In my humble opinion, here are the keys to tonight's game for GCU:
On Defense
(1) Get a body on J. Jones!!! He doesn't shoot much from the outside so teams tend to slack off on him which is a huge mistake. This allows him a direct run at the basket once the shot does go up. He is too athletic and too crafty to be left alone at any time. We need to take a page out of UVU's playbook and guard Jones like they did in Orem when they held him to 6 total rebounds and 8 points.
(2) Frayer needs to contain Lofton like he did in the last meeting when Lofton went 4-17 from the field with no 3-pointers.
If the Aggies still beat us even though we managed to contain Jones and Lofton then I'll just tip my cap to them. We need to let the rest of the team beat us.

On Offense
(1) Vernon, Lever and Benson need to have cool heads. At times each can let the refs get under their skin, especially if it is a tightly called game. Lever needs to stay in the game!! His fouling out with 16 minutes left in our last meeting (and us up by 13), really cost us.
(2) Lever and someone else (Braun, Frayer, Vernon or Benson) need to score. We cannot depend on Lever alone.
(3) Avoid turnovers that lead to easy fast breaks. Benson and Milstead need to take care of the ball.
Looking forward to a great game!

I agree with these statements. I also think NMSU will be all over Lever and likely he will get into some foul trouble. Just don’t see him avoiding it tonight. It’s going to be a physical game. We may see a lot more of Jackson and Martin, but these veterans can keep up defensive pressure and play smart offense.

I think Frayer has to be the difference maker. Successful stops against Lofton can lead to some special things on the other end of the floor.

Well those keys to the game were the keys to the game. GCU just did not accomplish them. Congrats to the Aggies! They had the better game plan and out played GCU.

Great game by GCU. Certainly looks like many better days are ahead for the Lopes.

Looking forward to watching GCU tear it up in one of the other tournaments.

GCU was a Dewayne Russell type point guard away from giving NMSU a real challenge. Even Shaq Carr might have helped. Benson was solid but he struggled with Harris’ quickness and athleticism.