What Gonzaga's Mark Few said after blowout loss to Michigan

Zags got thumped by the Wolverines in Players Era Festival championship game

Nov 26, 2025; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Gonzaga Bulldogs head coach Mark Few reacts in the first half against the Michigan Wolverines. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

It was a one-of-a-kind night for Gonzaga in the worst way possible.

Nothing clicked offensively; the defensive intensity that was present throughout the first three weeks of the season was ineffective and Michigan could do no wrong in a 101-61 final in the Players Era Festival championship Wednesday night.

It was the worst loss in the Mark Few era and just the fourth time the Zags allowed over 100 points in a game since 2007.

Here's what Few had to say after the game.

On his biggest takeaway from the game

Nov 26, 2025; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Gonzaga Bulldogs bench looks on during the second half against the Michigan Wolverines. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

"I don't think we competed once we got kind of punched in the mouth to start the game, and nothing was going great for us on either end. I think it just kind of got us pretty rattled. We just kind of didn't channel it properly, and then the flight gates opened up, and then Michigan did a great job; they were hitting 3s, doing what they do great — which would be crash the glass and get out in transition."

"We just didn't shore any of that up. And then we were just horrendous on offense, and a lot of that had to do with their pressure and physicality."

On Michigan's physicality in the paint

Nov 26, 2025; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Michigan Wolverines center Aday Mara (15) dunks in the second half against Gonzaga Bulldogs. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

"We're a team that really scores well inside. We were very efficient from 2, and we literally couldn't generate any scoring there at all. Braden [Huff] did a nice job of finding some creases in there and was able to hit that little mid-range flow. And that was essentially it. I mean, which is crazy as good as we've been this year. But that was, that was literally all we had, offensively."

On moving past the loss vs. learning from it

Nov 26, 2025; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Gonzaga Bulldogs guard Adam Miller (23) shoots the ball in the second half against the Michigan Wolverines. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

"You can't run away from it, but you also can't forget we've had an incredible November. We played some really, really good teams, and we've came out on top, and we've played some fantastic defense. We've played some really, really efficient offense, and tonight that wasn't happening. So maybe that's where you got to just really, really learn how to dig in and stick to what we do and not deviate from that, and keep your belief in it."

On Michigan's ability to protect the rim

Nov 26, 2025; Las Vegas, NV, USA; A shot by Gonzaga Bulldogs forward Braden Huff (34) is blocked by Michigan Wolverines forward Yaxel Lendeborg (23). | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

"It's a length, it's a size, it's a strength thing and that helps schematically; that helps, you're not doubling. They played our post one-on-one. And when most people do that, we score 50 points in the paint. Tonight we probably got 3 [points in the paint]. Obviously, Braden's floaters were very, very effective. But yeah, that's something that just doesn't ordinarily happen to us."

On what he hoped to accomplish against Michigan's defense

Nov 26, 2025; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Gonzaga Bulldogs head coach Mark Few reacts in the first half against the Michigan Wolverines. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

"Well, you have to make some perimeter shots. Nobody stepped up and shot consistently, including our bigs. Our players are gifted enough to — if they're going to just stand in the lane, they're gifted enough to make those 3s. They worked hard on them all year. They made them all year, and we weren't making them tonight. So literally, kind of every little thing that we've always been able to go to and lean into wasn't happening."