GCU men's basketball continues winning ways, defeats Northern New Mexico

PHOENIX - The Grand Canyon University men’s basketball team continued their winning ways with an 82-69 victory over Northern New Mexico at GCU Arena Saturday night.

That's the 11th straight win for the Antelopes who improved to 12-2 overall this season.  It's also the longest winning streak for GCU since the 1988-89 season.

Saturday's game also marked a new season-high with 82 points.  Previously, they had scored 78 points on two occasions.

GCU posted a 49.1 field goal percentage (28-for-57) in the contest and held the advantage in rebounds, 38-32, including 26 defensive boards. The 'Lopes were aided by 33 points off the bench and were able to score 23 points off 20 Eagles turnovers.

“I thought our effort tonight was very good,” said head coach Russ Pennell. “When you take six days off, your conditioning can be a little suspect, but I thought we played hard. The guys came with good energy, which is the positive side of having days off because their legs were more refreshed. Overall, I was happy with our effort tonight.”

The ‘Lopes were led by Killan Larson, who posted a GCU-career-high 23 points and led the squad with 10 rebounds. Jeff Lowery matched his season-high with 11 points, while Braylon Pickrel added 10 points.

GCU will resume Pacific West Conference play when they travel to Riverside, Calif., to take on California Baptist on Wednesday, Jan. 2 at 8:30 p.m. (Arizona time).