Utah Tech could not overcome two decisive first half Grand Canyon scoring runs as the Trailblazers dropped a 73-48 Western Athletic Conference road decision to the Lopes on Saturday afternoon inside the Global Credit Union Arena.

How it happened 
After the two sides traded perimeter jumpers to open the scoring, GCU (12-3/4-0 WAC) rattled off 16-unanswered points en route to a commanding 24-7 lead after the opening 10 minutes. 
 
The Trailblazers (8-7/2-2 WAC) were doomed by seven first quarter turnovers and a frigid 3-of-10 shooting clip from the floor.
 
Utah Tech's offense began to show signs of life in the early minutes of the second period as the Blazers knocked down four of their first seven shots to make it a 31-16 game after an Alyson Deaver bucket with 5:27 remaining in the first half.
 
However those two Deaver points would be the last Utah Tech would score as GCU closed the frame with a 9-0 run and took a 40-16 advantage into the intermission. The Lopes would push their lead to as many as 33 points in the second half before settling for the 25-point home win.  
 
Numbers to know
Maddie Warren was the lone Trailblazer to score in double figures as finished with 13 points on 5-of-10 shooting. 
 
Twin sister Macie Warren chipped in nine points, while Maggie McCord added eight points to go with six rebounds.
 
Breaunna Gillen was held to just seven points, though she did manage to pull down a game-high nine rebounds and dished out a team-best three assists. 

For Gillen, it marked just the second time in her last 56 starts overall that she did not score in double figures. Earlier this season in Utah Tech's road loss at Texas A&M-Commerce (11/20/23), the fifth-year guard was limited to just three points after she was forced to leave that game late in the first quarter due to injury.  
 
Utah Tech shot 41.9 percent (18-of-43) from the floor and was just 2-of-12 (.167) from the perimeter. However the Trailblazers only attempted two 3-point shots in the second half, both of which came with under two minutes to play in the fourth quarter.
 
The Blazers did go 10-of-13 (.769) from the foul line and outrebounded GCU by a 29-27 count. Utah Tech wound up with 18 turnovers on the afternoon, which led to 26 Lopes points. 
 
Olivia Lane and Naudia Evans each scored 15 points to lead four Lopes in double figures. GCU hit 28-of-59 (.475) from the floor, which included a 10-of-26 (.385) effort from beyond the arc.
 
Utah Tech will make its second of four regular season trips to the Lone Star State this upcoming Thursday afternoon to face Stephen F. Austin. Tip-off inside William R. Johnson Coliseum in Nacogdoches, Texas, is set for 2 p.m. (CST).