Completed Event: Women's Basketball versus Utah State on October 27, 2026 , Win , 78, to, 48
W Basketball
vs Utah State
W 78-48
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Tuesday, October 27
Phoenix, Ariz.
3 p.m.
Grand Canyon
0-0,0-0Mountain West
78
vs
48
Utah State
0-0,0-0Pac-12
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Utah St. | 6 | 17 | 12 | 13 | 48 |
| Grand Canyon | 24 | 15 | 22 | 17 | 78 |
Photo by: David Kadlubowski
10/27/2026 6:05:00 PM | Women's Basketball, Paul Coro
Foz leads GCU in rebounds, assists, plus-minus to rout Utah State
Part of what Grand Canyon women's basketball needs from its 11 new players is adaption to what each of them do best for the Lopes.
Some of the best examples of that translated to GCU routing Utah State 78-47 in a Global Credit Union Arena exhibition Tuesday, eight days ahead of the Lopes' season opener against Jackson State.
It could mean sophomore guard Dasha Biruk playing more than last season at Ohio State and torching Utah State for 17 first-quarter points Tuesday, or it could mean sophomore guard Maya Foz scoring less to have more of an all-around impact and lead GCU in assists, rebounds and plus-minus Thursday.
The Lopes progressed from previous secret scrimmages against Arizona and Washington in defense, holding Utah State to 30% shooting, and ball movement, delivering more assists Thursday (23) than they did in any game last season.
"When we moved the ball, we were really good," GCU second-year head coach Winston Gandy said. "The ball found the right people, and we took the right shots. I think we're playing harder. I think we're impacting more on defense."
Biriuk, a 6-foot Ukranian, scored the Lopes' first eight points and stayed hot throughout the first quarter. She ended the stanza with three consecutive 3s in a 72-second span, making her 6 for 6 from the field (5 for 5 on 3s) for 17 of her 20 points.
After playing 7.4 minutes per game last season, Biriuk started Thursday's game after missing the previous scrimmage for injury and returning for only one practice.
"Honestly, my shootaround was not good today," Biriuk said. "I was like, 'Daaaang, I'm probably not going to do good today.' But thank God and thanks to my teammates."
Foz assisted on three of those first-quarter Biriuk 3s and finished with team highs for assists (six) and rebounds (seven).
The 5-foot-9 guard averaged 14.4 points in her primary scoring role for Bradley last season, when she was the Missouri Valley Freshman of the Year. On Tuesday, she scored two points on 1-for-3 shooting, as no Lope played more than 23 minutes.
"She got back to making the right basketball play," Gandy said. "She can see the floor. She can shoot. She can score. But she was so impactful. Her scoring is going to come. I'm trying to get her to be more. I know you can score, but I also know you can see the game and be a little bit more even on the floor.
"I was really, really proud of her. She can get them up, but she was conscious of making the right basketball play. There was no secret that she was our most impactful player on the floor today."
While the turnovers were high at 18, GCU was efficient otherwise with 55% shooting from the field and 14-for-28 marksmanship on 3s. Fifth-year guard T'yana Todd and freshman Yasmeen Schmidt each added a pair of 3s for what would also have been a team season high for made 3s last season.
"If we're able to get Maya and Yas (Schmidt) six or seven 3s, they're probably going to each make three or four on average," Gandy said. "And if you catch them on a good afternoon or a good night, they're going to hit you for 6 for 6, 6 for 7, if they're high-quality ones. They need their teammates to help that."
After Biriuk's flurry fueled a 24-6 GCU first quarter, the Lopes were in control the remainder of the way and were able to get double-digit minutes for 11 players.
GCU opened the lead to 37-15 with fewer than three minutes remaining in the first half after senior center Ashlynn Chlarson converted back-to-back layups on feeds from Biriuk and Foz.
"My teammates made shots and made me look good," Foz said. "I'm trying to change my role to what this team needs. Last year, my team looked for me to score. This year, I'm just really trying to focus on what I can do to help the team and not focus on what I did last year."
GCU resumed its level of first-quarter ball movement in the third quarter, when the Lopes scored on the last six consecutive possessions to take a 61-35 lead to the fourth on its Pac-12 visitor.
The Lopes' bench scored the majority of GCU's points (46 of 78) as the balanced attack also put junior guard Chloe Mann, the returning leading scorer, and junior forward Nyadieng Yiech, a transfer from Florida, in double digits at 10 points apiece in 21 and 16 minutes, respectively.
"The only thing I was unhappy with defensively was too much fouling," Gandy said of GCU's 17 fouls. "Our kids think if they play good defense, you shouldn't score. And that's just not how the game works. You can play great defense, and someone makes a great shot. When they make it, we're like, 'I've got to do more,' so we get more aggressive and handsy."
