The No. 7 Michigan Wolverines just made a strong statement at the expense of No. 12 Gonzaga Bulldogs in the Players Era Festival title game on Wednesday night at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
Dusty May's Wolverines showed no mercy on the Bulldogs, as Michigan eked out a 101-61 victory.
Gonzaga never got into rhythm, while the Wolverines were relentless on both ends of the floor. With Michigan firing on all cylinders, the Bulldogs found themselves trailing by as many as 46 points. Gonzaga never held the lead and finished the contest with just a 34 percent shooting from the field. Michigan, on the other hand, made 60 percent of its attempts from the floor.
It was Gonzaga's first loss in the 2025-26 college basketball season, dropping the Bulldogs to 7-1 overall and leaving head coach Mark Few with a tough admission on Gonzaga's worst loss with him at the helm.
“Literally every aspect of the game I could talk about was lacking, so maybe write that,” Few said after the game, per Theo Lawson of The Spokesman-Review.
Indeed. The Bulldogs were dominated in nearly every facet of the contest. While Gonzaga sank just three of its 22 3-point attempts, Michigan drained 13 triples on 27 tries. The Wolverines were plus-11 in points off turnovers and plus-10 on points in the paint. They outrebounded Gonzaga, 44-38.
It was a reality check for the Bulldogs, but perhaps a timely one. They would rather have such a loss early in the season than later.
It is also not about to get much easier for Gonzaga, as Few's team is about to face a dangerous No. 19 Kentucky Wildcats squad at Rupp Arena in Lexington on Dec. 5.
