The connection that brought Dasha Biriuk 6,500 miles from her Ukrainian hometown to Grand Canyon this month is more about the brutal and best sides of humanity than basketball. Biriuk, GCU's newest guard after transferring from Ohio State, is reuniting with Lopes assistant coach Matt Shewmake, who was a stranger receiving a heart-tugging plea from a mutual acquaintance in 2022 to open a path that restored Biriuk's safety, education and basketball in America.