Grand Canyon ultimately will not compete in the West Coast Conference, as the school announced Friday that it has accepted an invitation to join the Mountain West Conference.

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

GCU has made the NCAA Tournament each of the last three seasons under head coach Bryce Drew, who led the program to its first win in the Big Dance last season with a first-round win over fifth-seeded 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 participating in a conference that has enjoyed national success, developed a rich tradition over 26 years, and positioned us financially for competitive success in this changing higher education landscape. We are eager to compete for championships with our future colleagues in the Mountain West.”

The Mountain West began courting GCU after five league members — Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State and Utah State — announced earlier this year that they would join the Pac-12 in 2026. League Commissioner Gloria Nevarez, a former WCC member, added two new members to the conference last month. UTEP was announced as the Mountain West's seventh full-time member on October 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 informed by Grand Canyon University of their decision to withdraw from the West Coast Conference,” the league said in a news release. “We are disappointed by the decision to seek conference membership elsewhere, which would have increased its national profile, just months after entering into the membership agreement with the WCC. The WCC views GCU’s decision as a missed opportunity to participate in one of the premier conferences in men’s basketball.”

The WCC's future basketball brand suffered a blow last month when Gonzaga announced it would join the new-look Pac-12 in all Olympic sports beginning in 2026.

With the Zags and Antelopes, as well as Washington State and Oregon State, leaving once the Pac-12 forms, the WCC expects to have nine members by the start of the 2026-27 season.

MORE GONZAGA NEWS & ANALYSIS

FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA

Continue to follow our Gonzaga coverage on social media by liking us on Facebook and following us on Twitter.