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4-time champ comes to GCU to open 1st MW slate
9/23/2025 11:30:00 AM | Women's Basketball, Paul Coro
Dec. 17 conference opener vs. UNLV starts GCU's tough opening stretch
Grand Canyon women's basketball will not have to wait long to find out what it takes to tangle at the top of the Mountain West.
The Lopes' first Mountain West schedule opens at home Dec. 17 against four-time defending MW regular-season champion UNLV. In fact, GCU will face last season's MW regular-season champion, third-place team and postseason champion in its first five conference games.
"Our first five games we have are very difficult," Lopes first-year head coach Winston Gandy said. "I don't know if anybody in the conference has a harder first five games than us."
Gandy put together GCU's most difficult nonconference schedule ever to prepare for the challenges of the MW gauntlet. The nonconference opponents' average final 2024-25 NET ranking of 120 is 109 points better than the Lopes faced on average in the previous five nonconference schedules.
Conference schedule dates are subject to adjustments by one day, but the first GCU basketball game of the MW era will be played by a Lopes women's program coming off a WAC championship.
UNLV will not look like the team that earned the first MW four-peat since Colorado State (2014-17). Graduate guard Aaliyah Alexander is the only returning Lady Rebels starter after averaging 10.6 points last season, when UNLV went 16-2 in MW games. Key 6-foot-2 reserve Meadow Roland (10.2-point and 5.9-rebound averages) also returns.
Lady Rebels coach Lindy La Rocque added nine transfers, including a MW duo that averaged 20 points combined last season (San Jose State guard Sydni Summers and Fresno State guard Mariah Elohim).
Horizon League Player of the Year Destiny Leo comes to Las Vegas from Cleveland State while more proven production comes from 6-foot-3 Destiny Brown of Alcorn State (13.0-point and 9.7-rebound averages) and 6-foot Shelbee Brown of Akron (14.0-point and 8.9-rebound averages).
"UNLV's had quite the run thus far," Gandy said. "Lindy's done a tremendous job over there. Starting with those guys won't be easy, and it doesn't get much easier. When you look at t
he tournament champions and the regular-season champions, we'll play both of those teams in our first five games. So it's definitely an exciting start. We're going to see the Mountain West's best very early in the conference season."
GCU will play its first road MW game at San José State on Dec. 28 before a Dec. 31 game against Colorado State, which returns three starters from a team that went 13-5 in MW play by averaging the fewer turnovers in the nation (8.7 per game) last season.
That active holiday stretch continues with potentially the Lopes' toughest road back-to-back – Jan. 3 at Boise State (13-3 at home last season) and Jan. 7 at 2025 NCAA Tournament qualifier San Diego State (25-10 overall last season).
GCU will play three conference champions before MW play, starting with a Nov. 3 opener at perennial power South Carolina.
"The hope is that our nonconference schedule will prepare us for the rigorous Mountain West and most importantly the start to the conference season," Gandy said. "We knew that the depth of the conference is very high. There are no circle games or easy games. It's such a competitive conference."
Eight of 11 MW opponents posted winning records last season.
The 20-game conference schedule is a home-and-home round robin except for two opponents. GCU will not play at Nevada, and Air Force will not come to Global Credit Union Arena. GCU's bye will leave a week between playing Feb. 7 at Air Force and Feb. 14 at UNLV.
The Lopes finish the season at Wyoming, last season's MW runner-up. The Cowgirls return one starter, senior guard Malene Pedersen (14.0 points per game), from their best-ever MW season. Pedersen is one of eight Europeans on the Wyoming roster.
The top four regular-season conference finishers will receive a first-round bye in the MW Championship, which will be March 7-10 at UNLV's Thomas & Mack Center.
GCU's full schedule can be seen here and season ticket information is available here.
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* all game dates subject to change by a dayÂ
The Lopes' first Mountain West schedule opens at home Dec. 17 against four-time defending MW regular-season champion UNLV. In fact, GCU will face last season's MW regular-season champion, third-place team and postseason champion in its first five conference games."Our first five games we have are very difficult," Lopes first-year head coach Winston Gandy said. "I don't know if anybody in the conference has a harder first five games than us."
Gandy put together GCU's most difficult nonconference schedule ever to prepare for the challenges of the MW gauntlet. The nonconference opponents' average final 2024-25 NET ranking of 120 is 109 points better than the Lopes faced on average in the previous five nonconference schedules.