GCU opens its season Nov. 4 in a 6 p.m. game against Jackson State at Global Credit Union Arena.
Some of the best examples of that translated to GCU routing Utah State 78-47 in a Global Credit Union Arena exhibition Tuesday, eight days ahead of the Lopes' season opener against Jackson State.
It could mean sophomore guard Dasha Biruk playing more than last season at Ohio State and torching Utah State for 17 first-quarter points Tuesday, or it could mean sophomore guard Maya Foz scoring less to have more of an all-around impact and lead GCU in assists, rebounds and plus-minus Thursday.The Lopes progressed from previous secret scrimmages against Arizona and Washington in defense, holding Utah State to 30% shooting, and ball movement, delivering more assists Thursday (23) than they did in any game last season.
"When we moved the ball, we were really good," GCU second-year head coach Winston Gandy said. "The ball found the right people, and we took the right shots. I think we're playing harder. I think we're impacting more on defense."
Biriuk, a 6-foot Ukranian, scored the Lopes' first eight points and stayed hot throughout the first quarter. She ended the stanza with three consecutive 3s in a 72-second span, making her 6 for 6 from the field (5 for 5 on 3s) for 17 of her 20 points.
After playing 7.4 minutes per game last season, Biriuk started Thursday's game after missing the previous scrimmage for injury and returning for only one practice.
"Honestly, my shootaround was not good today," Biriuk said. "I was like, 'Daaaang, I'm probably not going to do good today.' But thank God and thanks to my teammates."
Foz assisted on three of those first-quarter Biriuk 3s and finished with team highs for assists (six) and rebounds (seven).
The 5-foot-9 guard averaged 14.4 points in her primary scoring role for Bradley last season, when she was the Missouri Valley Freshman of the Year. On Tuesday, she scored two points on 1-for-3 shooting, as no Lope played more than 23 minutes.
"She got back to making the right basketball play," Gandy said. "She can see the floor. She can shoot. She can score. But she was so impactful. Her scoring is going to come. I'm trying to get her to be more. I know you can score, but I also know you can see the game and be a little bit more even on the floor.
"I was really, really proud of her. She can get them up, but she was conscious of making the right basketball play. There was no secret that she was our most impactful player on the floor today."
While the turnovers were high at 18, GCU was efficient otherwise with 55% shooting from the field and 14-for-28 marksmanship on 3s. Fifth-year guard T'yana Todd and freshman Yasmeen Schmidt each added a pair of 3s for what would also have been a team season high for made 3s last season.
"If we're able to get Maya and Yas (Schmidt) six or seven 3s, they're probably going to each make three or four on average," Gandy said. "And if you catch them on a good afternoon or a good night, they're going to hit you for 6 for 6, 6 for 7, if they're high-quality ones. They need their teammates to help that."
After Biriuk's flurry fueled a 24-6 GCU first quarter, the Lopes were in control the remainder of the way and were able to get double-digit minutes for 11 players.
GCU opened the lead to 37-15 with fewer than three minutes remaining in the first half after senior center Ashlynn Chlarson converted back-to-back layups on feeds from Biriuk and Foz.
"My teammates made shots and made me look good," Foz said. "I'm trying to change my role to what this team needs. Last year, my team looked for me to score. This year, I'm just really trying to focus on what I can do to help the team and not focus on what I did last year."
GCU resumed its level of first-quarter ball movement in the third quarter, when the Lopes scored on the last six consecutive possessions to take a 61-35 lead to the fourth on its Pac-12 visitor.
The Lopes' bench scored the majority of GCU's points (46 of 78) as the balanced attack also put junior guard Chloe Mann, the returning leading scorer, and junior forward Nyadieng Yiech, a transfer from Florida, in double digits at 10 points apiece in 21 and 16 minutes, respectively.
"The only thing I was unhappy with defensively was too much fouling," Gandy said of GCU's 17 fouls. "Our kids think if they play good defense, you shouldn't score. And that's just not how the game works. You can play great defense, and someone makes a great shot. When they make it, we're like, 'I've got to do more,' so we get more aggressive and handsy."
GCU opens its season Nov. 4 in a 6 p.m. game against Jackson State at Global Credit Union Arena.
Players Mentioned
C
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's BasketballTeam Stats
USU
GCU
FG%
.300
.545
3FG%
.050
.538
FT%
.524
.444
RB
28
39
TO
12
18
STL
7
6
Game Leaders
Pts
20
FGM
7
3FGM
6
FTM
0
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Pts
6
FGM
2
3FGM
2
FTM
0
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