What Pac-12 partnership with USA Network means for Gonzaga basketball

The Pac-12 media deal now has three partners, and ESPN is notably not among them

Gonzaga head coach Mark Few. | Photo by Erik Smith

It has become a familiar sight to see Mark Few's Gonzaga Bulldogs on ESPN and ESPN2 over the past decade-plus, including twice in the past week against Oklahoma and Creighton.

That won't be the case for much longer, however, as the new-look Pac-12 closed the loop on its media rights deal by announcing a partnership with USA Network.

Per the press release: "The Pac-12 Conference and USA Sports today jointly announced a five-year partnership that will begin in 2026-27 and feature the new Pac-12 as the premier college sports offering on USA Network, including regular season action for football, men’s basketball and women’s basketball as well as the league’s men’s basketball tournament."

The deal, which runs through the 2030-31 season, includes 50 regular-season men's basketball games and 5-10 women's games annually, and most notably the Pac-12 conference tournament games leading up to the championship, which will be broadcast on CBS.

The Pac-12 now has three primary media partners lined up in CBS, The CW Network, and USA Network, with distribution for men's basketball as follows: a minimum of three regular season games on CBS (plus the Pac-12 conference title game), 17 regular season games on the CBS Sports Network, 35 regular season games on The CW, and 50 regular season games on USA Network, along with the conference tournament games up to the championship.

The terms of the Pac-12's new media rights deal have not been disclosed, with estimates ranging from $7-12M annually per school, which includes a full share for Gonzaga. The Pac-12 is known to be prioritizing reach and ease of access in media negotiations, with USA Network available in 70 million households, while CBS and The CW are available over-the-air, which gives the Pac-12 exceptional reach and strong linear distribution opportunities.

“The new Pac-12 is where tradition meets transformation — a unique opportunity in the rapidly-evolving college sports landscape that strongly aligns with the go-forward vision of USA Sports,” said Pac-12 Commissioner Teresa Gould. “We are thrilled to launch this partnership with the USA Sports team and leverage our shared vision to build something unique and special.” 

With at least 20 regular-season games going to CBS and CBS Sports Network, it's widely expected Gonzaga will have a big chunk of their games on either of those two channels, with reporting by Pac-12 insider John Canzano indicating they have the first pick of games, followed by USA Network and then The CW.

It is reasonable to expect Gonzaga's high-level matchups against teams like San Diego State and Boise State will get CBS or CBS Sports Network treatment, while games against lower-level opponents like Texas State and Fresno State could end up on USA Network or The CW.

For Gonzaga, a longstanding relationship with ESPN appears to be on hiatus. It has been reported that ESPN+ could be a landing spot for the Pac-12's Olympic sports, and possibly some women's basketball games, but Mark Few's team won't be on ESPN or ESPN2 during conference play through 2030-31.