NCAA basketball

LAS VEGAS – Two months ago, without knowing anything other than how the win-loss record would shake out, the overwhelming majority of fans would have been satisfied with what Gonzaga put together this week at the Players Era Festival.

Women’s basketball royalty swooped into Spokane recently to check on a friend.

BOISE – Idaho guard Kolton Mitchell's 3-pointer capped a 16-1 scoring run in the second half, allowing the Vandals to separate for a 78-64 nonconference win over Cal State Northridge on Wednesday night in the Holiday Hoops Classic at Idaho Central Arena.

LAS VEGAS – They call this tournament the Players Era Festival.

After a short getaway to the islands, Washington State is headed back stateside with a fourth-place finish.

All the Zags got at MGM Grand Garden Arena was a painful dose of their own medicine.

LAS VEGAS – Gonzaga came into Wednesday’s matchup with No. 7 Michigan seeking a Players Era Championship, a $1 million paycheck and another top-10 win to bolster its impressive nonconference resume.

A sight seen often at Gonzaga games: Streams of Zag fans hitting the exits midway through the second half with a blowout win secured. A sight rarely, if ever seen: Hundreds of Gonzaga fans in the concourses, leaving an arena midway through the second half with the Zags trailing by 40 points.

LAS VEGAS – Three observations at the buzzer from Gonzaga’s 101-61 blowout loss to Michigan on Wednesday at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.

The objective was two-fold for No. 12 Gonzaga on Tuesday night against Maryland.With four other teams improving to 2-0 at the Players Era Festival before Mark Few’s squad tipped off at MGM Grand Garden Arena, it was imperative the Zags first beat the Terrapins to join a group of unbeatens in Las Vegas and stay alive in the championship picture.

Who would have known the victor of the Washington State/Arizona State basketball game Tuesday would come down to the first team to 100 points.

No. 12 Gonzaga cruised to a win against Maryland and will now face Michigan in the Players Era championship game on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m.

DENTON, Texas – Reece Robinson made a pair of free throws with nine seconds left to force overtime, and then his North Texas teammates dominated in the extra frame to defeat the Eastern Washington men’s basketball team 79-71 on Tuesday at the Super Pit.

Two convincing wins in two nights is a parlay that landed Gonzaga in the title game at The Players Era Championship, and has focused the national spotlight on the undefeated Zags.Win or lose Wednesday against Michigan, and Gonzaga is sure to continue the rocket ride up from its preseason No. 21 ranking.

In the latest Zags Basketball Insiders Podcast, Richard Fox and yours truly covered Gonzaga’s convincing win over Alabama, the impact of Mario Saint-Supery and Tyon Grant-Foster and the pluses and minuses of NIL-driven tournaments.

LAS VEGAS – Gonzaga coach Mark Few caught a few minutes of the Michigan-Auburn game on television prior to the Zags taking the floor against Maryland on Tuesday night at the Players Era Festival.

Alabama’s bench got the best of Gonzaga on Monday, outscoring the Zags 27-18 in GU’s 95-85 victory. It was the first time GU lost the bench points category this season. In fact, Gonzaga reserves had dominated counterparts by at least 10 points in every other game.

PULLMAN – Maybe Washington State is a second-half team.

Gonzaga puts its unbeaten record on the line against Alabama.