Grand Canyon Antelopes
2015-16 record: 27–7, 11-3 in the WAC
Head coach: Dan Majerle
Tenure at Grand Canyon: 4th season
Career coaching record: 59–37 (.615)
Home court: Grand Canyon University Arena
Starters: G Joshua Braun, G DeWayne Russell, G Gerard Martin, F Keonta Vernon, F Darion Clark
Bench: F Matt Jackson, G Oscar Frayer, F Boubacar Toure, F Kerwin Smith
Overview: The Antelopes hold the distinction of being one of the few for-profit programs remaining in the nation, and the university ranked as one of Forbes' Best Small Companies as recent as 2014. Grand Canyon is in its final year of transitioning from Division II to Division I, and thus will be ineligible for the NCAA tournament.
The Antelopes return three starters from a team that finished second in the conference last season, including WAC Preseason Player of the Year Joshua Brown. But Grand Canyon will have to make up for the production of Grandy Glaze, who nearly averaged a double-double in his senior year. Southern California transfer forward Darion Clark is expected to fill the void after finishing as the Trojans' second-leading rebounder in 2014-15 before transferring.
Guard Oscar Frayer will begin his Antelope career as arguably the best recruit in school history and could emerge as a go-to scorer for Grand Canyon. The athletic 6-foot-6 wing and former four-star recruit spurned an offer from California to land in the desert, and should provide instant offense for the Antelopes with his deadly 3-point stroke.
Redshirt sophomore Kerwin Smith and redshirt freshman Boubacar Toure will also provide depth behind Clark in the paint after redshirting last season. Their presence could help space the floor for a perimeter-oriented Grand Canyon team.
One thing that needs to go right: The Antelopes' abundance of score-first players find the right mix of passing and shooting to drive Grand Canyon's offense.
One thing that could go wrong: Clark struggles in his transition to his third school, and Smith and Toure fail to fill the void sufficiently in the post, leaving the Antelopes without an inside presence.
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Managing Editor 2018-19, 2019-2020 Features & Investigations Editor
A member of the class of 2020 hailing from San Mateo, Calif., Ben is The Chronicle's Towerview Editor and Investigations Editor. Outside of the Chronicle, he is a public policy major working towards a journalism certificate, has interned at the Tampa Bay Times and NBC News and frequents Pitchforks.