PHOENIX, AZ — Western New Mexico (0-0) lost to Grand Canyon (0-0) 82-59 on Tuesday night. Western New Mexico made nine 3-pointers but was limited to 14 points in the paint.
Western New Mexico found production from the perimeter, making nine 3-pointers compared with four for Grand Canyon, but Grand Canyon held advantages around the basket and on the glass. Grand Canyon finished with a 43-23 rebounding edge, including 16 offensive boards, and posted 52 paint points and 18 second-chance points while Western New Mexico had 14 and none in those categories.
Mason Marsh (Rocklin, CA/Whitney High School) hit a jumper for the first points, and
Jeremy Pierro (Fresno, CA/East High School) followed with a layup and two 3-pointers as Western New Mexico built a 10-4 lead at 16:18.
Andre Harris (Mesa, AZ/Hillcrest Prep) added a layup, Pierro hit another 3 and
Keylon Dorsey (Houston, TX/Eisenhower High School) connected from deep to make it 18-8 at 11:07, but Grand Canyon worked back behind inside scoring and Makaih Williams' 3-pointer and fast-break layup to tie it at 22 at 7:11. After
NoNo Brown's (Gilbert, AZ/Perry High School) 3-pointer put Western New Mexico back ahead 25-22, Jaden Henley tied it with a 3, Harris scored inside for a 27-25 lead, and Efe Demirel tied it before Grand Canyon moved ahead 35-27 on free throws by Blake Barkley, a Henley layup and four points from Demirel.
Ejay Scroggins (South Phoenix, AZ/McClintock High School) and Harris made free throws in the final minutes, but Barkley scored at 1:41 and Omaha Biliew hit a 3-pointer at :04 to send Grand Canyon into halftime ahead 40-30.
Grand Canyon moved the score to 43-30 on Tyler Behrend's layup and free throw before Dorsey hit a 3-pointer off an assist from Marsh to make it 43-33 at 18:21. Western New Mexico got a
Judah Casaus (Albuquerque, NM/Del Norte High School) layup and later baskets from Harris, but Grand Canyon continued to score inside and on second chances, reaching 64-43 on Amarion Dickerson's layup at 10:36. After Western New Mexico added a 3-pointer and a jumper to get to 48 points, Grand Canyon answered with a stretch that included dunks by Jaden Henley and Micah Tucker and moved ahead 77-52 with 4:10 left.
Dekwon Brown (Peoria, IL/Peoria High School) made four late free throws and
Tim Mikhailov (Mogileu, Belarus/North Texas Central Academy) hit a 3-pointer with 1:20 remaining, but Grand Canyon closed out an 82-59 win after outscoring Western New Mexico 42-29 in the half.
Harris scored a team-high 16 points, went 6 of 9 at the free-throw line and added five rebounds and three assists. Dorsey finished with 11 points, hitting three 3-pointers and collecting three rebounds. Pierro also scored 11 points and made three 3-pointers.
NoNo Brown (Gilbert, AZ/Perry High School) added eight points while leading Western New Mexico with four assists and three steals.
Makaih Williams scored 14 points, going 4 of 8 from the field and 2 of 4 from 3-point range. Jaden Henley collected 11 rebounds, including 10 defensive boards, and added seven points and three assists. Tre Holloman recorded six assists and three steals while adding nine points. Amarion Dickerson posted four blocks, seven rebounds and three assists.
Up next, Western New Mexico basketball team travels to Las Cruces, New Mexico, to face New Mexico State University (Exh.) on Tuesday, Nov. 3, at 6:30 p.m. at Pan American Center.
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Western New Mexico University is a member of the NCAA Division II, and the Lone Star Conference (LSC). For additional information regarding Mustang Athletics, visit www.wnmumustangs.com; visit wnmu.edu for more information about Western New Mexico University. Follow the Mustangs on social media: @WNMUathletics (X, TikTok & Instagram).
