ITTA BENA – (Men's Basketball) Mississippi Valley State continues their road voyage during the non-conference season with a 72-62 loss to the Grand Canyon University Lopes.

Utilizing a zone defense, Mississippi Valley was able to slow down Grand Canyon team and keeping them in position to make a comeback. GCU outpaced MVSU 41-27 in the opening half to take commanding lead into the halftime break.

Scoring got off to a rocky start, with neither team landing a basket until Rashaan Surles landed a three-point basket at the 17:46 mark. A jumper by GCU closed the gap to 3-2. Surles knocked down another three (17:18) when Vacha Vaughn found him in scoring position. Fiifi Aidoo got into the downtown action for the Lopes at 16:33 to bring the score to 6-5. Another three by Grand Canyon changed the lead to 8-6 in favor of the Lopes. Darrell Riley scored another three at 14:33 to reclaim the lead in favor of the Delta Devils. Kylan Phillips was credited with the assist.

In the second half, Mississippi Valley outscored Grand Canyon 35-31. Riley scored the first basket of the second with a fast break layup, Surles earned the assist. A foul and turnover by Aidoo led to a three-pointer by Phillips to bring the score to 41-32. The game turned to molten lava leading down the stretch with the Delta Devils making key plays.
Williams paced MVSU with 14-points, six rebounds and two assists. Surles added 12-points, two rebounds, two assists, two blocks and two steals. Riley tallied 11-points, two rebounds and two assists. TaJay Henry chipped in nine-points, six rebounds, one assist and one steal.

The Delta Devils will be back in action on December 20 at 6:00 p.m when they take on Iowa State University.