Gonzaga draws SEC and Big Ten opponents for NIL-driven college basketball tournament

Bulldogs will play Alabama and Maryland in second iteration of Players Era Festival

Gonzaga Bulldogs head coach Mark Few. | Photo by Erik Smith, Myk Crawford

For the first time in program history, Gonzaga will have a chance to compete for a $1 million prize in a college basketball tournament.

The Players Era Festival, an NIL-driven multi-team event that made its debut last season, is set for its second iteration and will feature 18 teams, including the Bulldogs, vying for additional revenue to share with their respective student-athletes.

Players Era debuted this past November with eight teams competing in the Thanksgiving week tournament: Houston, Alabama, Rutgers, Notre Dame, Creighton, Oregon, Texas A&M and San Diego State. In addition to those eight, the following 10 teams are reportedly set for 2025: Auburn, Baylor, Gonzaga, Iowa State, Kansas, Michigan, St. John's, Syracuse, Tennessee and UNLV.

According to CBS Sports' Matt Norlander, the Zags will take on Alabama in the first round of what's been dubbed "November Mania" on Nov. 24 at 6:30 p.m. PST. Venues haven't been finalized for every matchup, though Norlander reports that stage games will be at MGM Grand Garden Arena and Michelob Ultra Arena.

Despite losing All-America guard Mark Sears, the Crimson Tide are expected to hover around the top-20 range in the preseason polls heading into the 2025-26 campaign. Retaining 6-foot-1 guard Aden Holloway (11.4 ppg in 2024-25) and 6-foot-4 rising sophomore LaBaron Pilon (10.6 ppg) to headline the backcourt certainly helps with continuity, while bringing in 6-foot-10 forward Taylor Bol Bowen (8.0 ppg at Florida State) and Noah Williamson (17.6 ppg, 7.6 rpg at Bucknell) to provide frontcourt depth with Grant Nelson, Derrion Reid and Mouhamed Dioubate departed.

Gonzaga saw Williamson up close during the Bulldogs' 86-65 victory over Bucknell at the McCarthey Athletic Center on Dec. 21. Williamson led the Bison in scoring with 16 points.

Gonzaga and Alabama last met up down in Birmingham, Alabama, for a nonleague matchup at Legacy Arena on Dec. 17, 2022. Drew Timme led the then-No. 9 Bulldogs to a thrilling 100-90 over the Crimson Tide while scoring 29 points and grabbing 10 rebounds in 36 minutes of action. Five other Bulldogs scored in double-figures as Gonzaga shot 40-of-70 (57.1%) from the field.

Gonzaga will take on Maryland in round two on Nov. 25 at 9:30 p.m. The Terrapins are entering their first year under head coach Buzz Williams after Kevin Willard guided the program to its third Sweet 16 appearance since 2003 this past season.

Maryland's new-look backcourt will look somewhat familiar to Gonzaga fans. Indiana transfer Myles Rice was one of the more highly-coveted guards available on the open market early on in the transfer cycle, while Washington State transfer Isaiah Watts played against the Zags in a February matchup from Pullman, where the 6-foot-3 guard scored 12 points in an 83-64 victory for Gonzaga.

If the Zags win both matchups to open Players Era, they'll advance to the championship round on Wednesday. In the likely event that more than two teams go 2-0 to start, point differential, total points scored and points allowed will serve as tiebreakers.

Last year, organizers of the Players Era Festival sent money to each school individually for participating in the event. The pay structure is expected to work in a similar manner this year, though how the schools divvy up the money to their players will be case-by-case.

With the House v. NCAA settlement reaching final approval, schools will be allowed to share up to $20.5 million per year in revenue with their student-athletes. Many schools won't be able to reach that number, and some are planning to put portions of Players Era money into their overall rev-share cap, per Norlander. Every participating team is assured $1 million, with an additional $1 million awarded to the winner.

Gonzaga's nonconference schedule now includes seven games against teams that qualified for the 2025 NCAA Tournament: Oklahoma (Nov. 8 at Spokane Arena), Creighton (Nov. 11 at the Kennel), Kentucky (Dec. 5 in Nashville, Tennessee), UCLA (Dec. 13 in Seattle), Baylor (TBD), Alabama (Nov. 24) and Maryland (Nov. 25). Additionally, those seven teams make Jon Rothstein's top 45 rankings of the offseason.

2025 Players Era Schedule 

All times PST

Monday, Nov. 24
Tennessee vs. Rutgers, 10 a.m.
Baylor vs. Creighton, 11 a.m. 
Kansas vs. Notre Dame, 12:30 p.m. 
St. John's vs. No. 13 Iowa State, 1:30 p.m. 
Houston vs. Syracuse, 3 p.m. 
Oregon vs. Auburn, 5 p.m. 
Alabama vs. Gonzaga, 6:30 p.m. 
Michigan vs. San Diego State, 7:30 p.m. 
Maryland vs. UNLV, 9 p.m.

Tuesday, Nov. 25
Rutgers vs. Notre Dame, 10 a.m.
Iowa State vs. Creighton, 11:30 a.m. 
Kansas vs. Syracuse, 12:30 p.m 
St. John's vs. Baylor, 2 p.m. 
Houston vs. Tennessee, 3 p.m. 
Michigan vs. Auburn, 5:30 p.m. 
Gonzaga vs. Maryland, 6:30 p.m. 
Oregon vs. San Diego State, 8 p.m. 
Alabama vs. UNLV, 9 p.m.