The Terps and Antelopes meet up for the first time ever.
No. 4-seed Maryland men’s basketball is back in the dance with arguably its best shot for a deep run in years. The road to that starts Friday in Seattle against No. 13-seed Grand Canyon.
Most of the Terps roster will get its first taste of March Madness basketball against the Antelopes, who are back in the tournament after making a name for themselves in last season’s. The programs have never played each other.
Maryland’s first-round matchup is set to tip off at 4:35 p.m. EST and will air on TBS.
Grand Canyon Antelopes (26-7, 13-3 Western Athletic)
The only for-profit college competing at the Division I level has reaped the benefits of its investment. After transitioning to Division I for the 2013-14 season, it’s won four of the last five Western Athletic Conference tournaments — in 2021, 2023, 2024 and 2025 — and in turn has made it to the tournament in those years.
Many may remember the Antelopes for their upset over then-No. 5-seed Saint Mary’s in the first round a year ago, their first March Madness win in program history. And in the second round, they led then-No. 4-seed Alabama with just over five minutes left in the game before collapsing late.
Fifth-year head coach Bryce Drew returned most of that team this season, and added more. Grand Canyon, with a starting lineup that includes four seniors, is ranked No. 93 in the country, according to KenPom.com, and made it through the WAC tournament with relative ease. The Antelopes have age, size, depth and postseason experience. They’re not a regular No. 13-seed.
Players to know
JaKobe Coles, senior forward, 6-foot-8, No. 21 — Coles wasn’t an Antelope last season — he transferred in from TCU — but he’s immediately become the focal point of their offense. He’s averaging a team-high 14.8 points per game on a 52.1% shooting percentage, while also adding 5.7 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game. He’s one of just two players to start every game for the Antelopes this season.
Tyon Grant-Foster, graduate guard, 6-foot-7, No. 7 — Grant-Foster was Grand Canyon’s star a season ago. The guard averaged 20.1 points per game on his way to a WAC Player of the Year nod, and was spectacular in both March Madness games. Now 25 years old, he’s taken a bit of a step back this season, averaging 14.5 points per game and missing the month before the conference tournament with an injury. But he’s been in this spot, and the last time around, he slayed a first-round giant.
Duke Brennan, junior forward, 6-foot-10, No. 24 — The Antelopes’ main big man is primarily a defensive asset, and his work guarding Derik Queen and Julian Reese will be crucial for an upset bid. He’s played in all but four games the past two seasons. Brennan is averaging 10.7 points and 9.2 rebounds per game this year.
Strength
Defensive playmaking. The Antelopes excel at ending opponents’ possessions prematurely. They’re 11th in the country with 9.4 steals per game and 17th with 5.1 blocks per game. Maryland was incredible with ball security in the Big Ten Tournament, but Grand Canyon is uniquely positioned to change that, and potentially turn the game’s tides.
Weakness
Three-point shooting. Grand Canyon isn’t quite 2023-24 Maryland-level bad from beyond the arc, but it’s close. Its 31.5% 3-point percentage is good for 309th in the country, compared to the Terps’ 37.2% this season being 35th.
Three things to watch
1. The Crab Five versus a deep rotation. Any team with an effective bench has the ability to outstamina the Terps and knock them out of the tournament. Grand Canyon has just that. Eight Antelopes average more minutes per game than the Terps’ most-used bench piece — Deshawn Harris-Smith (15.3 per game). And all eight of them score at least six points per game.
2. Reese’s return to March. Reese was Maryland’s best player in its first-round win over No. 9-seed West Virginia in 2023, and contained No. 1-seed Alabama’s star forward Brandon Miller admirably before getting into foul trouble and eventually fouling out. If Reese didn’t exit that game, it could have looked a lot different.
It’s been two years since that game. Reese is stronger, a better scorer and a better leader. His team needs him to show that in the final games of his college career.
3. How does Maryland defend the backcourt? Ja’Kobi Gillespie is Maryland’s best defensive guard, but he isn’t a great matchup against Grand Canyon’s top two guards — Grant-Foster and Rayshon Harrison — who are 6-foot-7 and 6-foot-4, respectively. There’s plenty of ways head coach Kevin Willard can choose to address that mismatch, but how he does so is worth monitoring.