5 keys to victory for Gonzaga vs. Oregon in Northwest Elite Showdown

The Zags' final non-conference game of the season is Sunday against Oregon

Gonzaga Bulldogs forward Graham Ike (15). | Photo by Mercedes Smith

Mark Few and the Gonzaga Bulldogs close out the non-conference portion of the 2025-26 season on Sunday afternoon in Portland against the Oregon Ducks. The game is set to tip at 3:00 PM PT and will be broadcast on NBC's streaming platform Peacock.

Gonzaga (11-1) and Oregon (6-5) almost never square off, with Sunday's tilt representing just the third matchup between these two teams since Few took over in 1999. The other two games both came in Thanksgiving tournaments, with Gonzaga losing to Oregon in the Maui Invitational in 1999 and returning the favor with a win in the Battle 4 Atlantis 20 years later in 2019.

Oregon has had tremendous success under Dana Altman, but injuries and a poor start offensively have the Ducks sitting at just 6-5 on the year, with an ugly five-game losing streak in the middle of the non-conference slate. UO lost all three of their matchups in the Players Era Festival - to Auburn, San Diego State, and Creighton - and followed that up by dropping their first Big Ten games, at home to USC and on the road at UCLA.

Still, Gonzaga knows this team is dangerous due to their athleticism and the shotmaking ability of junior guard Jackson Shelstad, whom coach Few believes has a future in the NBA.

Here are five things the Zags need to do to ensure they leave Portland with a win on Sunday evening:

1. Force turnovers and capitalize in transition

Only two power conference teams in the country - Missouri and Maryland - turn the ball over at a higher rate than Oregon's 18.8%.

Meanwhile, Gonzaga has generated turnovers a whopping 21% of the time this season, using relentless ball pressure from point guards Mario Saint-Supery and Braeden Smith, as well as jumbo wings Jalen Warley, Tyon Grant-Foster, and Emmanuel Innocenti, to knock the ball loose and score easy points in transition.

Considering Oregon has one of the very few frontcourts in CBB that could make life difficult for Graham Ike and Braden Huff, the more points this Gonzaga team can get in transition, the better.

2. Stay hot from three

Oregon boasts 7'0 rim protector Nate Bittle and a pair of strong, athletic power forwards in KJ Evans and Sean Stewart, which will be a bigger challenge than Ike and Huff typically see on the block.

In addition to scoring in transition, Gonzaga can put added pressure on Oregon by hitting their outside shots - something they have done extremely well the past few weeks.

Oregon forward Sean Stewart celebrates as the Oregon Ducks host the UC Davis Aggies on Dec. 13, 2025, at Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene, Oregon. | Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Since the abhorrent 3-22 shooting performance against Michigan, the Zags have shot 47.6% (30-63) from three, raising their season average to a stellar 36.2%. Oregon has done a decent job against the three overall, but San Diego State, UCLA, and Rice all shot over 40% against the Ducks - so it's not out of the question that the Zags can keep up the hot shooting.

The status of senior guard Adam Miller - who left Wednesday's game against Campbell with ankle soreness - remains up in the air, which could hurt GU's chances of impacting this game from deep.

However, Steele Venters, Saint-Supery, and Innocenti have all knocked down outside shots consistently this year, and it might even be in the game plan to have Ike and Huff space the floor to pull Bittle away from the rim and open up the driving lanes as well.

3. Limit second chance opportunities

There aren't many teams in college hoops better at snagging offensive rebounds than Gonzaga, but Oregon is one of them. The Ducks boast a 38.8% offensive rebound rate, good for 23rd in the country. Led by Bittle, Evans, Stewart, and backup big Ege Demir - who all average 2+ offensive boards per game - this team is tough to keep off the glass.

Gonzaga is, of course, one of the best rebounding teams in the country, but they'll need huge efforts from Ike, Huff, Warley, Grant-Foster, and Innocenti to keep this team from getting too many second chances, which could grind this game to a halt and cause major issues for the Zags.

4. Bigs must avoid foul trouble

Bittle and Evans are not just great rebounders and gifted scorers; they both excel at drawing contact and converting at the free throw line. Both are attempting 5.5 free throws per game, with Bittle converting at 79.6% while Evans is slightly better at an even 80%.

Gonzaga Bulldogs forward Graham Ike (15). | Photo by Myk Crawford

If you want a nightmare scenario in this game, it's Ike and/or Huff getting in early foul trouble, Bittle and Evans racking up points at the line, and Gonzaga's offense getting stymied by no interior post presence while the Ducks gobble up offensive rebounds, grind out long possessions, and keep Gonzaga from playing at their pace.

Fortunately, Gonzaga's bigs have done a good job of avoiding early foul issues, but it is arguably more imperative than ever that it doesn't happen on Sunday.

5. Win the point guard battle

Saint-Supery has already dealt with a litany of elite point guards this season: LaBaron Philon and Aden Holloway at Alabama, Nijel Pack at Oklahoma, Moe Odum at Arizona State, Elliot Cadeau at Michigan, and Donovan Dent at UCLA.

Shelstad is squarely in that elite tier, as a bigger point guard who can facilitate and score with the best of them. Saint-Supery will have his hands full on Sunday, even with help from Smith, Innocenti, and Warley defensively.

If Saint-Supery can break down Oregon's defense, get Ike and Huff the ball in positions to score, and make an impact with his active hands defensively, it will go a long, long way toward Gonzaga coming out of non-conference play with a sparkly 12-1 record before embarking on one last ride in the WCC.