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Two of the West Coast’s most distinguished faculty basketball manufacturers will reportedly meet in a nonconference sport just a few days earlier than the Christmas vacation.
Mark Few will face off towards his alma mater for simply the second time when Gonzaga performs Oregon on Dec. 21 on the Moda Middle in Portland. The matchup, that includes two groups projected to open the season ranked within the Prime 25, was reported by Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports activities.
A tipoff time and tv particulars shall be decided at a later date, however the Oregonian reported that the Large Ten has broadcast rights, suggesting the sport will air on FOX or FS1.
It’ll mark simply the fourth assembly between the Pacific Northwest colleges within the trendy faculty basketball period and the primary sport on the mainland since 1983. Gonzaga’s final two conferences with Oregon got here in 2019 on the Battle 4 Atlantis within the Bahamas and in 2000 on the Rainbow Basic in Honolulu. The Zags misplaced 70-64 in Hawaii earlier than successful an in depth name twenty years later within the Bahamas, outlasting the Geese 73-72 in additional time to achieve the Battle 4 Atlantis championship.
It’ll be the primary time the Zags meet the Geese outdoors of a event format underneath Few, a Cresswell, Oregon, native who attended the Eugene faculty and obtained his diploma in 1987 two years earlier than becoming a member of Dan Fitzgerald’s employees at Gonzaga as a graduate assistant.
Few matching up towards his alma mater for less than the third time shall be among the many storylines to comply with because the matchup attracts nearer, but it surely received’t be the one one.
Oregon heart Nate Bittle, a reigning All-Large Ten Third Crew choice, was as soon as a Gonzaga recruit who listed the Zags amongst his ultimate 9 colleges and took an official go to in 2020. Few’s employees additionally recruited junior guard Jackson Shelstad, who was closely contemplating Gonzaga earlier than selecting the Geese over the Zags and his different finalist, UCLA.
Bittle and Shelstad venture to be the highest gamers for an Oregon staff that got here in at No. 17 in CBS Sports activities’ way-too-early Prime 25 And 1 ballot printed on June 2. Gonzaga, which returns frontcourt standouts Graham Ike and Braden Huff, was ranked No. 21 in that very same ballot.
Each Gonzaga and Oregon bowed out of the 2025 NCAA Event within the Spherical of 32. Enjoying at Local weather Pledge Enviornment in Seattle, Dana Altman’s Geese notched a first-round win over Liberty earlier than dropping to former GU assistant Tommy Lloyd and Arizona 87-83 two days later. The Zags routed Georgia in an opening-round sport in Wichita, Kansas, earlier than dropping to No. 1 seed Houston in dramatic vogue.
Gonzaga’s by no means missed the NCAA Event underneath Few, advancing to 2 nationwide championship video games. The Zags might’ve confronted Oregon within the first of these, however the Geese misplaced to North Carolina within the Closing 4 earlier than the Tar Heels outlasted GU within the title sport. Altman has 780 profession teaching wins and a 532-370 report at Oregon, lacking the NCAA Event simply thrice since 2012.
Oregon is anticipated to be the final of the heavyweights Gonzaga is anticipated to see throughout a loaded nonconference schedule.
The Zags are going through Oklahoma on the Enviornment (Nov. 8) earlier than internet hosting Creighton (Nov. 11) and touring to Arizona State (Nov. 15) earlier than enjoying three video games in three days on the Gamers Period Pageant. GU will play Alabama (Nov. 24), Maryland (Nov. 25) and an opponent nonetheless to be decided (Nov. 26) on the Thanksgiving-week event in Las Vegas.December’s slate consists of three neutral-site video games, towards Kentucky in Nashville (Dec. 5), towards UCLA in Seattle (Dec. 13) and towards Oregon in Portland (Dec. 21).
Gonzaga’s performed a quantity video games on the downtown enviornment used primarily by the NBA’s Portland Trailblazers, most lately visiting for the 2022 Phil Knight Legacy. A No. 1-seeded Zags staff performed two NCAA Event video games on the enviornment earlier the sport yr, beating Georgia State and Memphis to advance to the Candy 16.
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