Gonzaga, Purdue finalizing agreement for 2026-27 matchup in Las Vegas

Gonzaga is 0-5 all-time against Purdue, including a pair of losses in the Sweet 16

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

Mark Few and the Gonzaga Bulldogs have long prided themselves on being willing to play anyone, anywhere, at any time.

And time and time again, the Zags put their money where their mouth is, routinely putting together among the toughest non-conference schedules in the country.

It looks like 2026-27, Gonzaga's first year in the new look Pac-12 conference, will be more of the same.

Gonzaga is finalizing an agreement to play Matt Painter and the Purdue Boilermakers in a doubleheader at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Nov. 2, 2026, according to College Basketball Insider Jon Rothstein. UCLA and Arizona will square off in the other game, in what will be the third installment of a multi-year series between the former Pac-12 foes.

The report has not been confirmed publicly by either school, with Rothstein reporting there is no timetable for an official announcement and that official tip-off times are to be determined.

Gonzaga doesn't have a losing record against many teams, but they are 0-5 against Purdue dating back to 1998, when then-coach Dan Monson took an 83-68 loss on the road in the preseason NIT event.

Gonzaga also lost to Purdue in the NCAA Tournament in 2000 and again in 2024, with both losses coming in the Sweet 16. The other two losses were back-to-back years in Feast Week tournaments, first in the PK85 in Portland in 2022 and again in the Maui Invitational in 2023.

The Boilermakers have been one of the most consistently excellent teams in college basketball under coach Matt Painter, making it all the way to the national championship in 2024 before falling to UConn.

Purdue Boilermakers forward Mason Gillis (0) rushes up the court against Gonzaga Bulldogs forward Graham Ike (13) on Friday, March 29, 2024. | Grace Hollars/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK

If confirmed, Purdue would join Kentucky, Creighton, UCLA, and Oregon as known or speculated opponents on Gonzaga's 2026-27 non-conference schedule, with three games against unknown opponents also taking place in the Players Era Festival in Las Vegas.

The Zags will host Kentucky at the McCarthey Athletic Center for the first time in program history, in what will be game five of a six-year series agreed to by Few and then Kentucky coach John Calipari ahead of the 2022-23 season.

Gonzaga will also play on the road at Creighton in the return game of a true home-and-home series that began this year when the Zags handed the Bluejays a 27-point loss in Spokane on Nov. 11.

Rothstein previously reported that Gonzaga and UCLA would renew their neutral site series for another two years, although locations were not specified at that time. It has also been rumored - but not confirmed - that Gonzaga and Oregon will play a neutral site game next year, likely in Seattle, after playing in Portland this December.

Gonzaga will join the new look Pac-12 on July 1, 2026. The conference will have nine basketball-playing members, and is expected to have a true round robin scheduling format where each team plays everyone twice - once at home and once on the road.

That means the Zags will have just 16 conference games, giving them 16 non-con games to bolster their schedule with - something they are clearly still going to do despite joining a league that should give them more opportunities to pick up quad 1 and quad 2 wins thanks to programs like Utah State, San Diego State, Boise State, and Colorado State joining the ranks.