Key storylines emerging as Gonzaga faces Maryland in Players Era Festival matchup

Bulldogs and Terrapins battle in second game of Players Era Festival

Nov 24, 2025; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Gonzaga Bulldogs forward Braden Huff (34). | Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

Mark Few and Gonzaga understood the Players Era Festival would present certain challenges that were unique to their already-rigorous nonconference schedule.

But with the novel obstacles the Players Era Festival and its unusual “tournament” format put forth, came rare opportunities to add to the résumé with a few notable wins over power conference opponents — as well as some extra cash to their NIL fund.

With Tuesday’s blowout of Maryland, the Zags were one step closer to hitting the ultimate jackpot in Las Vegas. 

Roughly 24 hours removed from a slugfest against Alabama, the Bulldogs (7-0) looked like they barely had to break a sweat en route to a 100-61 victory over the Terrapins (5-2).

Gonzaga jumped out to a 21-point lead, withstood some pushback from its ACC foe and remained hot from downtown throughout, knocking down a season-high 14 3-pointers while recording 30 assists on 37 made field goals overall.

Nov 24, 2025; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Gonzaga Bulldogs guard Tyon Grant-Foster (7) shoots against the Alabama Crimson Tide during the second half in a 2025 Players Era Festival group play game at MGM Grand Garden Arena. | Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

Maryland managed to trim its deficit to single-digits at the free-throw line, but a lack of rhythm from the field let Gonzaga extend its advantage back to 15 at the halftime break.

Perhaps that was the only concern through the first 20 minutes of play — whether the Zags would win by enough to qualify for Wednesday’s championship game. Michigan’s 102-72 win over Auburn vaulted the Wolverines to the top of the Players Era Festival standings with a 2-0 record and +40 point differential. That meant in order to play for a $1 million prize in NIL funds, Gonzaga, which went into the day with a +10 differential, had to surpass Tennessee’s point differential (+23) or outscore the Volunteers (161) in its contest against Maryland.

Those worries were washed away within the first few minutes of the second half, as the Zags started 8-of-8 from the field to grow their lead to 22 points. They continued to make life difficult for the Terrapins on the other end of the floor as well, holding Maryland to 20-of-55 (36.4%) from the field while forcing 18 turnovers.

That set up a matchup between Gonzaga and Michigan in the championship game on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. PT on TNT.

Braden Huff led the Zags with 20 points. Emmanuel Innocenti added 15 points — his most in a Gonzaga uniform — while knocking down a career-high four 3-pointers.

Here were the most pertinent storylines that developed over tonight's matchup.

How the Zags shot from downtown

After establishing some sort of rhythm in the second half of the Alabama game, Gonzaga wasn't afraid to let it fly early on against Maryland.

Four of the Zags' first six attempts from the field on Tuesday were from downtown. Graham Ike knocked one down — his first since the Creighton game — followed by a trey from Mario Saint-Supéry to give the Bulldogs an early 10-4 lead. Braden Huff drilled one moments later following the first media timeout.

Gonzaga, which went 2-for-12 in the first half against the Crimson Tide, started 4-of-7 from 3-point range through the first 7 minutes of play. The Terrapins were probably prepared for the Zags' inside-out-game, but there wasn't much pointing toward a hot night from 3-point land from the Bulldogs.

Seven Zags made one 3-pointer in the first half, with Emmanuel Innocenti leading the way with three makes from downtown. One of those 3-balls resulted in a technical foul, though, as 6-foot-5 sophomore was whistled for blowing a kiss to Maryland's bench. That got Innocenti benched by Gonzaga's coaching staff.

Through 20 minutes of play against the Terrapins, the Zags tied their season-high with nine made 3-pointers.

It only took a few minutes into the second half for the Zags to set a new season benchmark from downtown. Innocenti kept it rolling, drilling a pair of 3-pointers to break his previous career-high of three made 3-pointers in a single game.

Gonzaga and Maryland's energy levels

Gonzaga didn't have that much of a rest advantage over Maryland going in, though early on it certainly looked like the Terrapins had played a game at midnight the night before.

The Bulldogs looked like usual selves — flying around on defense, forcing turnovers, limiting their opponent to just one shot on the defensive end while getting right into their offensive sets on the other. The Terrapins, meanwhile, lacked the necessary physicality around the rim on offense.

A 12-2 scoring run from Gonzaga fueled a 22-8 lead through the first 9 minutes of play.

The Terrapins got themselves going at the free-throw line, where they'd spent a good majority of the season heading into Tuesday. Maryland averaged 32.6 attempts at the charity stripe through its first six games, and with Darius Adams spearheading the attack, began to chip away at its deficit with more assertive play down the stretch of the first half.

Adams got to the line several times and capitalized off the gimmes, sparking a 16-4 run for the Terrapins over a span of 5 minutes, 35 seconds, to make it a single-digit margin after trailing by as many as 21 earlier in the half.

When Maryland wasn't able to lean on Adams, who scored half of his 10 points at the free-throw line in the first half, the well dried up for the Terrapins offense. Without a made field goal over the final 3 minutes of the half, Maryland's deficit swelled back to 15 points going into the break.

Gonzaga had no intentions of letting its foot off the gas in the second half. The Zags continued to get their hands in passing lanes, apply ball pressure and stay in between the Terrapins and the hoop on the defensive end of the floor, forcing Maryland into six turnovers and giving up seven made shots through the first 12 minutes of the second half.

How well Gonzaga shared the ball

With so much attention focused on Graham Ike, Braden Huff and drives from Gonzaga's perimeter players, open looks were created for guards and wings on the outside.

Ten of the Zags' first 11 made field goals were off assists.

By the end of the first half, eight of the 10 players who logged at least 2 minutes for Gonzaga had at least one assist, while all but one player for the Zags scored a field goal.

The ball continued to pop around the arc and in the paint in the second half, as the Zags started 6-for-6 from the field with five assists. Ike helped spread the wealth, finding Huff around the rim and Innocenti for his fourth 3 of the game to beat the Terrapins' haphazard double-teams.

The Zags set a new season-high with 30 assists.

Path to the championship/third place games

The Zags not only had to come out with a win if they wanted to play on Wednesday — they needed to do so in decisive fashion.

With Michigan blowing out Auburn, the Wolverines were on their to the top of the standings because of their point differential. Michigan routed San Diego State, 94-54, in the opener, but were capped at a +20 differential in the standings.

Tennessee (+23), Kansas (+21) and Iowa State (+19) were the other 2-0 teams ahead of Gonzaga, which entered Tuesday at +10.

That meant the Bulldogs would have to win by at least 13 points to make the championship game.