Four Questions with Bryce Drew

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Grand opportunity

When March rolls around, expect Grand Canyon to be a popular pick to make a Sweet 16 run. The Lopes (10-1) are the class of the WAC and will boast a gaudy record. In fact, they may have more wins than any other team by March.

They’ve got decent size and experience, but perhaps the most appealing thing for a casual fan will be their coach, Bryce Drew. (Yes, that Bryce Drew.)

I mean, if any coach knows what it takes to pull of an upset in March, it’s Drew. So I asked him about his team’s prospects, his team-building approach, and if he’s got any last-second plays ready to go.

Q: This is now Year Four in your tenure. You've won two WAC titles, and have really taken off this season. A lot of deserved attention has been given to Tyon Grant-Foster and his transfer impact, but he's far from the only transfer who's made an impact for you guys. What helped you establish that kind of success? And is being based in a major city like Phoenix help that?

Bryce Drew: Obviously it's a different age in college basketball with the portal, not to mention with so many COVID waiver guys also getting an extra year to play. We definitely wanted to get older with our new guys, and we're thankful that we were able to bring back Gabe McGlothan and Ray Harrison. That's two starters and leaders for our culture that we already established. And I think that helped.

Two things were already established when we got here. [Former coach] Dan Marjerle did a great job and really elevated the program. And the administration here is really supportive of sports and I think that's a that's a huge factor in a program success. And I was able to bring in some really good assistant coaches, then we hit on a recruit early in Asbjorn Midtgaard, which really helped impact our success. So we've gotten impact transfers every year since we've been here. Being in Phoenix has also helped. It's a great city. The weather is fantastic, especially during basketball season. And we have tremendous fan support.

So you combine all that — the transfers, COVID waivers, guys looking for a college-type lifestyle in a big city with their own apartments off campus, it's everything that could want.

Q: You guys are 10-1, and you've been crushing teams on the offensive glass (38% OR, 11th in D-I), and getting to the free-throw line a lot (49.3% FTrate, 3rd in D-I). Did you anticipate both being a strength this season?

Drew: We emphasize rebounding and talk about that a lot, like most programs do. McGlothan is, is a excellent rebounder, so having him back helps jump start the rebounding. And then we have guys in Ray Harrison and Collin Moore who we knew could get to the line a lot. Tyon, we didn't have a lot to go on because he'd been out for two years, but with his athleticism he's gotten to the line more than we anticipated. All of that's been a huge edge because you continually put pressure on other teams when they're getting into foul trouble.

Q: Another huge thing has gotta be Jovan Blacksher's return. You bring back an All-League caliber player who can be a difference-maker. But given how much you've relied on your starting five thus far, is it a luxury right to figure out HOW much you need him at times? Because right now, it's a scenario akin to what FAU had last year where it could bring Johnell Davis or Alijah Martin off the bench depending on what health and scenarios dictated.

Drew: We have been using our starters a lot of minutes and I think adding Jovan is definitely needed. We need another ball-handler um to help take some pressure off of Ray. We know he's not gonna be his normal self right away, it's gonna take some time. But the more he gets acclimated, the more it'll help our team. When we got the team together this summer, we knew the guys had good chemistry and the potential to be really good. But it's still early, and we know we can still get a lot better.

Q: OK. It's conference play, or even March and you're coming down to the wire. How many plays do you have that are a full-court out-of-bounds play that's designed for a game-winning shot?

Drew: (laughs) We have a handful of them. We don't have like 10 or anything, but we have more than a couple. Oddly enough, we do not have that play in the playbook.

Grand Canyon hosts Louisiana Tech on Saturday.