Grand Canyon declines West Coast Conference invite to join Mountain West Conference

Antelopes announced they will join the Mountain West, six months after accepting an invite from the WCC

Grand Canyon University guard Ray Harrison (0) shoots over Eastern new Mexico guard Cougar Downing (2) during an exhibition game at Global Credit Union Arena in Phoenix on Oct. 29, 2024. / Michael Chow/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Grand Canyon won’t be joining the West Coast Conference after all, as the school announced Friday that it has accepted an invite to be part of the Mountain West Conference.

Starting by at least 2026, the Antelopes will compete in 17 conference-sponsored sports, including men’s basketball. The school will try to join the Mountain West as early as the second quarter of 2025 if permitted by the conference's bylaws.

GCU has made it to the NCAA Tournament in each of the past three seasons under head coach Bryce Drew, who guided the program to its first win in the Big Dance this past season with a first-round win over 5-seed Saint Mary’s.

"We want to best position ourselves to be nationally competitive, and we are excited about the vision and future of the Mountain West," GCU athletic director Jamie Boggs said in a statement. "We are joining a conference that has enjoyed national success, has developed a rich tradition in its 26 years and has financially positioned us for competitive success in this changing collegiate landscape. We are eager to compete for championships with our future peers in the Mountain West."

The Mountain West began courting GCU after five of the league’s members — Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State and Utah State — announced earlier this year that they’re joining the Pac-12 in 2026. League commissioner Gloria Nevarez, formerly of the WCC, has added two new members to the conference in the past month. UTEP was announced as the Mountain West’s seventh full-time member on Oct. 1

GCU’s decision to join the Mountain West comes six months after the university announced it would join the WCC as a full-time member in 2025, along with fellow Western Athletic Conference member, Seattle U.

“We have been notified by Grand Canyon University of its decision to withdraw as a member of the West Coast Conference,” the league said in a news release. “We are disappointed with its decision to seek conference membership elsewhere just months after completing its membership agreement with the WCC that would have enhanced its national profile. The WCC views GCU’s decision as a missed opportunity to be part of one of the premier conferences in men’s basketball.”

The WCC’s future basketball brand took a hit last month when Gonzaga announced it was joining the new-look Pac-12 in all Olympic sports starting in 2026.

With the Zags and Antelopes out, as well as Washington State and Oregon State once the Pac-12 forms, the WCC is looking at nine members by the start of the 2026-27 season. 

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