Gonzaga, Tennessee make it official for Dec. 2 meeting in Indianapolis

The final piece – and another matchup of ranked teams – is officially in place on Gonzaga’s nonconference schedule.

The top-ranked Zags will face No. 12 Tennessee on Dec. 2 in Indianapolis as part of the Jimmy V Classic doubleheader. No. 2 Baylor tangles with No. 8 Illinois in the second game at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.

ESPN will televise Gonzaga-Tennessee at 4 p.m. Pacific time. The teams agreed to the contest in May. It was originally scheduled for Madison Square Garden before being relocated temporarily to Orlando, Florida, and finally Indianapolis.

Gonzaga and Baylor collide at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Dec. 5. No spectators will be allowed at either Bulldogs game.

The Zags have won four of six games against Tennessee, but the Volunteers knocked off then-No. 1 Gonzaga 76-73 in Phoenix in the last meeting in December 2018. Tennessee’s Admiral Schofield scored 25 of his 30 points in the second half, including a tie-breaking 3-pointer with 22 seconds remaining.

Tennessee, 17-14 last season, is favored to win the SEC in a preseason media poll. Forward John Fulkerson made the preseason All-SEC first-team and forward Yves Pons was on the second team. Both received votes for SEC player of the year.

The Zags will play neutral-court games against No. 6 Kansas on Nov. 26 and Auburn on Nov. 27 in Fort Myers, Florida, and No. 5 Iowa on Dec. 19 in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. GU has home games versus Tarleton State (Dec. 8), Southern (Dec. 10), Northern Arizona (Dec. 12), Idaho (Dec. 14), Northwestern State (Dec. 21) and Dixie State (Dec. 29).