PHOENIX – Fiifi Aidoo poured in a team-high 14 points to lead four double-figure scorers and propel Western Athletic Conference preseason favorite Grand Canyon to an 86-56 win over Longwood Thursday evening at GCU Arena.
 
Aidoo did most of his damage during a 10-point first half and finished 6-of-8 from the field as the Antelopes (9-3) improved to 9-1 on their home floor. Carey Benson added 11 points, and Oscar Frayer and Matt Jackson scored 10 apiece to help Grand Canyon roll past a shorthanded Longwood squad playing its final non-conference game of the season.
 
Longwood (3-9), playing without leading scorer Isaiah Walton, starting guard Charles Glover and key reserve Jahleem Montague, struggled to score against a Grand Canyon defense that entered the game holding opponents to a WAC-low 59.2 points per game. Led by a two-steal, two-block effort from senior guard Shaq Carr, Grand Canyon shut down Longwood's perimeter shooting and held the Lancers to a season-low three three-pointers.
 
"Their size really dictated a lot of things," said Longwood head coach Jayson Gee. "We weren't able to execute early on. This environment is a true home-court advantage, and they were able to get off to a good start. Once we settled down, we were able to do some things effectively, but their size really bothered us much more than we calculated."
 
Grand Canyon shocked Longwood with that size and physical defense early and burst out of the gates to build a 30-point lead, 39-9, midway through the first half. The Lancers bounced back to match the Antelopes 47-47 the rest of the way, but that hole was too much to overcome for a Longwood squad with 43 percent of its scoring relegated to the bench with injuries.
 
Thursday's loss ends a grueling road trip to Arizona for the Lancers, who faced the No. 3 team in the nation and the WAC preseason favorite in a span of 48 hours. The Lancers limped through both of those games, playing both without the injured Walton and Glover, and then losing Montague to another injury against Arizona State.
 
By tipoff of the Grand Canyon game Thursday, Longwood was only able to dress eight players.
 
"In [Walton and Glover's] absence, we just have trouble scoring the ball," Gee said. "Scoring the ball is gasoline to a player, and without that gasoline, it's difficult to maintain pace."
 
With those two out, the bulk of the scoring burden fell to redshirt senior B.K. Ashe and freshman Kamil Chapman, who scored a team-high 13 points apiece, and JaShaun Smith, who scored 11. Ashe played all but the final 1:52 of the game and also led the team with six rebounds. Chapman, meanwhile, strung together two of the highest scoring games of his young career during the road trip to Arizona, pouring in a career-high 16 points Tuesday against No. 3 Arizona State.
 
Thursday's game signals the end of Longwood's non-conference schedule and preempts a nine-day break for the Lancers, who do not return to the court until Dec. 30. That matchup pits the Lancers against Charleston Southern in the Big South Opener in Charleston, S.C.
 
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