-Anane’s layup with 5:12 left in the half. It was tied at 37 at the half on Wilhelm Breidenbach’s follow shot at the buzzer.
Grand Canyon’s Nana Owusu-Anane goes up for a shot against USC in a 67-61 exhibition loss at Global Credit Union Arena on Oct. 25, 2025.
But another sluggish start in the second half put the Lopes in a seven-point hole that was tough to come back from. GCU made only 1 of 9 3-pointers in the second half.
Overall, the Lopes made only 14 of 25 free throws and 21 of 61 field goals, including 5 of 17 from 3. Gonzaga-transfer Dusty Stromer helped the Lopes rally in the first half, making three 3-pointers. He had 14 points to lead GCU.
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“Their length bothered us early,” coach Bryce Drew said. “We didn’t make some good decisions at the rim. We were in the hole.
“I’m proud of our guys. We were able to make 11 straight stops and take the lead in the first half. The second half, they just gradually built the lead.”
GCU had 18 turnovers, six by 6-7 guard Jaden Henley, who was much better in the close loss at Baylor, where he had 26 points. Henley had 11 points and nine rebounds. He made 4 of 12 shots.
Starting center Efe Demirel looked like a 19-year-old freshman going up against grown men. He played only six minutes before fouling out with four points and one rebound.
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Owusu-Anane, playing college basketball games for the first time in 18 months, had 15 rebounds, but he was disappointed with his shooting, making 3 of 14 shots.
“I don’t want to make any excuses,” he said. “I’ve got to make them.”
Drew realizes it will take time for Owusu-Anane to find a rhythm after being out for so long. “He needs more reps,” Drew said. “We love how hard he plays.”
Baylor and USC both look like NCAA Tournament teams, so hanging in physically with both teams (GCU outrebounded USC 47-43) should bode well for the Lopes, as they start playing games for real on Nov. 3 at home against Purdue Fort Wayne.
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Richard Obert has been covering high school sports since the 1980s for The Arizona Republic. Catch the best high school sports coverage in the state. Sign up for Azcentral Preps Now. And be sure to subscribe to our daily sports newsletters so you don’t miss a thing. To suggest human-interest story ideas and other news, reach Obert at richard.obert@arizonarepublic.com or 602-316-8827. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter:@azc_obert
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Grand Canyon falls to USC in final basketball exhibition