Conference schedule dates are subject to adjustments by one day, but the first GCU basketball game of the MW era will be played by a Lopes women's program coming off a WAC championship.
UNLV will not look like the team that earned the first MW four-peat since Colorado State (2014-17). Graduate guard Aaliyah Alexander is the only returning Lady Rebels starter after averaging 10.6 points last season, when UNLV went 16-2 in MW games. Key 6-foot-2 reserve Meadow Roland (10.2-point and 5.9-rebound averages) also returns.
Lady Rebels coach Lindy La Rocque added nine transfers, including a MW duo that averaged 20 points combined last season (San Jose State guard Sydni Summers and Fresno State guard Mariah Elohim).
Horizon League Player of the Year Destiny Leo comes to Las Vegas from Cleveland State while more proven production comes from 6-foot-3 Destiny Brown of Alcorn State (13.0-point and 9.7-rebound averages) and 6-foot Shelbee Brown of Akron (14.0-point and 8.9-rebound averages).
"UNLV's had quite the run thus far," Gandy said. "Lindy's done a tremendous job over there. Starting with those guys won't be easy, and it doesn't get much easier. When you look at t
he tournament champions and the regular-season champions, we'll play both of those teams in our first five games. So it's definitely an exciting start. We're going to see the Mountain West's best very early in the conference season."GCU will play its first road MW game at San José State on Dec. 28 before a Dec. 31 game against Colorado State, which returns three starters from a team that went 13-5 in MW play by averaging the fewer turnovers in the nation (8.7 per game) last season.
That active holiday stretch continues with potentially the Lopes' toughest road back-to-back – Jan. 3 at Boise State (13-3 at home last season) and Jan. 7 at 2025 NCAA Tournament qualifier San Diego State (25-10 overall last season).
GCU will play three conference champions before MW play, starting with a Nov. 3 opener at perennial power South Carolina.
"The hope is that our nonconference schedule will prepare us for the rigorous Mountain West and most importantly the start to the conference season," Gandy said. "We knew that the depth of the conference is very high. There are no circle games or easy games. It's such a competitive conference."
Eight of 11 MW opponents posted winning records last season.
The 20-game conference schedule is a home-and-home round robin except for two opponents. GCU will not play at Nevada, and Air Force will not come to Global Credit Union Arena. GCU's bye will leave a week between playing Feb. 7 at Air Force and Feb. 14 at UNLV.
The Lopes finish the season at Wyoming, last season's MW runner-up. The Cowgirls return one starter, senior guard Malene Pedersen (14.0 points per game), from their best-ever MW season. Pedersen is one of eight Europeans on the Wyoming roster.
The top four regular-season conference finishers will receive a first-round bye in the MW Championship, which will be March 7-10 at UNLV's Thomas & Mack Center.
GCU's full schedule can be seen here and season ticket information is available here.
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 GCU 2025-26 Mountain West schedule |
||
| Â Date* | Â Opponent | |
| Â Dec. 17 |
 |
 vs. UNLV |
| Â Dec. 28 |
 |
 at San José State |
| Â Dec. 31 |
 |
 vs. Colorado State |
| Â Jan. 3 |
 |
 at Boise State |
| Â Jan. 7 |
 |
 at San Diego State |
| Â Jan. 10 |
 |
 vs. Fresno State |
| Â Jan. 14 |
 |
 vs. Nevada |
| Â Jan. 17 |
 |
 at New Mexico |
| Â Jan. 21 |
|
 at Colorado State |
| Â Jan. 24 |
|
 vs. Boise State |
| Â Jan. 28 |
 |
 at Utah State |
| Â Jan. 31 |
 |
 vs. Wyoming |
| Â Feb. 4 |
|
 vs. San Diego State |
| Â Feb. 7 |
 |
 at Air Force |
| Â Feb. 14 |
|
 at UNLV |
| Â Feb. 18 |
|
 vs. New Mexico |
| Â Feb. 21 |
|
 vs. Utah State |
| Â Feb. 25 |
|
 at Fresno State |
| Â Feb. 28 |
|
 vs. San José State |
| Â March 3 |
|
 at Wyoming |
* all game dates subject to change by a dayÂ
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